QUALITALY 142

October/November 2024 VII MAGAZINE Paolini, owner of the research restaurant ‘Prospettive’ where I used to work, for advice. Together with Mattia Di Biase, we rethought the menu in a modern style: from the starters to the main courses and side dishes. When we finished the work, at the end of 2022, I decided to continue working in Caruso’s kitchen, both because I was passionate about the world of meat and because I liked the idea of being part of the brigade of a restaurant for which I had overseen the research work and the reworking of the menu. WHAT DO YOU DO IN THE KITCHEN? I supervise the preparation of starters, first courses, side dishes and desserts. COULD YOU TELL US ABOUT SOME OF THE DISHES YOU PREPARE? Among the starters, a very special proposal is the bao, a Japanese sandwich which we prepare from scratch. From the dough to the filling, which is rubia gallega pulled beef accompanied by marc mayonnaise and fermented purple cabbage. Among the first courses there are several fresh pastas, all made by us, in whose recipes we try to combine tradition with innovation. We offer, for example, Chitarra all’abruzzese with a three-meat sauce (lamb, veal and pork , ed) served with meatballs . Then there are the Sagne e ceci con il Peperone dolce di Altino, a Slow Food Presidium of our region, or the Tre tempi di rubia gallega: a button of pasta filled with rubia cream, cooked in rubia broth and served with a diced rubia through which we offer a particularly prized meat in three different consistencies. Other specialities include Dalla Mailealla alle Langhe: a spaghetto aglio e olio (spaghetti with garlic and oil) with Piedmontese fassona beef battuta. IF YOU HAD TO DESCRIBE YOUR CUISINE IN THREE WORDS, WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE? Innovation, research and tradition. I am convinced that there can be no research and innovation without tradition. At the same time, I try to be very aware of sustainability and reuse all parts of an ingredient to avoid waste. I believe that the goal of all chefs is to provide emotion to customers and amaze them. That is why, since I am lucky enough to work in an open kitchen, I sometimes enjoy watching their expressions after they have tasted the dishes. There is no greater happiness than seeing them smile or catching the sense of wonder in their eyes. WHAT IS THE DISH THAT MOST REPRESENTS YOU? I am passionate about the world of pastry because of the precision it requires, but one of the dishes that represents me most is bao, because it is an expression of the concept of fusion cuisine and because it requires the use of multiple preparation and cooking techniques. A real stimulus for a chef. WHEN DID YOU DISCOVER YOUR PASSION FOR COOKING? I have loved cooking since I was a child. It was my father who passed this passion on to me. Originally from a family of butchers with seven children, he always had the desire to go to hotel school, but he couldn’t follow his dream because he lost his father very early on and had to start working immediately. But he has always nurtured his passion and ever since I was a child, I have always cooked with him. Then I chose to go to hotel management school in Pescara and started working right away in farm stays, trattorias, until I landed in the Prospettive research restaurant. In each kitchen I learnt something new that allowed me to discover the many facets of this job. WHO DO YOU CONSIDER YOUR ‘MASTER’? The most important people in my career path are two. Sabrina Tucci, the owner of one of the farm stays where I worked, who taught me ‘how to take the job of chef head-on’, and Tiziano Paolini, from whom I learnt various cooking techniques. CARUSO IS A RESTAURANT, PIZZERIA AND BRACERIA. HOW DO YOU COMBINE THREE SOULS IN ONE? It’s not easy, especially when customers at the same table order dishes from different menus. To serve everything at the same time, or at least avoid excessive delays, communication is crucial. IS THE ‘TRIPLE’ OFFER THEREFORE A LIMITATION? Absolutely not, quite the contrary. All the people working in the three kitchen lines always give their utmost to minimise hiccups. Apart from that, I think the wide choice is a strongpoint of the restaurant because it allows us to attract different types of customers. In addition, the customer can choose from several options and is encouraged to come back to try other dishes. HOW DID THE PASSION FOR SPANISH MEAT COME ABOUT? Mattia Di Biase, the owner’s son, has always been passionate about Spanish cuisine. So, he slowly decided to introduce Iberian breeds into the menu, to the point of including an actual meat curer in the dining room, which now features meats of Spanish origin, but also Irish, Polish and Japanese. His passion for meat has also led him to propose meat sushi, in which rice cooked using the traditional Japanese method is served with a Piedmontese fassona beef steak. WHAT IS THE RESTAURANT’S MUST-TRY DISH? The Round Mix includes three types of Italian and Spanish carpaccios, three of sushi, a meat sashimi and a boiled potato tomino with a fillet of fassona. We recommend this Chef Antonio Di Lorenzo