Le Calandre, 6/11/2026, Padua, Italy (5-Course, €250 or 8-Course, €280 includ. Taxes excl. gratuity

Le Calandre, 6/11/2026, Padua, Italy (5-Course, €250 or 8-Course, €280 incl. Taxes excl. gratuity)

Le Calandre, the 3-Michelin-star restaurant by chef Massimiliano Alajmo, is located in the outskirt of Padua, Italy. Padua is also famous for having the 3rd largest square in the world and being in the background of Shakespear’s famous play “The Taming of the Shrewd”.

Chef Alajmo has become the youngest 3-Michelin-star chef and has held 3 Michelin stars since 2002. The chef was only 28 years old back then. It was listed as number 34 on the World’s 50 best restaurants.

At present, it was not convenient to go by public bus because of the construction work. Their bus schedule is not reliable and with infrequent schedule. It would be more pleasant to travel by taxi to enjoy your grand dinner.

At Le Calandre, there are two types of menus (a la Carte and Degustation menus). Altogether, there are 6 types of Tasting menus. There are 3 degustation menus (Classico, Max, Raf) with about 8 pre-determined dishes in each. Each of the Degustation menus cost €280 and is with different theme. Another type of Tasting menu is a buildup of selection customer desires from the a la Carte menu, a customer may choose 3 dishes for €180, 4 dishes for €220, or 5 dishes for €250. We decided to select 5 dishes for €250 for each person and we would be sharing 10 courses mutually out of what we preferred from the a la Carte.

Upon arrival we noticed immediately that there was a ball of yarn in the center of the table. This represents the chef’s motto:" Cooking is like a needle that repeatedly passing through small holes, stretching a thread so thin and strong that it makes us all unconsciously tied together".

We started with Amuse Bouche. There were 4 different shapes of quasi-bread sticks on the table when we got seated. They can be arranged to look like 1001, starting from the far right - curry flavored rice stick, wheat Braun burnt Tarallo (ring-shaped biscuit originating from southern Italy), bread stick made with sun flower seeds and sesame and sundry tomato bread stick. They were fresh and pleasant. In addition, there were 4 more dishes for the Amuse Bouche, very often Amuse Bouche can be displayed like a parade.

1). Bubble

Bubble made with spirulina seaweed, is a family of single-celled microbes that grow in both fresh and salt water and is often referred to as blue-green algae. It is a very popular health food, may produce better sports performance, improve general health markers such as cholesterol level, triglyceride, and antioxidants. Spirulina is high in protein. It has some special characters suitable for molecular gastronomy, allowing the chef to playfully change the texture, shape, and temperature of ingredients to create inconceivable and artistic dishes. Chef can change the physical state of food without altering its fundamental flavor. (18/20)

In this dish, scallop was wrapped by the lovely pancetta and bubble to keep its tenderness and flavor. This part balanced the nutritional credit of the bubble. (18/20)

2). Tartlet with Beet Root Juice

Quite a few chefs made beet root juice based amuse bouche these days. The champion of the beet root tart probably was the rose-shaped beet root tart by Maaemo (a 3-Michelin-star restaurant), Oslo, Norway. It was so refined and delicate that it looked like a real rose.  At Le Calandre, the filling was made by beet juice custard with diced carrot and herb underneath, and topped with crumbled fried pancetta, shredded beet root and fresh herb. It was delicious and yummy. (18/20)

3). Spaghetti Carbonara

Spaghetti was arranged like a ring with crumbled pancetta on the center top sitting on sauteed green vegetables and shredded parmigiano cheese. It was another pleasant treat. (17/20)

4). Parmigiano Croquette

There were 2 types of croquettes, one curry flavored and the other sun-dried tomato flavored. Croquette was a small, breadcrumb-coated, and deep-fried roll. Chef’s amuse bouche seemed to favor 2 flavors – curry and tomatoes. (17/20)

5). Tuna Tartare

Fresh tuna crudo with shredded parmigiano cheese topping. It was scrumptious and the best out of the amuse bouche category. I was a bit disappointed with the quantities and varieties of the amuse bouche. A 3-Michelin-star usually serves a more generous and creative amuse bouche. (18/20)

Bread

Fresh warm bread, with a crusty top, was served with virgin olive oil, olive oil, chopped spinach, rose water, grounded artichoke heart. Then we started with our degustation menu. (18/20)

I). Murrina Cappuccino or Cuttlefish Liver Cappuccino

There are a few related items on the menu from the evolution of squid ink in pasta or risotto. Our attendant recommended this item as the latest product resembling Roberto Barni’s sculpture in Uffizi gallery, Milan, Italy. It also incorporates the Alinea’s approach of free style painting on the table after the end of savory dishes. 

Most important, it is inspired by the colors and craftsmanship of Venetian murrina glass. The dish features cuttlefish ink, sea urchin, and vegetable elements arranged to resemble a Murrina glass mosaic.

There are multiple colors, yellow was incorporated with mashed potatoes, purple with beet roots, black with squid ink, green with olive oil, dark green with spinach. (19/20)

To be creative, some chefs these days used livers from other large fish such as red mullet or whale. Fish livers are cooked and flavored with squid ink before diced and mixed in the cappuccino process.   

All these colorful ingredients were then in sync similar to the swirling process of making cappuccino. It actually tastes like a seafood dish and is delightful.

II). Venetian Soft Shell Crab and Red Prawn Stuffed with Anchovies

Venice is not too far away from Padua; the soft-shell crab is small in size with sweet shell fish umami flavor. Nettle leaves were coated with batter and deep fried. Both red prawn and soft-shell crab were stuffed with the intense savory umami flavored anchovies, coated with batter and delicately fried, standing in front of the plate. Red prawn was from lagoon, fresh and tender, with a distinctive red color, well-balanced with the slightly accentuated nettle leaves. In addition, we were also served a bowl of warm seafood broth with a sophisticated taste of varieties of shell fish. (18/20)

III). Grilled Pasta Buttons, Parmigiano and Mastic with Pepper Spremuta and Red Prawn Crudo 

Grilled pasta buttons were made of egg pasta filled with ricotta, Parmigiano Reggiano, mastic resin and smoked spremuta (freshly squeezed juice). At the bottom of the plate, there were diced red prawn crudo; in the center of the button, there were bits of red prawn. Red prawn’s flesh is slightly different from other types of prawn, probably because it grows in the lagoon environment of half-salted water. Chef has used the same type of prawn with dissimilar cooking methods with divergent yummy products. (20/20)

IV). Red Mullet with Lobster in Aurora Sauce

I like red mullet, it is a highly prized, deep-sea fish for its rich, distinct, tender and slightly shellfish like flavor. It is often referred to as goatfish, its liver is considered a delicacy. (20/20)

Chef Alajmo used red mullet filet, lobster and chopped green to make a roll first. Then, cut it up and placed it in the plate and top it with dry roasted onion rings and fried onion rings. Red mullet is like another poor man’s lobster, monk fish. Both have a lobster-like texture. the sauce is slightly pinky colored because chef Alajma used fish stock, shell fish stock, smoked fish stock, tomato and onion leaves as the sauce base for this dish. Chef Alajmo used leek stems as the wrapper to wrap lobster and fish filet in a roll. There were also some diced lobster/red mullet crudo at the bottom of the plate. This certainly was my favorite plate in Le Calandre.

 V). Hand-Chopped Beef Tartare on Bark with Black Truffle

Hand-chopped Piedmont Fassona beef tartare topped with black truffle and served with a distinctive corn bread featuring both crispy and soft textures, designed to be enjoyed by hand. The quality of the meat was excellent, it was tender, tasty, and had a rich flavor. It is not marble as A5, but it tasted so good in Tartare, and felt almost like melt in your mouth. On top of hand-chopped beef filet, there were ample sliced truffles (a highly prized underground fungi) from the nearby heart of truffle production center Piedmont region. This dish served the summer black truffle which runs from May thru August. (20/20) 

VI). Scorched Bone Marrow with Calamari, Sea Urchin and Gold Asetra Caviar Bruschetta (20/20) was a long and impressive piece of bone, probably 14” -15” long. It was humming sizzling noise when brought over to our table with nice aroma and mouth-watering ingredients on top. Roasted Piedmont Fassona bone marrow was served with aromatic herbs and a parsley-scented bruschetta topped with sea urchin and fresh gold Asetra caviar. (20/20)

To prepare bones for roasting, always have the butcher split the bone and roast it at 450F. Serve on toasted bread or caramelized with sugar for savory crème brulee. Chef Alajma mainly used parsley, thyme and rosemary and a bit of breadcrumbs. Bone marrow was so juicy and moist, there was fat but it was not like ordinary fat. It also had the distinct flavor of uniqueness of being neither meat nor fat. Can also have more diversified taste by adding a combination of herbs such as thyme, parsley, cilantro, leek, garlic, oregano, rosemary, sage, lemon zest and sea urchin, and caviar. We cleaned it pretty thoroughly. Dogs probably won’t touch the bone after we finished this course. 

VII). Grilled Donkey with Sautéed Artichokes and Spiced Yogurt Sauce

I have never had donkey meat, so I decided to try it this time. Grilled donkey meat ribeye served with sautéed artichoke hearts and a creamy spiced yogurt sauce, finished with balsamic vinegar and aromatic notes. I was informed by the attendant that. donkey was less gamy than the duck. Chef sliced the roasted donkey meat; it looked like sliced filet mignon. It was not heavily spiced; donkey meat was simply a quasi-baby filet mignon flavored by the Balsamic Vinegar and corn pepper. A not too complicated and elegant dish. (19/20)

VIII). Wood-Fired Lamb with Bay Leaves

Northern Italy is famous for its rich, hearty cuisine, which leans heavily on butter, dairy, corn, rice and slow-roasted meats. Lamb was from local area, rubbed with rosemary, garlic, salt and pepper, then slow-roasted and served with pancetta juice of lamb, charcoal food in powder, smoked eels, string beans and red pepper. Tender lamb was prepared with its own regional method and chef’s other creative techniques of presenting the traditional regional dish with “burned fingers”. (19/20)

IX). Relationships - Chocolate Game 2026

This item is considered an order for two people. There were 14 dishes with varieties of forms and flavor. It was recommended to use the yarn as a tool for playing the game. The restaurant also shared its information regarding Chocolate Game 2026 at https://alajmo.it/en/pages/relazioni-2026 (18/20)

1). SLAP – Effervescent powder Gin and Tonic Sorbet, Chickpea meringue, Mastic Resin, Perilla Leaf

2). Intro Vert – Apricot Raspberry, Mint Mountain Pine, Lavender Red Beans, Current Coffee, Sandalwood Hazelnut, 

3)Tropical Explosion – Mango Passionfruit, Coconut, Milk Chocolate, Tonka Bean

4). Blueberry Cocktail

5). Barley and Nocina Plum Mochi – Cognac-Soaked Plum, Barley Mochi, Barley and Nocino Ganache

6). Gummy Hazelnut Cream – Emulsion of Cocoa Bean, Husk Extract with Eccezione Chocolate Hazelnut Cream

7). Coffee Walnut Praline – Toasted Walnut, Coffee and Cardamon Praline Cream, Hazelnut Sponge

8). Pear and Fig Leave Cream

9). Cocoa Bean Husk Sphere Crystal – Crispy Gallette, Cocoa Bean Husk Cream with Raisin, Cocoa Nibs and Candied Orange

10). Matcha and White Chocolate Gelato – Tea Powder, Matcha, White Chocolate and Almond Gelato

11). Saffron Cremoso with Orange Blossom and Peach – White Chocolate Cream with Saffron and Orange Blossom, Kiwi, White Peach Cream

12). Frozen Blackberry Ravioli with Mountain Pine – Mountain Pine Spray, Blackberry Film, Blackberry and Cassis Sorbetto

13). Spicy “Cocalandre” Pudding – Seed Galletta, Cocoa Pudding with Chili Pepper

14). Gummy Gianduja Gelato – Cream and chewy Gianduja Ice Cream

There were varieties of mignardises, some of them on the menu and some of them not on the menu, but they were neither grouped nor served enough quantity to let diners have a distinctive taste on each different flavor. However, we enjoyed the evening, its unique style of Italian cuisine and its ambiance of Italian architecture and Zen.

Ristorante Quadri, Venice

Quadri, Venice, 3/22/2017 (7-Course, 215 Euro incl. VAT & Grat.), Italian, Michelin 1-Star

Quadri is located right in the heart of Venice, Piazza San Marco. If you face the famous Basilica of San Marco, it is in the middle of left wing of the piazza. Ristorante Quadri is located above the Gran Café Quadri which is on the street level, although both belong to the same chef/owner Massimiliano Alajmo at present. Ristorante Quadri has received a Michelin star since 2012. In 2011, Chef Alajmo took over and renovated Ristorante Quadri without changing its name, probably because Café Quadri has had an important historical role of being the 1^st Café introduced the Turkish coffee in Venice. He then sent the accomplished sous-chef in Le Calandre (Chef Alajmo’s Michelin 3-star restaurant near Padua) in charge of Ristorante Quadri’s kitchen which offers fusion style of modern Italian and Northern Italian cuisine. Chef Alajmo is the youngest in history to have been awarded three stars by the Michelin Guide.

Dining room is decorated with dark-wood furnishings, lush burgundy damask walls, and sparkling chandeliers create a typical rich Venetian ambience. If you happen to like the Venetian master Titian’s work, you will enjoy the setting in Quadri. 

There are 4 sets of Tasting menus – laguna 7-course, laguna 5-course, quadri 7-course and quadri 5-course. I selected laguna 7-course with slight changes. In addition, there is a la carte menu.

It started with 2 courses of Amuse Bouche:

I. Trio

1. Quail egg stuffed with egg yolk and tuna sauce and covered by anchovy. Anchovy is glazed with chicken broth jelly. Even though I am usually not a fan of anchovy, this dish of anchovy was ultra fresh and tasty.

2. Miniature pie crust was stuffed with celery cream and topped with the diced sea snail (garusoli) from the local lagoon. Sea snails are larger than the snails served in the French restaurants; its meat is a bit firmer than escargot’s and both types are delicious.

3. Focaccia with black rice at the bottom, topped with vegetable tartar including puréed red beet and carrot to provide the burgundy color. On the very top it was soy mayonnaise to provide the overall sophisticated taste.

II. Steamed Pizza Cicchetto

Cicchetti sometimes spelled cichetti in Venetian language, includes tiny sandwiches, plated of olives or other vegetables, halved hard boiled eggs, small snacks served "bàcari" (cicchetti bars or orosterie) in Venice, Italy. This is one of the signature dishes imported from Le Calandre since the sous-chef of Le Calandre is in charge of Quadri’s kitchen at present. The small slice of whole wheat pizza was steamed with a texture between pizza and bread. The topping was quite good, comprised of zucchini, yellow pepper, green pepper, beet root, pumpkin cream and some sesame seed topping. All vegetables were cooked with the perfect texture and flavor.

There were two types of bread served – ciabatta bread and bread sticks made with oregano and dried tomatoes.

1^st Course –    1) Dentex Carpaccio, Spring Salad Greens, Tarragon Mayonnaise

                        2) Crispy Raw Shrimp

1) Dentex is considered the most difficult catches for the beginner and the most valuable species of fish from the Mediterranean Sea. Although it is delicious, Dentex is not the most delicious. I had cooked Dentex once in Croatia just recently. The cooked Dentex tasted almost like sea bass, however the flesh a bit smoother than sea bass. The sashimi style Dentex actually brought out the flavor of Dentex to a higher level. When I inquired about the prep process, I was informed it required only olive oil.  

2) Raw shrimp was from Sardinia, it was covered by crispy rice puffs and topped with lobster-flavored mayonnaise and Osetra caviar. It was fresh and sweet.

2^nd Course – Baccalà Baccalà Baccalà Baccalà, 4 styles

Bacaalà is dried and salted cod. Since it is heavily salted for preservation, all bacaalà requires soaking before it can be used. Cod which has been dried but without the addition of salt is stockfish.

1) Smoked polenta with whipped stockfish and Osetra caviar.

2) Julienned tomato with fresh stockfish tripes alla parmigiana in black garlic sauce.
This is definitely my favorite among these 4 styles. Fish tripes taste like stripes of slice sea scallop, tender, juicy and tasty.

3) Fried stockfish throats, artichokes stripes which is crispy outsider and soft inside.

4) This is Baccalà Vicentina style, a traditional dish of the Veneto region. Dried cod is simmered in milk until it becomes smoothly creamy. This creamy dried Baccalà was placed at the bottom of the bowl, topped with red onion sorbet and chips of riso venere (black rice chips.) This is also one of the signature dishes of Quadri. It involved diversified and complicated preparation.

3^rd Course – Spaghettone with “alla busara” with Mantis Prawn Baby Lagoon Shrimp and Cuttlefish Eggs

Mantis shrimp’s flesh is closer to that of lobster than that of shrimp, and like lobsters, their shells are quite hard and require some pressure to crack. Usually they are deep fried with garlic and chilly peppers. In the Mediterranean countries Mantis shrimp is a common seafood, especially on the Adriatic coasts.

This is a pasta dish with thicker size of spaghetti. It was served with 2 different kinds of sauce. One was the tomato sauce with puréed fried mantis shrimp, mixed with spaghettone. The other was cuttlefish eggs with basil and cream sitting along the bottom of the spaghettone. Tomato sauce was superb because of Mantis shrimp’s enhancement, cuttlefish cream made the seafood flavor more intense.

4^th Course – Venetian Style Deep Fried Fish (Lobster, Squid, Soft-shelled Crabs and Spring Vegetables)

Fried seafood was placed in a paper bag imitating the ancient Venetian’s way of eating fried seafood. It was served with mustard mayonnaise. Each item was coated with light batter. There were two pieces of tender and juicy lobster meat, one piece of tender squid, two pieces of string beans and one piece of carrot. Restaurant manager emphasized this dish is also one of Quadri’s signature dishes, with more focus on the presentation of an ancient way of serving seafood.

5^th Course – Lamb Chops with Rhubarb Meat Jus Parmigiano Purée and Fried Artichoke

I have been longing for good lamb chops from day 1 of the trip ever since I heard that lambs in the Adriatic Sea coast lines are fed with various kinds of herbs such as thymes and rosemary. In this dish, lamb came from Wales, lamb chops were trimmed and boned except the long rib bones still remained. Chops were cooked rare-medium with excellent texture, served with mashed potato with parmigiano cheese and artichoke heart. Sauce was made of meat juice from cooking and rhubarb juice.

6^th Course – Sour Cherry Sorbet with Almond Mousse and Berries

This course is a palate cleanser. Sour cherry sorbet had a very delightfully pungent taste; almond mousse is not the foamy type. It was in between a mousse and foamy custard, but with smooth taste in the mouth. Berries were fresh and a good accompaniment of almond mousse.

7^th Course – Salted Caramel Puff Pastry with Coffee and Tonka Bean

Tonka beans look like an elongated raisin or a hard, skinny date. The taste of Tonka Bean is linked strongly with its scents like vanilla, almond, cherry and cinnamon. Chefs crave them for its spicy and fruity aroma which can be used in both savory and sweet applications. Tonka beans are usually shaved, a preparation to release its pungent aroma and subtle flavor. Unfortunately, all foods that contain the chemical compound coumadin are considered by the FDA to be "adulterated" and have technically been illegal since 1954. Tonka beans are a major source of coumarin, therefore, not available in US.

The overall taste was almost like mild mocha, almond and caramel. The puffy pastry, looked like a Napoleone, was finely made with crispy layers, but not greasy. Around the pastry, there were a few drops of licorice syrup. It was not a heavy desert in terms of quantity and ingredients, although I could have a bit more.

Petit Fours

One miniature White Chocolate Cup Filled with White Chocolate Cream and Topped with ½ Raspberry

One miniature Milk Chocolate Cup Filled with Milk Chocolate Cream and Topped with Almond

One miniature Dark Chocolate Cup Filled with Dark Chocolate Cream and Chocolate Crumbs

The petit fours looked delicate and tasted light and delicious, at this moment your stomach only had limited empty space. 

Without of doubt it is pricey at Ristorante Quadri, comparing with other Michelin 1-starred restaurants in Europe. Quadri charges what market can bear probably because of its prime location, being a name steeped in history and being the only Michelin Starred restaurant in the city center of Venice. However, I enjoyed my total fine dining experience at Quadri. While you are dining in the classic and opulent Venetian style dining room, you may also have the extensive view of the piazza thru its tall windows. In addition to the visual pleasure, you can also get the extra gastronomical treats imported from Chef Alajmo’s Le Calandre.

             

Da Vittorio, Milan

Da Vittorio, Brusaporto, Italy, 9/25/2015, 250 Euro

Da Vittorio is located in a resort named Cantalupa which is comprised of a caterer, 10 guest- rooms and the Michelin 3-star restaurant Da Vittorio. The surrounding is absolutely fabulous. Da Vittorio has a very classy setting with impeccably placed floral arrangement and table setting. To get to this place is a challenge. You have to take a 50-minute ride on the train from Milan to Bergamo (the birth place of Donizetti), then take a 30-minute cab ride.

The restaurant currently is operated by the 2^nd generation of the Vittorio family. Two of the three brothers are chefs in the restaurant. There are four menus to choose – business lunch menu (70 Euro), In the Tradition of Vittorio Seafood menu (180 Euro), a la carte and Carta Bianca (Carte Blanche) Tasting Menu (250 Euro). Since I came a long way to get there, I chose Carta Bianca to get a real feast. I was warned not to eat too much bread.

 

1^st Course – Spicy bread, apricot jam, Taleggio cheese ice cream

 

It was a refresher and starter. Taleggio has strong aroma but is much milder than blue cheese. It is tastier, lighter and creamier than mozzarella cheese. This dish was elegantly adorned with cute orchid flowers. 

Bread stick mille-feuille, polenta stick and hollowed bread stick were served.

 

2^nd Course – Raw tuna fish, stuffed with cod and potatoes mousse

Tuna fish fillet was filled with cod and potato mousse, then topped with sweet onion cream, baby basil leaves and anise leaves. It was served with lemon and lime oil (in yellow color) and grated lime skin. The quality of tuna used is extraordinary, as good as what I had in Tokyo last year.

 

3^rd Course – Apple, Caviar, ice pearl almond

Beluga caviar is caviar consisting of the roe (or eggs) of the Beluga sturgeon, primarily from the Caspian Sea. The Beluga sturgeon can take up to 20 years to reach maturity. The eggs themselves are the largest of the commonly used roes. In this course, Iranian Beluga caviar was served with a cute green apple jello which was filled with apple nectarine inside. On the side, there were almond milk granité (tiny white balls), hazelnut crumb (at the bottom), beet root and red fruit sauce. Apple was partially covered by a thin sheet of potato bread to make a mystic and romantic looking. It was my favorite dish in this meal. Beluga caviar is so.. delicious, no other types of caviar can compete with it. Beluga is sweet, less fishy and sumptuous. The combination of all ingredients made this dish a perfection. I kept thinking of this dish ever since I had it. 

 

 4^th Course – Cherry’s foie gras

Foie gras filled with cocoa and covered by cherry jello. It was served with molten salt and cocoa powder. The contrasting color of a red cherry sitting on two green leaves made this dish a picture perfect object.

5^th Course – Caccia al caciucco (soup with raw fish)

This course required two dishes prepared separately and then merged at the time of serving. There were different kinds of raw shell fish in the plate, prawn with head on, razor shell (in front), lobster (on the left), scallop (under prawn) and red mullet (in the middle), and crust of bread. It was served with Caciucco-Livorno soup which was one of the most famous fish soups, always served with a slice of Tuscan bread brushed with garlic. In this course, soup was cooked in the kitchen and served with the raw fish. Cooked shellfish which produced the flavor in the soup was discarded.

 

6^th Course – Sea Bass carpaccio and eggplant cream, water clams

Sashimi of Sea Bass from the Mediterranean Sea, served with eggplant purée and clam. Black squid bread was at the bottom, parsley and tomato piece for decoration were on top of sashimi. It was served in clam soup with orange cream for additional flavoring.

 

Croissant, brioche and tomato focaccia were served

 

 7^th Course – Prawns with burrata and barbecue tomato cream

Large prawns were served in grilled tomato sauce made of 3 different types of tomato. It was served with chopped olive, lemon cream, burrata cheese, potato bread and Sicilian red onion (on top). Sicilian red onion has a sweeter taste than other types of onion. So far, every course of seafood was delicately prepared and different from others.

 

8^th Course – Rice with green peas and shrimps tartar

It looked gorgeous, it was the risotto, rice cooked with condensed bisque of crustaceans and green peas. Raw shrimp scampi was place on one side of risotto. In addition curry powder and powder of green skin of peas were sprinkled in a V shape for visual presentation.

 

Extra - My server was very nice to me that he diverted a small portion of pasta from other guest’s serving plate. This pasta was created since day one when Vittorio was opened in 1966. It was called Paccheri alla Vittorio. It shaped like a hollowed tube and served with orange color sauce. My server informed me that the sauce was made of tomato, basil, oregano, pecorino cheese, pepper and carrot.

 

9^th Course – Hard coal

Mediterranean Sea Bass was cooked in a block of coal which was made of sugar, squid ink and a little bit of water. My server brought out the fish fillet after he cut open the coal block. He also served me a chunk of the coal. Chef/owner liked to use local fish from the Mediterranean Sea. Sea Bass’s texture was tender; sweet and nicely flavored. It was served with Perlina aubergine (eggplant) from Sicily, candied tomato, rice spaghetti (in white color), small pieces of rock shell (edible), seaweed and passion fruit foam. It required so much work to make this dish.

 

 

 

10^th Course – Separated scorfano (scorpion) fish, stewed and raw

It was also from the Mediterranean Sea. The word scorfano can also mean ugly in Italian, which gives an idea of the appearance of these fish, while the scientific name, scorpaeno, derives from the Greek scorpion and refers to the poisonous spines that rise along its dorsal fin. Contact with spines on camouflaged scorpion fish can cause poisoning. However, whole cooking effectively denatures and eliminates their venom. Europeans liken them to lobster. Scorpion fish are coveted by most Europeans as a precious and essential shears. Make sure you eat the cheeks. This course was comprised of two parts:

1). Tartar with ginger and lemon broth

2). Fish head poached, then pan fried and cooked in vegetable broth. Sauce was condensed and fish was topped with bah choy. The moment I saw the fish head, I knew right away the best part was the cheek. If you are not used to eat fish head, you missed the best part of the fish.

 11^th Course – Grilled onion with robiola cheese and red onion sauce

Cipollotto Canna onion was grilled and served with Robiola cheese Piemonte (sheep, goat and cow cheese). Chutney of peach, raspberry pieces were placed on cheese, while the small pieces of blackberry and root of onion were on the side for decoration and eating. This course is a palette cleaner for the following course.

 

12^th Course – Ravioli with strachitunt cheese, violet potatoes foam, black truffle

This type of pasta is called Casoncelli (ravioli from Bergamo). It is one type of stuffed pasta, typical of the culinary tradition of Lombardy, in the north-central part of Italy. The shell typically consists of two sheets of pasta, about 4 cm long, pressed together at the edges, like that of ravioli. This ravioli was stuffed with potato and taleggio cheese (a semi-soft smear-ripened Italian cheese with a strong aroma and mild fruity tang flavor). It was served with spinach, snow peas, fava beans, black truffles and violet potato foam. Powdered porcini was sprinkled in the plate. This was like a sophisticated vegetable-themed dish.

 

13^th Course – Pigeon with candied tomatoes and black Taggia olives, wild salad greens

Pigeon breast was stuffed with roasted and candies tomato, this piece of pigeon breast was the tenderest one that I have ever had. There was some salad on the side and a piece of potato chip filled with an olive, and polenta with robiola cheese. Everything was made to perfection. This was the last savory dish in this meal, I did my best to stretch my stomach to the limit to finish this plate. This was my 2^nd most favorite course in this meal.

 

14^th Course – Cannoncino and Zeppola di S. Giuseppe

Some popular Italian pastry filled with custard.

 

 

15^th Course - creama pasticcera

Nocciola (hazelnut) ice cream, dipped in chocolate sauce and covered with cocoa

 

16^th Course – Baba Rhum with Chantilly, fruit and mint

 

One of my favorite, too good to pass.

17^th Course – Soup of red strawberry coulis, lime sorbet and white foam of vodka

This desert palette cleanser soup is truly sublime. The best desert soup that I have ever had. It was my 3^rd most favorite in this meal.

 

Petit Four – cookies and chocolates

Left side – a plate of three cookies, orange cinnamon, white chocolate with berry and apricot

Right side – on top of cotton candy, chocolate with raisin, crunchy chocolate, chocolate with anise liquor (Sambuca), chocolate with mint, and chocolate caramel and salt.

 

At the end of meal, I realized that I did a superb job of fitting all this magnificent goodies into my stomach within 4 hours. My stomach definitely has endured another stress test successfully. My server suggested to have a walking tour of the Cantalupa. I saw its kitchen facility with about 20+ staff to serve the maximum seating of 120+ during the ordinary time and 30+ during the holiday season. I also visited its wine cellar which has the temperature control setting at 40 F. Da Vittoris has got great collection of pricy vintage wines including a dozen each of La Tâche and Romanée-Conti, and some St Emillion. It also owns a bottle of brandy dated 1862.

 

 

 

I made a journey to Da Vittorio. I had such a wonderful experience with its impeccable service, unbelievably creative, visually pleasing and sumptuous food, and gorgeous classy setting. All dishes were made to perfection and I had my 1^st time taste of Beluga caviar. I did not know how expensive it cost presently until I got back to NYC (It has been banned from importing into US for more than 10 years). I truly appreciated the chef/owner’s special attention to prepare such a luxurious and extravagant meal for me. It definitely worth another journey.