Enrico Bartolini format. You know the idea - which has contributed so much to the success of the Tuscan chef - of gradually associating with himself, in new restaurant openings under his aegis, chefs he had already trained and are well-known, thus creating a kind of network of chefs, one independent of the other but with a shared imprint? Antonino Cannavacciuolo and Cinzia Primatesta made such a choice when it came to opening their restaurant Cannavacciuolo - Le Cattedrali inside the brand new Le Cattedrali Relais, a five-star luxury hotel in the heart of Monferrato but only a quarter of an hour from the centre of Asti: an ambitious project that opened its doors in February 2024.
Cannavacciuolo has chosen Gianluca Renzi, born in Rome in 1989, who has come a long way with
Heinz Beck, first at
La Pergola in Rome and then gradually as sous or chef at the German's restaurants in Italy and around the world,
Apsleys by Heinz Beck in London,
Social by Heinz Beck in Dubai,
Attimi by Heinz Beck in Milan and
Ristorante Castello di Fighine in San Casciano dei Bagni in Tuscany. But then Renzi broke away from the parent company, taking over the helm of the kitchen at
I Portici in Bologna and later at
Celestia in Cesenatico, an adventure that was quickly interrupted a year ago, however, after only a few weeks.
Now, Piedmont. Renzi says: “I heard about this new opening and spoke to Antonino. Last December I went to Villa Crespi and stayed there for a fortnight, to try the dishes. From there the relationship was born.” What do you have in common with Cannavacciuolo? “He found my recipes concrete, genuine in flavour. When he comes, we share ideas. He (or the members of his team) always supervise, but otherwise I’m completely free, I can create without constraints.”
Already at
Celestia we confirmed Renzi's great solidity: he shows a strong imprint of taste (a characteristic element he brings from Rome, an evident imprinting) which, applied to Adriatic seafood, gave life to dishes that were in reality absolutely balanced, as if the raw material of the sea suggested lowering the tone a little, playing with foil rather than sword. This is the approach we also recommend to the chef at
Le Cattedrali, where he is already firing on all cylinders with the appetisers (
Cecina piemontese,
Gnocco fritto with cream of mushroom and smoked lard, Carrot Cannolo with coda alla vaccinara, cocoa and pecorino cheese, Bruschetta tomato and basil) in extremely intense aromatic notes, where he could instead caress the taste buds starting with more delicate nuances. However, this is the only criticism we would like to make, because throughout the menu, Renzi shows off dishes of impeccable technique and exquisite taste. Starting with
Bluefin tuna in bagna cauda foam, katsuobushi gel, salted lemon and capers, a game already in the Piedmontese depths and which reaffirms the chef's excellence with fish, where the meaty tuna is the winner.
The dining room and, below, the kitchen
alone is worth the trip. Another crossover between sea and Piedmont enriched in this case by the poor cut of beef, firm, melting, magnificently enriched by hints of embers. Renzi points out: “I’m exploring local excellence little by little, this is a region in which I had not yet worked. For example, I discovered a butcher's shop,
Boasso in Grinzane Cavour, where they farm Piedmontese breed. Each animal is slaughtered when it’s at least seven to nine years old. The result is exceptional meat.”
In our three samples of first courses, the most outstanding were Lamb plin, chanterelles, cardoncelli, crispy asparagus and Madeira sauce, truly delicious, and a signature Renzi dish, Fusillone Monograno Felicetti cooked in mussel and clam water, almond and sea urchin cream, barbecued cuttlefish and parsley. Among the main courses, both the seafood proposal (charcoal-grilled turbot filet, chard sauce, pink Po oyster mayonnaise, the same oyster in a separate spoon, Madernassa pears marinated in Champagne) and the turf proposal (pigeon in its various declinations) are excellent.
The grandeur of the
Cannavacciuolo - Le Cattedrali cellar – which already includes almost 3,000 bottles - matches the ambition of the
Le Cattedrali Relais project itself, desired by the owner, entrepreneur Livio Negro: in a large park with a vegetable garden to be used by the restaurant, the site was built from scratch and spread over three adjoining buildings, one of which is dedicated to '
The Cathedrals of Art', with an open-air amphitheatre decorated by the English artist David Tremlett (who had already signed the Ceretto family's '
Barolo Chapel' in the local town of La Morra) and a museum housing an impressive collection of memorabilia celebrating over fifty years of music history: 160 paintings by 100 musicians, from Leonard Cohen to Frank Zappa, Miles Davis to Janis Joplin, Laura Pausini to Carmen Consoli, then a collection of 30,000 vinyl records and CDs, thousands of music books, hundreds of memorabilia, photos and autographed objects by the greatest Italian and international artists, much of it from a donation by Massimo Cotto.
The open-air amphitheatre decorated by Tremlett
The other spaces are occupied by 13 rooms and suites of remarkable size (from 43 to 133 square metres) and flooded with light thanks to huge windows, then the lounge bar, the wellness area with sauna, steam bath and vitarium, as well as a heated outdoor pool, padel and pickleball courts and restaurant.
Our tastings follow, with photos by Tanio Liotta.
Let's start with appetisers: Cecina piemontese (in the photo: chickpea cream and vegetable puffs), then Gnocco fritto with cream of mushroom and smoked bacon, Carrot cannolo with oxtail, cocoa and pecorino cheese, Bruschetta tomato and basil
“Russian salad” with almond butter milk and chive oil
Ligurian langoustine, strawberry leche tigre and coconut guacamole
Bluefin tuna in bagna cauda foam, katsuobushi gel, salted lemon and capers
Green asparagus, apricot béarnaise, natural apricot, goat ice cream and pine nut and white asparagus sauce
Veal sweetbread cooked in hazelnut butter, bagnet verde, cream of eel, smoked eel, white Vermouth, mustard seeds
Lamb plin, chanterelles, cardoncelli, crispy asparagus and Madeira sauce
Linguine cooked in tomato water, grilled tomato gel, purple shrimp from Santa Margherita Ligure and its garum
Fusillone Monograno Felicetti cooked in mussel and clam water, almond and sea urchin cream, grilled cuttlefish and parsley. A Renzi's classic
Grilled turbot filet, chard sauce, pink Po oyster mayonnaise, the same oyster in a spoonful on the side, Madernassa pears marinated in Champagne
Pigeon: the baked breast with sweet black garlic from Voghera and Nebbiolo crystals. The fillet is raw. The pigeon liver pate is served with scorzonera truffle. The pigeon praline with salted peanuts. The skewer of heart, lung and dourine is glazed with pigeon fond. The leg is grilled, miso-glazed and served with fried amaranth
After the pre-dessert (coconut, pineapple and lime, a version of piña colada) a trio of desserts, here Rhubarb, strawberries and asparagus: strawberry cremoso, strawberry marinated in lemon, rhubarb marinated in strawberries and in foam, crispy asparagus and asparagus ice cream
Ginger, saffron and eggnog: chamomile creme brulèe, saffron gel, custard, eggnog foam, saffron pistils, chamomile kombucha
Celery - celery: celeriac brunoise, celery ice cream, celeriac mousse, white chocolate and salted lemon wafer, celery green extract
Cannavacciuolo - Le Cattedrali Relais
Valleandona 1/b - Asti
tel. +39 0141 1858888
open from Wednesday to Sunday, only for dinner
tasting menus at 110, 130 and 150 euros
Translated into English by Slawka G. Scarso
