At the age of ten, while the other children were playing, Vania Ghedini used to cook for the whole family. It wasn't a whim, her mother didn't have a great passion for cooking, and she, having grown up in her grandparents' bakery, already knew how to make herself useful. Between bread, fresh pasta and cakes, he soon learned that food is not only nourishment, but also storytelling, care, memory. On Sundays, she used to work for weddings, seeing how food could be transformed into celebration.
That sense of belonging and dedication transformed, over time, into a path that led her to Oro, the fine dining restaurant of the Cipriani hotel, which she has led since April 2024, under the creative direction of Massimo Bottura. «I love walking at night, when Venice sleeps, and admiring something new every time. It is a place where every corner tells a story", says Vania, whose deep connections with the city is reflected in her cuisine, capable of intertwining roots and visions, balance and audacity. Her dishes tell of this cultural and gastronomic stratification: the Moeche with zabaglione with bacon and cuttlefish ink, the Tortelli with seafood inspired by the biodiversity of the Adriatic, the Risotto with nettles and Morlacco cheese, a tribute to Veneto and her childhood in Emilia.
This ability to merge past and future comes from a path built with care and passion. After graduating in Hotel Management, fate brought her to Alma, where she refined technique and awareness. From a student she became a teacher, learning that cooking is not just a gesture, but a transmission of knowledge. The transition to practice was natural: Rigoletto, a parenthesis in France, then Peck during Expo 2015. But it was with the Alajmo group that her vision took shape: first between Le Calandre and Quadri in Venice, then with the opening of Amo, finally with the experience that changed her life, in Morocco.
In Marrakech, for 5 years, she worked at the helm of Sesamo, the restaurant housed inside the Royal Mansour. «The spices, aromas and flavors of that country have left an indelible mark on me», dhe says. Next to her, for a few years, is Yassine, married in Morocco in a civil ceremony. A bond that is also reflected in his idea of cooking: the fusion between cultures, the curiosity for ingredients, the idea that food is always a bridge between different stories. Because the identity of a chef is built over time, through experiences, travels, meetings. And Vania Ghedini, with her constantly evolving path, is proof that cooking is, first of all, a journey.
