Buon Cibo!
Michelin-starred Chef Valentino Palmisano shares his journey to make the perfect pasta
isted among the top 10 best Italian chefs abroad by the Italian magazine Arbiter, Michelin-starred Chef Valentino Palmisano is the maestro behind Vespasia Restaurant. Vespasia is located in Relais & Châteaux Palazzo Seneca, a noble palace dating back to the 1500s in the artistic heart of Norcia, Italy. The Neapolitan chef decided to move to Norcia after a decade of prestigious international experience in large hotel chains, from Shanghai to The Ritz- Carlton in Kyoto. Last April, Chef Valentino visited Jakarta to share his authentic yet creative interpretations of Italian cuisine at Alto Restaurant & Bar in the Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta, and we had an exclusive chat with him.
What is so special about the Vespasia Experience at Alto? Through this rare dining event, we want to share our philosophy. One of the key dishes that we introduce is a classic Italian dish: the spaghetti tomato. It is one of the most traditional Italian recipes and, at the same time, it is also one of the most difficult dishes to make. It looks very simple, but is unique and unforgettable. We also bring spelt dark chocolate—a main delicacy from our area—as well as lentils and Parmigiano-reggiano. In total, we carried 45 kilogrammes of pasta and 7.5 kilogrammes of chocolate. Not to mention, we also had to fit our uniforms in the luggage! [laughs]
Could you explain why the pasta takes such a long time to make?
Yes, I spent six months curating the spaghetti tomato. When you make a very simple dish, you have to be careful with the details, because the line between simple and banal is very thin. It is not about the level of difficulty, but sometimes simple things can be very complex to achieve. That’s why, when I recreated the spaghetti tomato—i used to make it while in Kyoto—i had to change it completely when I moved to Norcia to keep it in the same condition. I could not find the same brand of pasta, so I worked with local farmers to produce custom-made spaghetti. We spent about two months just to understand how this spaghetti has to be.
How did you arrive at the Bianconi family?
You know, when I met the Bianconi family for the first time, the first thing they told me was: “We don’t have a hotel—we have a restaurant with rooms.” This means that the food, the restaurant, and the hospitality are everything to them. I love this philosophy—it really resonates with me. I said to myself: I want to work here. They told me to think about it for 10 days, and so I called them after 10 days— even though I had decided in just five minutes! They even thought I was not interested anymore [laughs]. We share the same goal: to make people happy. We want to touch the people—we love to share our hospitality.