ROOTED IN TRADITION
Michelin-starred chef Amerigo Tito Sesti is bringing the Italian antipasti custom to Antito
Antito might sound like an establishment that adds to Bangkok’s already voluminous collection of Italian restaurants, however, this resto-bar, which humbly opened its doors at a poolside space on the 14th floor of Eastin Grand Sathorn a few weeks ago, promises to be a fresh addition to the city’s Italian dining scene.
Amerigo Tito Sesti is the master chef here.
With a Michelin star to his name, Sesti was the executive chef of J’Aime by Jean-Michel Lorain — a French fine-dining restaurant he helped earn the star — since 2018.
Sesti, a native of Bergamo in northern Italy, is now taking on a new venture as an inspiring playground where he can explore the cuisine of his birth.
The name of the restaurant Antito is a merger of the words antipasti (Italian for appetisers) and Sesti’s middle name Tito.
It also hints at the style of cuisine which mimics the chef’s folksy, artistic and somewhat rebellious character.
The vibrant decor of the semi-open dining room has been personally conceptualised by Sesti himself.
Aiming to be a communal living room where guests can enjoy an Italian “aperitivo” lifestyle, the setting features iconic pop art elements while the furniture is colourful and comfy.
To match the invigorating environment are zesty culinary offerings.
The menu has approximately 40 dishes, a mix of the chef’s childhood favourites and a selection of rustic recipes from various Italian regions, all with his creative twist.
The dishes are cooked with as much local produce as possible, except some particular Italian ingredients including Parmesan, pecorino, olive oil, balsamic and dried pasta which he finds indispensable.
Mediterranean-style prawn carpaccio (620 baht), the first dish to arrive, was an awesome kick-off that enlivens the eyes and taste buds.
It showcases a rainbow-hued unification of local tiger prawn, candied tomatoes, marinated sott’olio eggplants, dill and bird’s eye chillies, fragrantly seasoned with olive oil and lemon.
A light salad was followed by a heavy-looking pizza fritta (380 baht).
A cherished street food of Naples, the pizza is deep-fried with fresh burrata and homemade rich tomato sauce (a simple blend of fresh tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and basil).
Despite its nondescript cumbersome appearance, the pizza fritta tasted unique and was one of my favourite dishes of the entire meal.
Antito’s pasta section offers a variety of hand-rolled and fresh house-dried pasta, which represent the Italian landscape from north to south.
I had spaghetti aglio olio with seafood (360 baht) and loved every bit of it.
Sesti’s rendition of the dish features properly-cooked pasta noodles tossed in garlic, chilli and confit lemon sauce with prawn, squid and crispy smelt. Adding a nice depth of flavour was colatura di alici, or Italian fish sauce.
For the main course, mamma-style braised pork collar with potato and carrot puree (670 baht) is among the best sellers.
Prepared following his family recipe, the pork collar is slowly-cooked overnight in red wine until the meat is tender and the gravy develops a characteristic burnt piquancy. The pork came with a silky soft mashed potato and orange-flavoured carrot puree.
The other main dish I sampled was the veal osso buco in gremolata (980 baht). This is only available at dinner time.
The Milanese-style stewed veal with rustic herb sauce featured bone-in veal shank drenched in delicious chunky brown gravy — a mixture of vegetable puree and beef juice — and a fragrant dressing of finely-chopped parsley and lemon zest. The meat was complemented by velvety carrot puree and a small helping of garden salad.
Wrapping up the meal was meringata (310 baht), a traditional Italian dessert and a favourite of the chef’s since childhood.
To eat it, you have to crack open the crispy meringue shell to uncover a luscious layer of mascarpone cream and your choice of housemade gelato inside.
Another dessert worth having is the super aromatic and buttery pineapple and almond cake with salted caramel and roasted pineapple ice cream (250 baht).
The restaurant’s selection of artisanal sorbet and ice cream (70 baht per scoop) includes lemon basil sorbet, green mango sorbet, Prachuap chocolate sorbet, candy citrus sorbet, mascarpone ice cream and hazelnut praline ice cream.
There’s a resident DJ to entertain the crowd with upbeat tunes every Thursday to Sunday evening from 6pm onwards.