“It seems as though everything has already been said. And yet, this is precisely where my culinary philosophy takes root. I like to re-create—to build new taste memories and new visual memories, striving to develop my own vocabulary.” Under Davide Di Fabio’s leadership, Dalla Gioconda has become one of the most intriguing projects in contemporary Italian dining in just a few years. A “diffused hotel” built on the revitalization of the local area, a cuisine that draws from memory to create new codes, and a concept of hospitality that weaves together design, sustainability, music, the sea, and gastronomy.
It’s impossible to talk about the cuisine at Dalla Gioconda without mentioning the setting in which this restaurant is nestled. Why? Simply because there is no “outside” and no “inside.” Inside the building, you breathe in the salty sea air mixed with the grassy scent of the hills (the first on this side of the coast after Trieste), and outside, you can smell the aroma of the dishes that Di Fabio serves, prepared with all the qualities that distinguish great chefs (awareness, knowledge of ingredients, technical skill, sensitivity, creativity, and all that jazz) but with something extra: the playful game whose sole purpose is fun, gratification, and pleasure. How wonderful!
Perched on the promontory of the Monte San Bartolo Natural Park, on the border between the Marche and Emilia-Romagna regions, Dalla Gioconda overlooks the Adriatic from above, without pretension, through that slightly ethereal light that constantly shifts among the broom, the trails, and the sea. It is here that Stefano Bizzarri and Allegra Tirotti Romanoff decided to dedicate themselves to a project born from a very personal vision of hospitality and which, within a few years, has become one of the most interesting gastronomic destinations on the Adriatic coast. He holds a degree from Bocconi University and has spent years working in international restaurants and studying botany. She comes from the world of fashion; after her experience at Etro and her studies at Marangoni, she envisioned and created a place capable of bringing together materials, colors, design, and landscape, without reducing it all to a mere aesthetic exercise. Their meeting with Davide Di Fabio completed the picture. After sixteen years at Osteria Francescana, the chef chose Gabicce Monte to begin a new, very personal chapter in gastronomy.
La Gioconda was born in a historic 1950s dance hall and pizzeria and still retains the allure of that carefree seaside and nightlife atmosphere that made this part of the Riviera a symbol of Italian fun in the 1960s and 1970s. Just look around to see how deeply the project is rooted in the local area: the references to the area’s historic dance halls, the Baia degli Angeli, the lights of the Riviera, the music, and Italian summers. Everything returns, but filtered through a profound contemporary sensibility and, it must be said, one of rare beauty.
Hidden Room, San Bartolo Park, and a New Concept of Sustainable Hospitality
Today, Dalla Gioconda is a small ecosystem built around a very specific concept of hospitality. Hidden, the “albergo diffuso” (scattered hotel), has grown up around the restaurant, created by restoring abandoned houses, ruins, and historic buildings in the village of Gabicce Monte. It is a project focused not so much on expansion for its own sake as on the revitalization of the local area. The rooms are distributed across several structures nestled in the greenery and connected by scenic walkways, terraces, and wooden platforms overlooking the sea. The project’s aesthetic speaks volumes about Allegra Tirotti Romanoff, who has infused Dalla Gioconda with a distinct sensibility toward materials, textures, fabrics, and colors. Nothing bears the mark of a standardized hotel. Instead, each space is built upon a layering of details: pink Furlo stone, terrazzo, brass, natural woods, Brioni terracotta, ceramic tables with hand-salted edges, Dedar fabrics, Viabizzuno lighting, vintage pieces, artisanal elements, and constant references to the sea and the horizons of the Riviera, with a few whispers from travels here and there.
In 2025, Hidden expanded further with three new suites and an infinity pool overlooking the Adriatic Sea. Dream Eden is probably the suite that best captures the project’s identity. Sixty square meters bathed in light, large windows opening onto the landscape, an olive tree that literally extends into the interior, a private kitchen, a suspended bookshelf, marble, wood, a sauna, an Agape bathtub under a eucalyptus portico, and a projector for a cinema experience facing the bed. The Turquoise and Amber suites, on the other hand, draw on the colors of the sea and the earth, with more intimate atmospheres yet equally rich in detail. Reclaimed objects, Fontana lamps, custom-made furnishings, and natural materials create warm spaces, far removed from the classic idea of a luxury suite.
At the heart of Hidden is also a new breakfast area, accessible via a panoramic deck surrounded by greenery and overlooking the pool, which juts out over the open sea. Here, breakfast becomes an integral part of the Dalla Gioconda dining experience. Davide Di Fabio has created a morning menu that is as comforting and simple as Italian breakfast has always been: eggs, focaccia, tarts, maritozzi with cream and granita, toast, yogurt, juices, and sweet and savory neole. A breakfast crafted with the same narrative attention to detail that characterizes the restaurant. The theme of sustainability is also addressed with concrete action (finally!). Dalla Gioconda was the first restaurant in Italy to declare itself plastic-free, and the entire project has earned LEED Gold certification. Geothermal energy is used for heating and cooling the cold storage rooms, recovering thermal energy to power the underfloor heating. Rainwater is collected in tanks for irrigation, nearly all plastic packaging has been eliminated, and even the decision not to use tablecloths stems from a desire to reduce water and detergent consumption.
The food supply chain follows the same approach. Pasta is delivered in cardboard boxes, rice in jute sacks, suppliers are involved in a process of progressive empowerment, and there is an ongoing search for local producers. Sustainability is experienced as an integral part of daily operations. The same applies to the natural vegetable garden developed just a few meters from the restaurant. Stefano Bizzarri and Davide Di Fabio have chosen to draw inspiration from Masanobu Fukuoka’s “do-nothing” farming philosophy, based on respect for the earth’s rhythms and spontaneous biodiversity. Seeds are scattered among clay balls, and growth follows natural rhythms without chemical intervention. The herbs and some of the vegetables used in the kitchen come directly from here. Rounding out the project are Bar Bonito, a beach bar overlooking the sea dedicated to cocktails and small plates, a gym accessible via smart home technology, and a private beach just a few minutes’ walk away along the San Bartolo trails.
Then there is the wine cellar hidden within the historic walls of Gabicce Castle. An almost secret space, accessible through a tiny, charming movie theater, which today houses over 1,600 labels curated by sommelier Nicholas Bratti together with the dining room team. Champagne from grand maisons and small vignerons, Riesling from the Moselle, Verdicchi from the Marche region, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Albana, and great Italian wines coexist in a place that feels like a wonderland for wine lovers. This remarkable effort has also earned the restaurant the Best Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator.
Davide Di Fabio and a cuisine built on the memory of taste
Let’s get to the point. Talking about Davide Di Fabio’s cuisine means starting with a word that keeps coming up in his narrative: memory. In the manifesto he wrote when the restaurant opened in 2021, the chef explains that to talk about the future, one must necessarily know the past. A simple idea that runs through his entire cuisine. Italian recipes, techniques passed down from generation to generation, and domestic and folk memories become the starting point for building something new.
Fabio often talks about “recreating.” Taking a dish from memory, deconstructing it, recovering its core flavors, and reconstructing it in a new form. Not a reinterpretation—perhaps a bit nostalgic—but a creative process that seeks to contextualize change while keeping the identity of Italian flavor intact. Over time, he has built his own gastronomic vocabulary made up of ingredients, pairings, and images that continually reappear in his cuisine. At La Gioconda, this has allowed him to develop a very intimate cuisine, deeply rooted in the Adriatic region yet open to constant cultural influences. In his dishes, we find the sea, Italian pop culture, the vegetable garden, music, the Riviera’s seaside culture, and a technical approach built primarily on flavors.
The restaurant also reflects this vision. The atmosphere maintains a relaxed and very contemporary elegance, consistent with the concept of hospitality that Stefano and Allegra have cultivated from the very beginning. Did I expect to try the brand-new menu? Yes. Did the chef bring me the “Hit Parade” menu of classics? Yes. But that’s fine. This tasting menu, conceived as a sort of journey through the restaurant’s evolution, brings together some of the most representative dishes of recent years alongside the latest creations. The menu opens with a concentrated tomato water, black tea, and bitters, accompanied by sea lettuce, cucumbers, sesame, and bottarga. A starter that plays on acidity, briny notes, and the freshness of vegetables. When tastings begin this way, my heart swells with joy. Because there’s no second chance to make a good first impression. Immediately after comes the tartare of Marchigiana beef and pink shrimp with black truffle and citrus broth, a dish that perfectly illustrates how Di Fabio works with the interplay between land and sea. A dual dish, if you will, in which the Marchigiana beef—notoriously lean—is enriched by the shrimp to restore that richness that clearly evokes the marbling of the most succulent meats.
The Pink Prawns continue this exploration of delicate seafood flavors, with a clear nod to the shrimp cocktail (a throwback!). Di Fabio plays not only with taste but also with the visual appeal; this plating compels you to reach for your smartphone and snap a photo. It happens even to those who prefer eating over posting. I guarantee it. We thus arrive at one of the restaurant’s signature dishes: the Soup Bowl of Pasta and Fish from the Adriatic. A dish that perfectly encapsulates the relationship between Dalla Gioconda and the local region. Inside lies the Adriatic, the nostalgic memory of pasta and fish soup, but also a technical precision that lightens the dish and makes it extremely contemporary through a continuous interplay of the varied textures of the mixed pasta and the depths of the sea.
Next comes Paccheri al sugo???, one of the signature dishes of Di Fabio’s cuisine. A deliberately ironic and almost provocative title that perfectly captures his creative approach: starting with something deeply rooted in the Italian collective memory—pasta with sauce—and transforming it into a contemporary exploration of flavor by substituting the tomato with a local plum. Deep acidity and intense umami. L’Animella laccata con panna acida e gremolada, on the other hand, takes the meal in a more earthy and meaty direction, while always maintaining a keen focus on balance. This is a dish that speaks of travel and an appreciation for the culinary cultures of distant lands.
The dessert course moves between Italian folk tradition and French influences. Neola à la Suzette with custard and Grand Marnier duck sauce reinterprets the Romagna tradition of neole, elevating it to a more complex culinary level while still maintaining a certain approachability on the palate. What truly stands out about Di Fabio’s cuisine is his ability to blend very different elements without a hint of stiffness. Haute cuisine, Italian heritage, pop culture, the Adriatic region, the garden, music, the Riviera, and that spirit—which I love so much—of someone who does things well without taking themselves too seriously. Overall, this tasting focuses on subtleties; the secondary notes aren’t laid bare for all to see, but you have to seek them out, keeping in mind your current context and the primary concept of memory at the heart of Di Fabio’s style.
“I wanted to use food as a means of communication,” a chat with Davide Di Fabio
If you had to describe what Dalla Gioconda’s cuisine is like to someone who’s never eaten there, what would you say?
In 2021, I wrote this manifesto to explain my vision of cooking. Italian cuisine thrives on recipes and techniques passed down from generation to generation, and it’s almost sacrilegious to think of changing them. That’s why it’s increasingly difficult today to find new paths, new forms of innovation: it seems like everything has already been said. Yet it is precisely from here that my vision of cuisine is born. I like to re-create. To build new taste memories and new visual memories, striving to create my own culinary vocabulary. I like to create a connection between past and present, interpreting influences and fusions in an original way without ever betraying the identity of Italian flavor.
It’s been five years since we opened. What has changed, and what has stayed the same?
A lot has changed over these five years: we started out with just the restaurant, and today we’re fully immersed in the world of hospitality, offering rooms, the beach, and—as of this year—a cocktail bar on the terrace. A project that grows, evolves, and becomes more exciting every day, offering the chance to experience Dalla Gioconda in all its facets. What hasn’t changed is our desire to start each day with the energy and enthusiasm of opening day, driven by a constant desire to do even better.
What still inspires you after so many years in the kitchen?
The energy this job conveys, the creativity, and the love for cooking—these are what guide me every day. I was lucky enough to know as early as age six that this would be my path; I started cooking at home with my mom, then went on to culinary school, gained experience at Osteria Francescana, and finally ended up here at Dalla Gioconda. I still remember my first summer season at fourteen: that’s when I truly realized what I wanted. I realized that simply cooking wasn’t enough for me. I was looking for something more. I wanted to convey my ideas through food, using it as a true means of communication. For me, innovation and creativity in the kitchen must never be ends in themselves, but part of a system, of a broader vision.
Is there a dish of yours that you’re particularly fond of?
Every dish has its own story, and every time I change the menu, there’s always one that I remain particularly attached to. I’d like these dishes to remain relevant even twenty years from now—to continue telling a story, to evoke emotion, and to leave a lasting impression.
Contact and Info
Dalla Gioconda
Via dell’Orizzonte, 2 – Gabicce Monte (PU)
Tel. 0541 962295
Website: https://www.dallagioconda.it/
