An elegant gastronomic institution of 50 years awarded the double macaron, which it has kept intact to this day. A visit to San Domenico, with the cuisine of Massimiliano Mascia, a chef and entrepreneur who is always ready to deliver new surprises.
San Domenico
The restaurant
“History” is a term that is often abused, usually with no harm intended. After all, every aspect of existence has its own. It is the dimension that makes the difference, however, especially in a world like the restaurant business, in which the ephemeral takes hold in too many circumstances. There are also places that know how to change and adapt, without losing their original spirit, keeping their aura intact and thus creating a mythical dimension around themselves.
So, it happens in Imola, at San Domenico, one of those restaurants that have literally seen history unfold, also thanks to its long association with Autodromo Enzo and Dino Ferrari (Ferrari racetrack), ever since 1980, with the first Formula 1 Grand Prix: it goes without saying that during the period of the race, famous personalities from every continent would pass through. Gianluigi Morini opened the doors of San Domenico in March 1970: his dream was to create a hospitality venue in which guests could enjoy great Italian cuisine in a warm and well-cared-for environment, with attention to every detail.
@Cristian Castelnuovo
Two years later Nino Bergese, was defined by Luigi Veronelli as "the cook of kings, the king of cooks," and was persuaded to return to the kitchen by Morini. Bergese had been at the court of the Savoy family and personal chef to the Agnelli family and already earned two Michelin stars at La Santa in Genova. Valentino Marcattilii was trained by this master and would later go on to learn the trade also in France with chefs of the caliber of the Troisgros brothers and Fernand Point in the golden age of Nouvelle Cuisine. The First Michelin star came in 1975, the second came only two years later and is kept to this day, with a brief hiatus corresponding to the time he opened New York’s sister restaurant.
You’ll still find Natale in the dining room, Valentino Marcattilii's brother, but it’s his son Giacomo who leads the way, whereas the last farewell by creator Gianluigi Morini took place in December 2020, fifty years after its opening. The kitchen is now under the responsibility of chef Massimiliano Mascia, Valentino and Natale's nephew, who entered the restaurant at age 14.
The chef
Under Massimiliano’s guidance, a profound renovation took place in the kitchen, he personally designed it into an ultra-modern military ground: guests can now sit at the pass and watch the feverish swarming of hands at work while enjoying small, mouth-watering entrées in an informal and not at all stuffy setting. The chef is a wise and smiling nearly 40-year-old, not bearing much resemblance to the stereotype of the star chef that reigns these days. A sense of nonchalant serenity emerges from him, one that only a great professional can pull off. His transition into the kitchen was handled with great intelligence.
"It was a long, gradual transition. I finished hospitality school in 2002 and then, from 2003 to 2010, I was traveling Italy and abroad up until my experience with Alain Ducasse. Once I returned to Imola I never left again, but it's not like I came back from Paris and went 'Uncle, that's the door, thank you.' It wouldn't have made any sense. Especially because we share the same ideas. Of course, things change, but it's not that they are opposite: my path, my vision of cooking, and my identity are those of San Domenico: what I would like people to perceive is that San Domenico is the uniform we wear. I run this team, but the name here has never been Valentino's, mine, or whoever is going to be here after me. We are all together, kitchen and dining room, at the service of the restaurant, respecting its characteristics and philosophy, each of us individually bringing their contribution. Whoever comes here will get a sense of where they are."
Mascia's point of view is that of an entrepreneur, lucid and practical: "I have an entrepreneurial point of view, first of all because that is what is required, much more than the in the 1980s and 1990s; second of all because, although I am not such a fan of Math, it is a passion of mine. It’s not true that catering at this level is not economically sustainable; in our case it is even super-sustainable: there are financial statements that speak for themselves, they are public, and you can read them. I like to be careful, obviously without neglecting fundamental aspects such as raw materials and personnel." That is why the handover also went on for a long time.
“Our relay race lasted a little bit, because anyway when I came back Valentino was 55 years old and still managing a lot. I thought that being together a little longer would not have been bad, I continued to learn, we shared responsibilities, and when small mistakes would occur, there was someone who could fix it for you. Let's say in the end between 2016 and 2017 I took everything on my shoulders, including the business side.”
Visiting San Domenico is a real pleasure because first it is a beautiful place, of that timeless, classic elegance, where it’s natural to find furniture signed Thonet, Frau and Cassina as well as works by great contemporary artists, such as Alberto Burri and Mario Schifano.
© Cristian Castelnuovo
With a chapter of its own, is the most beautiful wine cellars in Italy, a five-century-old vault where fifteen thousand bottles are kept, represented in a superb wine list of more than two thousand four hundred labels: Francesco Cioria is the sommelier governing this space, and he’ll know exactly what to propose for you, whatever you want to taste, distilled spirits included. Down here, also, there is a beautiful oak table set with Missoni fabrics where we once had the chance to have lunch, surrounded by mind-blowing wine rarities.
© Cristian Castelnuovo
The kitchen
The chef tells us, "Times have changed, and it is clear that in the 1980s and early 1990s, the restaurant did not need the number of place settings which are needed today: there were fewer venues, which were relatively even more expensive, also certain products could not be found, and everything was even more challenging and reserved for a few people, in fact until a certain time even San Domenico was seen as distant. My personal challenge instead was to open it up to everyone, with careful thought, because it's a lot easier to lower prices and buy junk to get people to come. My goal is to keep excellent quality while maintaining the price increase. On certain occasions, however, you have to come up with something to convince people to come and then come back again.
© Cristian Castelnuovo
In 2013 we came up with mercoledì 70 (Wednesday 1970, recalling the year the restaurant was founded), a midweek initiative that provided a menu with wine pairing for 70 euros on Wednesday nights with the aim of attracting clientele. For a few years every we were full on Wednesday, and being full at our place means about 50 people. You can find the same menu today for 120 euros, and those born from 1970 onwards can come on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, finding a 6-course tasting menu where there’s always uovo in raviolo (eggs in ravioli) along with some dishes from the menus, which are made with products purchased from newer small producers who sell at a fair price. Doing fifty place settings on Tuesday means we are closed the day before and start the line again, Wednesday night we finish, and Thursday is the same, so everything is always fresh for the weekends. This way I cut down on fixed costs."
Uovo in Raviolo
Red turnip puff pastry
Massimiliano is very clear about what the experience at San Domenico should be: "I live with no anxiety; I do what I know how to do and every day I try to do something more and take care of the details. I certainly don’t want to think that customers are all the same and that they all must be ready at eight o'clock to start the same tasting. In our kind of catering there can be different souls, we should anticipate if there is a regular customer who calls on Saturday afternoon for Sunday and wants to eat a certain dish, you have to deliver. Of course, I would be more than happy if I had 20 of them together taking the same things and spending 400 euros each, who wouldn’t? But that's not the way things work at San Domenico’s, and it couldn't be even if I wanted it to, because it would mean finding a replacement for the 80 percent of the clients who would abandon me."
The dishes
Whether one takes a seat in the brand new private room (the Saletta22) overlooking the kitchen or one from the dining room, the dishes found at San Domenico mirror a timeless classicism, starting with that uovo in raviolo created by Bergese and Marcattilii which never wanes, served with Parmigiano Reggiano, truffle according to season and hazelnut butter: only minor adaptations have adjusted the dish to contemporary times, but its core is that.
Uovo in Raviolo
And then the great fried tortellini and Parmigiano cookies with mortadella mousse, toast mignon, and the rosemary roasted rabbit with cream and small salad of mushrooms from the Tuscan-Romagna Apennines are among the must-haves. More mastery is found in the guinea fowl and savoy cabbage raviolo with marsala cream and black truffle. Or the risotto with extra virgin olive oil, roasted quail, red turnip, and coffee powder.
Gillardeau Ostyer
Guinea fowl and savoy cabbage Raviolo
But there are also seafood dishes, such as Adriatic shrimp tails with pork schooner and rosemary borlotti emulsion or, among the main courses, scallop nuts with oyster reduction, dry martini, and real clams.
Codfish tempura with squid ink
Roasted venison
Everything is about sheer enjoyment, and a worthy ending to it all is with another tribute to Nino Bergese: the Torta Fiorentina in profiterole sauce and William’s pear sorbet, prepared in layers of chocolate and created for Umberto di Savoia's birthday in 1926. A more modern, yet equally delicious, alternative could be the coffee candy bar with peanut praline cookie and rum ice cream. Either way, you will be satisfied.
Blueberry
Address
San Domenico
via Gaspare Sacchi 1, Imola, Italy, 40026
Tel: 0542 29000
