Federico Delmonte wins the hearts of Romans with instinctive, simple, sustainable, and transparent seafood cuisine. No fixed menu: the market decides what comes to the table.
Photo by Flaminia Laera
The restaurant
Simplicity is the most complex of arts. A juicy, dense, profound summary of a handful of delicate ingredients or vividly spiced ones. This is the essence of Acciuga, a small restaurant in the Prati district of Rome that has been speaking the essential language of the sea since May 2018, studying the dynamics of local markets.
Defining the place's identity over the years is its chef and owner, Federico Delmonte, a forty-something from Marche, a lover of the Mediterranean habitat, from fish to herbs and spices, dedicated to seasonality, freshness of ingredients, and direct relationships with producers, through a journey that tells the story of his cuisine.
With experiences in the team of London's Dorchester and Anthony Genovese's Il Pagliaccio, he takes on the role of chef at Settembrini and Chinappi in Rome after a stint in Fano with his first creation, Il Vicolo del Curato. Today, his cuisine is instinctive, transparent, and sustainable: "We are what you see, the choice of our catch listens to the sea and its times. Nothing more, it tells us what to offer on our table," declares the restaurant. Each dinner at Acciuga will be different from the previous one: nothing is defined, written, and irreversible. Most of the day's creations express the spontaneous creativity of the kitchen, the laws of the market, and the progressing year.
Open kitchen, essential furnishings focusing on white and dark wood with some hints of the sea's blue: these are the features of a small restaurant representing attentive, mature, and mindful dining, avoiding formal presentations to genuinely and sincerely tell its culinary offering.
There are two tasting menus available, with 4 and 7 courses, priced at 70 and 90 euros, respectively, along with a small lunch option with 2 courses at 30 euros. A la carte options are also available: starting with "Dal Mercato" appetizers served as crudo (raw), seared, and shellfish whose ingredients are decided day by day, even changing during the service itself; these are joined by Federico's flagship tastings such as the piadina roll with anchovy and cod brandade. This is followed by a selection of first and then second courses with catch from the Tirreno and Adriatic Paranzas, to be cooked as preferred (grilled or fried). The wine list is constantly evolving with niche labels, selected from small Italian artisanal producers and beyond.
The dishes
The dinner unfolds on the essential, glossy wooden table. The first glass of Metodo Classico Dosaggio Zero 'Perlugo' Pievalta next to the perfect sphere of almond pasta dressed marinara style is the unexpected Italian, Marche-style welcome. The sweet richness of dried fruit, combined with the more bitter and savory tones of marinara dressing, tantalizes the palate, quickly ferrying it to the array of raw dishes. Here comes the amberjack, served raw, in thick and fleshy slices, just veiled by a thin layer of pear, lard, and cumin. A full, crunchy, spiced bite that leaves summer behind to immerse itself in autumn.
Next is the raw sea bream, also paired with fruit and spices. There's Isabella grape and a hint of za'atar, a happy blend of thyme, sesame, and salt. The inherent iodine sweetness of the fish is embraced by the fruit's acidity, further refreshed by the aromatic herbs that crown the dish. The tasting of the Piadina Roll with marinated anchovy, an iconic dish by Delmonte, is inevitable. A homage bite to Marche, to be eaten with hands like the cod brandade inside a homemade sourdough bun, enriched with lamb's lettuce, mozzarella, and tandoori.
The next two dishes arrive hot, straight from the iron pan. First, there's the dirty cuttlefish paired with raw green tomato, Casalino tomato sauce, and dried lemon; then there's the lobster with flat peaches, lampascione, and Mediterranean herbs, an instinctive second course playing on sweet and bitter notes, revitalized by the smoky nuance of whisky at the end.
As always at Acciuga, the last savory course to arrive at the table is a first course, in my case, Tagliolini alla Traboccolara, fresh pasta dressed with an express sauce of tomato, garlic, oil, and chili enriched with seafood. A simple, flavorful, strongly identified first course, born around the shipyards of Viareggio, the hometown of Federico's wife.
The circle closes with a non-sweet dessert, a creamy cremino based on white chocolate, gentian, and balsamic vinegar. A bitter acidity that completes the palate.
Contacts
Acciuga Restaurant
Phone: 063723395
Acciuga - Via Vodice, 25 Rome
Open from Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner. On Monday, only open for dinner.
