The outdoor seating area at Il Dek, in the heart of Prato, overlooks the castle built by Frederick II of Swabia, but if you're expecting classic Tuscan cuisine, you might not be in the right place.
Photo by Nicco Leone
The format and the restaurant
Created by Francesco Seccio, a contemporary host who entertains with liveliness and demonstrates his ability to engage customers. A great wine lover, he has brought an excellent selection of labels to the restaurant, from the most sought-after to the finest bottles, including Masseto, Marchesi Antinori, Angelo Gaja, and Marchesi Frescobaldi. There is also room for prestigious French wines from the famous AOCs of Burgundy and Bordeaux, with absolute icons such as Château Margaux and Château Lafite.
His Dek has also found a home in Ibiza, where it offers Italian cuisine with refined comfort, consisting of great classics such as spaghetti with clams or fried calamari. He then enriched the offering with Pizzeria Adiós, in memory of the legend Diego Armando Maradona, who is present through a series of murals. Here, tapas are offered with a Neapolitan twist, from pasta frittatine to montanarine, a prelude to classic Neapolitan pizzas. In Prato, next to Il Dek, we find Shark, a cocktail bar offering seafood salami from the project-laboratory of the same name, founded by Francesco and based in Livorno. Eight types are made from seafood: tuna bresaola, swordfish lonzino, octopus bacon, smoked salmon and salt cod, fish sausage, roast tuna, and the original Sharketta sauce made from cod, sweet and spicy paprika, and Chianti aromas. The cured meats are currently also available at Il Dek with a dedicated tasting menu for €70.
The chef
In the kitchen we find 29-year-old Giulia Talanti, who has been at Il Dek for about ten years and has been head of the kitchen for a few years. A former athlete and promising skier who competed at a competitive level for twelve years, after attending hotel school she gained experience at Palagio, a Michelin-starred restaurant at the Four Seasons in Florence, with Vito Mollica and Paolo Lavezzini, and at the two-Michelin-starred Arnolfo with Gaetano Trovato.
He shows talent and skill in working with ingredients. At times his touch may seem subtle, but around here—especially in seafood restaurants—it is often easy to find poorly treated raw materials in an attempt to impress at all costs. Worthy of note, however, is his ability to enhance the main ingredient with balance and, when necessary, let it express itself fully. Creativity finds the right space and time in the context of an absolute focus on finding the best products to serve.
At the table
The restaurant's concept is very clear from the menu: simple, easy-to-read dishes. Starting with the raw fish, where the large plateau reigns supreme with a selection of shellfish, oysters, and fish tartare, which is truly remarkable considering where we are.
Among the dishes on offer, I had the opportunity to taste fregola alla campidanese and spaghetti with sea urchins, which surprised me with their depth of flavor and simplicity. But I also enjoyed the dish with foie gras and shrimp, an unusual but surprising combination. The selection of desserts with ice cream and fried doughnuts was also interesting, as were the cantucci with their selection of sauces.
The restaurant also offers thin-crust pizzas, recommended as an accompaniment to aperitifs and appetizers. There is also a small selection of local meat dishes, from Fiorentina steak to pappardelle with homemade ragù, designed both for regular local customers and, above all, for tourists who expect to find this type of cuisine in the center of a Tuscan town. But don't be fooled by the depth of choice on the menu, the seafood selection is more than valid and the quality will not make you regret your usual steak...
Contact
Il Dek
Piazza Santa Maria delle Carceri, 1, 59100 Prato PO
Phone: 0574 475476
