Locally sourced fish, technique, and humility. These are just some of the winning ingredients at the seafood restaurant run by Elvio Ferrelli and Luana Lesce, two young chefs with clear and sustainable ideas.
The restaurant
“Fish is a serious matter,” repeats Elvio Ferrelli, chef and owner, together with his partner Luana Lesce, of NuAN, a small but highly regarded fish restaurant in Via Siria in Rome, several times during our interview. The restaurant was founded in the summer of 2024 by the young couple of chefs who left the world of fine dining – specifically the two-Michelin-starred Acquolina – to express their talent in the service of the sea.
“We mainly like to offer regional seafood cuisine, where the raw ingredients are the focus of everything. We take a back seat to them. We respect them and treat them simply, without altering them,” says the couple. What we want to convey through our dishes is the comfort of tradition, rejuvenated by a modern touch, the result of our research and experience. Our cuisine is so local, simple but taken to the highest level that we like to call it ‘haute cuisine at home’. It is a project that respects the sea and its seasons, selecting only local fish, 90% of which comes from the Civitavecchia fish market, while for larger fish, the reference point is Luxittica.
“I have been working for years with a guy who participates directly in the fishermen's auction in Civitavecchia,” explains Elvio Ferrelli. “It's a great advantage because it guarantees you the freshest fish that never touches ice.” If the iodine-rich raw material is central to NuAN, the other ingredients are no less important, all sourced from small Italian suppliers, with the exception of coffee and chocolate, which are selected from outside Italy.
Despite its excellent prices, the restaurant does not compromise on the quality and sustainability of its food, a fundamental principle for the two chefs. “We decided to use wild-caught fish rather than farmed fish, not to show off, but to be truly sustainable and respect the sea,” says the chef. “In October, for example, when there is a biological fishing ban, we only offer vegetables and a few meat dishes.”
Following this reasoning, Ferrelli and Lesce change the menu every week depending on what the sea has to offer. There are two tasting menus: Menu al buio (based on the daily catch, 6 courses, $60) and Più crudo che cotto (8 courses for €70), plus a small menu that is explained in detail upon arrival by Ferrelli—who comes out to the dining room like the hosts of yesteryear—or by Enrica Cocciarelli, a young sommelier who completes the NuAN team and is currently in charge of a small but impressive wine list featuring exclusively Italian labels.
“Our format is nothing new, but a bit like the chefs of yesteryear, we want to return to being aware of the fish we eat,” reveals Elvio Ferrelli. “I left the world of fine dining because I wanted to express myself freely in the kitchen, in a genuine restaurant with excellent value for money.”
The dishes
We opted for the tasting menu Più crudo che cotto (More raw than cooked), and we were promptly informed that the pasta would be served at the end of the meal to better enjoy the freshness of the fish. After some comforting semi-wholemeal bread paired with a tasty buffalo butter flavored with anchovies, the chefs take to the field with a carpaccio of amberjack—aged in the fridge for a week—finished with a pleasant red turnip sauce that does not distract from the meatiness of the fish. This is followed by a double act of Misticanza and raw cuttlefish – in which the quality of the vegetables does not go unnoticed – and Gamberi gobbetti served au naturel to certify their extreme freshness. Fantastic.
The tasting intensifies with raw mantis shrimp seasoned with salt, oil, and chili pepper, scampi tartare with fish mayonnaise, chicory, and a light sprinkling of cocoa—an excellent combination of ingredients—and red shrimp served with sun-dried tomatoes. Here, it is the side dish that proves to be the winner, with the fried crustacean head to be dipped in a harmonious fish mayonnaise.
An enlightening journey that says a lot about both the quality of the catch and the skill and technique of the two chefs, who finish the savoury course with tortelli stuffed with cuttlefish, fennel, spring onion and fish stock. “In addition to technique, we like to bring out the essence of every ingredient in the dish,” comments Elvio Ferrelli, who doesn't disappoint when it comes to dessert: a peanut crumble with white chocolate and beer ganache and hazelnut ice cream quenelle. A dessert that pays homage to the talent of the late Alessandro Narducci, with whom he shared the Metamorfosi adventure.
NuAN
Via Siria 3, 00183 Roma
t. 06 69401880
