Nestled in the hills of Val Luretta, the house becomes a restaurant and every dish is a story within a story: Belrespiro cuisine of the Passo, fire, and Piacenza.
History, location, and cuisine
Among the gentle slopes of the Piacenza hills, in a stretch of valley where Hannibal and the Carthaginian army once passed, crushing the Romans in the historic battle of Trebbia, lies Belrespiro: a corner of authentic, yet non-traditional, Piacenza. Located in Sarturano, a hamlet of Agazzano, this space was born from the desire of Chiara Beretta and Fabio Delledonne to breathe new life into an old farmhouse: a former annex, a mix of stables and storage rooms, abandoned for over twenty years and now transformed into a place where the conviviality and intimacy of the family unit are cloaked in a sacred aura.
The perfect balance between rustic spirit and refined industrial touches animates every corner. Tables arranged randomly in the garden, salvaged chairs, fragments of aesthetic memory recomposed on the walls or in frames: the furnishings convey a calm chaos, a philosophy of freedom, reminiscence, and simplicity. The menus, strictly handwritten on pages taken from old books and embellished by Chiara's creative hand with vintage collages, invite guests to feel part of a story of conviviality and sharing.
Inside, the winter room can accommodate up to twelve people (fifteen if crowded) around the fireplace, where the soul of the fire becomes the soul of the place. Outside, the porch and garden are ready to come alive when the season allows. The slow pace of life is also reflected in the food on offer: each service offers dishes in keeping with the season, prepared around the open fire and wood-fired oven, which are always lit, tamed and controlled with innate and spontaneous wisdom. This place is not just a restaurant: it is a project that combines cuisine and life, where hospitality is taken seriously. It is all too easy to feel at home, among family.
Chiara and Fabio: the couple behind the magic
Chiara Beretta, a political science graduate with a passion for visual narrative logic (she also curates the artistic menus), and Fabio Delledonne, a self-taught mechanic who became a chef through inclination and instinct, are the soul of Belrespiro. Neither of them had a career in gastronomy in mind: they cooked for friends, experimented on weekends, dreamed of traveling, and were curious about the world. Until life—as beautiful things usually do—put an opportunity in their path: to take over an old trattoria in the village and keep it going, maintaining the spirit of the recreational club where they used to meet.
Fabio's cuisine is a hymn to authenticity: zero narcissism, instinctive and at the same time built on precise concepts. It is brutalist cuisine, cooked over an open fire, with Italian regional influences and a taste for combinations – between ingredients, between ideas, between memories. Chiara loves to create atmosphere, taking care of the dining room and the wines: their work is a natural fusion, which finds new creative combinations every day. The two have formed a laboratory of life: in the morning, family life; in the evening, the table; the next day, home again. Decisions are shared, as is their passion for the garden, the vegetable garden (following natural cultivation ideals, such as those of the Fukuoka method) and the choice of sustainable suppliers.
The dishes and the taste experience
Belrespiro's gastronomic philosophy is nourished by fire—both physical and metaphorical—and respect for the ingredients. Live embers dominate the signature dishes: roasts, meats, grilled vegetables, and smoke that envelops flavors and memories. Fabio refers to Castelfoegh, his iron grill, as a “castle of fire”: this is where the magic happens, from lamb asado to stew, from smoked vegetables to whole fish, such as turbot and John Dory.
Among the highlights are:
- Anolini in broth – the only traditional dish from Piacenza, a maternal legacy, reinterpreted here with simplicity and respect.
- The Arancino reinvented as the “bomba del piro” – inspired by Sicilian arancini, but made with layers of smoked ribs and fondue of Parmigiano: a powerful, concentrated, and evocative bite.
- Morel and asparagus soup – thickened with liver pâté and fish roe, a complex interplay of textures and roundness.
- Grilled asparagus with foie gras emulsion, egg sauce, and fish roe – an excess of culinary sensuality.
- Scallops flambéed in kidney fat – persuasive flavors, archaic and subtle techniques.
- Grilled Cervere leeks with our own chimichurri – a balance between freshness, warmth, and umami.
- Cochinita and pork shoulder – wrapped in fig leaves, marinated according to a Mexican recipe, accompanied by cider onions, citrus butter, mushrooms, and beurre blanc emulsion with anchovies.
Cotechini sausages, potatoes, and onions cooked in a wood-fired oven, served with grappa and cider or with panna cotta made with caramelized milk baked in a pan. Warm homemade bread, caramelized onions, and liver pâté (made from duck and rabbit, marinated in sweet wine) complete the gastronomic circle, along with desserts: wood-fired meringues, chocolate mousse with salted hazelnuts, zabaglione, madeleines, and ciambelline.
Each dish is a small encounter with the ingredient: an invitation to listen and reflect in conviviality.
Info
Address
Belrespiro – Via di Sarturano, 1
29010 Agazzano (PC), Emilia-Romagna, Italy
• Telephone: +39 0523 123456 (example, to be confirmed)
• Website: www.belrespiro-agazzano.it
• Notes: maximum 12-15 seats in the dining room; possibility of dining in the garden/porch; Wednesday evenings at sunset around the bonfire without reservation (crowded, we recommend arriving early).
Coming here means crossing the threshold of a shared home, a place where cooking is care, and conviviality is a form of resistance to the inexorable passage of time.
