In Modena, Tommaso Zoboli's young and creative cuisine takes shape in a journey made up of memories, experimentation, and a sparkling curiosity.
*Content with promotional purposes
In Modena, there is a restaurant that doesn't even look like a restaurant. Or rather, it is an immersive experience that engages all the senses, with taste at the forefront. It is Patrizia, opened in 2023 by Tommaso Zoboli, born in 1998, one of the youngest chefs in Italy to have created such a personal gastronomic project. A story that stems from the desire to return home after years of training abroad and the decision to start over in Modena with an idea of his own: to build a place that expressed what he had in mind, with his own personal rules. The team, originally under 25, is now under 27 (because time passes for everyone). Highly technical, but without heaviness or rigidity. A place that wants to make you feel good, surprise you, engage your senses without imposing itself, but with the pleasure of giving you an experience to remember, talk about, and then repeat.
Patrizia as a sensory experience
Every four months, a new tasting menu is created, with a theme, two options (short or long), and a new journey. The current menu, Alchimia, explores transformations, combinations, and unexpected encounters: ingredients far removed from the traditional Modena flavor spectrum find a new, unprecedented balance. The in-house laboratory is one of the driving forces behind the restaurant: continuous testing, constructive errors, attempts that open up new avenues. The result is a cuisine that also speaks the language of the Modena area but does not allow itself to be confined within geographical boundaries. And then there is Parmigiano Reggiano, used not as “grated cheese” but as a key ingredient in its various forms. Whey, cream, ricotta, and butter made from the same milk that is transformed into PDO cheese, and above all, tosone, which is fresh cheese made from Parmigiano Reggiano when it is still soft, freshly molded, and rich in lactic matter.
A journey through roots, curiosity, and the desire for evolution: our interview with Tommaso Zoboli
Tell me who you are and what Patrizia is.
I'm Tommaso Zoboli, I'm twenty-six years old. I studied at cooking school in Milan, then I traveled around a bit, gaining experience in two-star and three-star restaurants, which were quite structured. At a certain point, I felt that I wanted to come home. Patrizia was founded in 2023, and it's a fine dining restaurant, although I don't really like labels. It's a place where we can do things our way, without feeling constrained by rigid rules. The name is a tribute to my mother, whose name was Patrizia: I liked the idea of keeping her with me every day. For me, Patrizia is this: a place of our own, a personal project, closely linked to who we are.
The restaurant opened with a very young team. How did this group come about?
Yes, at the beginning we were all under 25. Now we're under 27 because the years pass for everyone, not because we've suddenly grown old! I wanted a young team because I was looking for people without a predefined mold. I didn't want “set” chefs, I wanted energy, curiosity, and a desire to grow together. I prefer to build a common language rather than take on someone who already has their own ideas. There are eight of us: kitchen, dining room, and the laboratory, which is growing. It's a very close-knit group, we work hard but it's not a heavy atmosphere. No one here wants to be a star: we just want to improve and grow the restaurant.
How would you describe the experience you offer?
I would say it's a sensory experience. We care a lot about lighting, materials, and sounds: they are as much a part of the dish as the ingredients. We don't want to be a conceptual restaurant “at all costs.” For me, it's essential that people feel comfortable, that there is warmth, that the flavors are recognizable. I like to play with memory, with what we've all tasted at least once in our lives. Fine dining can also be welcoming; it doesn't have to be distant. We want those who come to us to enter a new world, but without feeling out of place.
Tell me about the menus that change every four months. How did a theme like “Alchemy” come about?
Every four months we change everything. The chosen theme remains the same in both the long and short versions. For me, it's important to have a common thread because it helps me make sense of the whole journey. “Alchemy” was born from the desire to transform very different ingredients and see what happens when you put them together. It's a work of continuous experimentation: we try, we make mistakes, we adjust. We usually start with an idea, then we make sketches of dishes, test them, and modify them. Sometimes the final dish has nothing to do with the initial one, and that's okay. It's a serious game, but still a game.
How does Parmigiano Reggiano cheese feature in your cooking?
We use it in many different ways. Not just as grated cheese, in fact we hardly ever use it that way. We work with a local dairy that provides us with all the by-products of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese production: ricotta, cream, whey, butter, and above all, tosone, which is the fresh cheese obtained when Parmigiano Reggiano is still soft, just after being molded. It has an incredible texture and a very clean, milky flavor. For us, Parmigiano Reggiano is more of an ingredient in its own right, a structure, a technical base; it is not a “flavor to be added.” We use it to give depth, to create balance. Sometimes we choose a 24-month cheese, sometimes a 110-month cheese, depending on what we need to achieve the dish we want. We don't feel obliged to use Parmigiano Reggiano just because we are in Modena: for us, the PDO is a natural element in the dish.
Tell me about your relationship with the local area.
Modena gives you everything, if you know how to listen to it. This isn't just talk, it's practical. We have extraordinary ingredients around us, so it makes sense to start there. I'm not a zero-kilometer extremist: if we need an ingredient that isn't local but is right for the dish, we use it. But the truth is that you can find almost everything nearby. It's a matter of logic and respect.
Which dishes do you feel most connected to right now?
Pastina-col-formaggino, definitely. It's a dish that seems like it's for children, but it's not at all: it takes a lot of work, especially on the dairy side, which comes from Parmigiano Reggiano. Then there's raviolo di cappello del prete, finto toast, which has become something of a symbol for us, and a dish of eel that I love very much. Every menu has three or four dishes that become our identity. The rest changes, evolves, moves on. We don't want to stand still: we like to move.
How do you envision Patrizia's future?
I want it to remain our restaurant, not too big, not too stuffy. I'm interested in growing in the kitchen, studying ingredients, combinations, and techniques in greater depth. I want to explore these avenues calmly. I'm not obsessed with the star. If it comes, fine; if it doesn't, that's fine too. I want Patrizia to remain a place with a clear soul, where we can continue to express ourselves.
Zoboli's dishes and the role of Parmigiano Reggiano
Patrizia's cuisine strikes a subtle balance between playfulness and technique. The pasta with cheese is a perfect example: a dish that seems childish but is actually based on complex work that reproduces a flavor that brings back memories. Patrizia is a very young restaurant, but already mature in its thinking. It is a place where the energy of the team meets a cuisine that aims to excite and surprise without being overly complicated.
Info
Patrizia
Via della Torre, 29, 41121 Modena MO
Website: ristorantepatrizia.com
