On October 24th, Reale Restaurant in Castel di Sangro, Abruzzo won the award for being named Italy's number-one restaurant by Gambero Rosso. It is not your typical Italian restaurant where you can indulge in classic meat and fish dishes. Reale's three-Michelin-star chef Niko Romito has done the radical and unimaginable by creating a tasting menu that is completely vegetarian.
Surrounded by the Apennine mountains, the restaurant has still managed to rise to the top even though they are disrupting traditional Italian food. The location of Reale is set between the sea and mountains. The restaurant has utilized the isolated region's unique culinary traditions, which include foraging for mushrooms and cultivating saffron in Navelli.
Reale's kitchen redefines Italian fine dining with its new vegetarian-tasting menu. Chef Niko Romito and his sister, Cristina continue to push boundaries with additional concepts on site. They also have a boutique hotel, and culinary school, and the restaurant's grounds house an experimental pecorino vineyard.
The three Michelin star chef is completely self-taught. He has made it his mission to transform ingredients that are easily accessible to even the home cook. The pandemic played a role in challenging the chef to think differently. The prolonged lockdowns allowed Niko Romito the time to reassess what fine dining truly is and his strong drive for sustainability, no waste, and investing in human capital.