Dal Pescatore (Italian) - Review - Canneto sull’Oglio, Mantova, Italy (10/10)

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I had not heard of Dal Pescatore until I read about it last year in a Condé Nast Traveller supplement on Italy. It has three Michelin stars, and currently ranks 23rd in the San Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Big deal, I thought. The Michelin guide covers few countries, while the San Pellegrino list is compiled by a select group. I don’t go out of my way to eat at Michelin-rated establishments, while my husband actively avoids any place with even a whiff of pretentiousness. And yet there was something intriguing about this family-run, country restaurant in the middle of nowhere, headed by female chef Nadia Santini. I had to find out more.

Dal Pescatore has been serving simple, traditional Mantuan cuisine for several generations, since 1926 in fact, when the current owner’s grandfather bought a fisherman’s hut by a lake and opened a small osteria with his wife. From those humble beginnings, it now attracts chefs from all over the world who want to train there, while the wine cellar is reputed to be one of the best in Italy.

Out of the 68 three star Michelin restaurants in the world, five are located in Italy and just six are run by women. The first Italian woman to receive her third star in 1996, Nadia is now one of three female chefs in Italy with three stars. Enough dazzling facts?! (thank you, Andy Hayler)

Located in the remote tiny hamlet of Runate (population 36), within the nature reserve Parco Oglio Sud, it would be difficult to reach Dal Pescatore without a car. In fact, it is so far the only restaurant I have come across that provides GPS coordinates for helicopter landings! I had originally booked for dinner (many months ago), but ten days before, moved it to Saturday lunch, to avoid having to drive back late at night. It would take 2 hours from Limone sul Garda, where we were staying, so we decided to make a day trip out of it. Three Michelin stars are awarded for ‘exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey‘. Was Dal Pescatore worth it?

It turned out to be such a treasured gastronomic experience for the both of us, beyond all expectations, that I have found it hard to put it in words. I had been feeling really ill the night before and was worried that I wouldn’t be well enough to travel to Runate. As a result, I even had a nightmare that the food turned out to be terrible. Fortunately, I made a miraculous recovery, and we were soon on our way after breakfast, allowing plenty of extra time to find Dal Pescatore. The drive was actually quite easy, and took exactly two hours, although it would have been a different matter trying to locate it for an evening meal.

The welcome:

We arrived at 11.30 am, 90 minutes earlier than our reservation. After parking in the restaurant carpark, which was empty, we explored a little. Dal Pescatore is really a smart country house, with a small kitchen garden and a pretty garden where guests can relax in between courses. There are just a few houses in Runate, with no shops or any other amenities. Having asked a passing chef about the opening time (noon), we thought we would try and eat earlier. At 12.00, we walked in and was greeted by a charming maître d’, who from that moment onwards looked after us as if we were the only customers there.

Dal Pescatore only has 24 covers, although I had to count a few times. It’s hard to believe it, because the three dining rooms (the main room, a smaller one with one large table for eight, and another screened off by plants) were so spacious, with the tables metres apart from each other. The floor to ceiling windows and mirrors added to the sense of light and space. As we were the first to arrive - the other 22 diners didn’t arrive until 1pm, our original reservation - the staff had nothing to do but look after us, which felt a little overwhelming.

The menu:

As we studied the large menus (in Italian only), I became rather nervous. I remember approximate prices from other reviews, but there were no prices anywhere on my menu. Were we supposed to simply order whatever we fancied and not give a second thought about the final bill? Then I sneaked a look at husband’s menu, which showed all the prices. This was a first for me, that only the man is handed the menu with the prices, but apparently this is quite common in Europe. I’ll know not to worry next time, and just swap menus with the nearest man!

We skipped the two tasting menus - the Menu di Primavera and the Menu dalla Campagna - at €165.00 for 7 courses, although on hindsight these would have been absolute bargains, given the à la carte prices. I highly recommend going for one of these. After feeling slightly flummoxed by the choices (and prices - in the €30s range for pasta and risotto dishes, in the €40s range for meat and fish dishes), I thought I’d be clever and see if the items I wanted were to be found in the tasting menus, as they were bound to contain all the classics and signature dishes. Bingo!

I chose the Risotto (Vialone nano) con Piselli, Asparagi, Porcini ed erbette dolci - risotto made with Vialone Nano rice, peas, asparagus and porcini mushroom (€36.00), part of the Primavera menu, followed by the Cappello da Prete di Manzo al Barbera e Polenta Gialla Belgrano - shoulder of beef or literally ‘priests’ hats in Barbera wine with golden Belgrano polenta (€43.00), part of the Campagna menu.

Vegetarian husband chose the Dal Pescatore classic of Tortelli di Zucca (Zucca, Amaretti, Mostarda, e Parmigiano Reggiano) - tortelli with pumpkin, amaretti biscuits, mostarda (a type of candied fruit and mustard chutney condiment and a speciality of Lombardia) and Parmesan (€29.00), which I had read about beforehand and recommended to him. This is also part of the Campagna menu. Antonio Santini, owner and husband of Nadia, took our order and when husband mentioned that he was vegetarian, a special second course was announced and created for him - Composta di Pomodori Melanzane - compote of tomato, aubergine and basil (€26.00).

As for wine - the superb selection was expensive, and included some extremely rare vintages - we said we had to drive, which was true, and stuck to water. The Japanese sommelier did not appear to be too impressed. In the end, we did drink, but more about that later.

The famous Parmesan ‘crisps’ arrived - shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano dropped on a hot griddle - which were sensational. I can still taste them now, ten days later. Husband loved the potato and spring onion crispbreads, wafer thin and delicately flavoured, while I found the freshly baked walnut bread roll irresistable.

By now, I had been taking endless photos, scribbling notes and copying part of the menu into my Moleskine. This always makes husband nervous. He tried to explain it away to the maître d’ in his rusty Italian, by saying that I was a ‘giornalista da Londra’, at which point our experience at Dal Pescatore was transformed.

Visit to the kitchen:

We were whisked off by Antonio to the kitchen to meet his wife and head chef Nadia Santini, his mother Bruna (nearly 80 and still cooking!), and one of his two sons Giovanni. At a rough estimate, there were probably ten or so chefs there. Totally unprepared for this unexpected pleasure, and not really sure about the etiquette for visitors in a busy Michelin-starred kitchen, I took photos of the family, then had one taken with them. Antonio showed us all the family photos, explaining the history of Dal Pescatore, and pointed out the fishing net used by his grandfather, displayed on the wall with all the other fishing and farming implements from the original restaurant. It was also nice to see, during our meal, first Bruna, then later Nadia, walk to the kitchen garden to fetch ingredients that they needed. They certainly could not be any fresher.

Starters and mains:

The food started to arrive. We were presented with an amuse-bouche of two small pieces of artichoke with an oil and vinegar sauce - a little sweet for me, but interesting nevertheless. This was shortly followed by our first course. My risotto was the most exquisite I have ever had. Words fail me. I’ve never had to use so many adjectives synonymous with perfection. The Vialone nano rice made it superbly creamy, and the flavours were just right. The portion was small, so I made every forkful last as long as possible. Husband’s tortelli consisted of five perfect pieces, filled with a dreamy combination of pumpkin and amaretti. I managed to extort half a piece to sample. Outstanding.

Another amuse-bouche followed, consisting of a single tortelloni filled with ricotta and a small dollop of fonduta sauce made from Parmigiano Reggiano. Husband described the experience as ‘just like an explosion of flavours’. Although small, it was filling. No one else seemed to be receiving these little treats, as far as I could see. We were, after all, the only non-Italians, as well as the ones who had an Anglo-Saxon fear of drink driving…

While we were waiting for our second course, the maître d’ came over with a technical cookery manual the size of a telephone directory, to show me a complex diagram depicting the multiple cuts of a cow and explain exactly where capello was - no.18, the shoulder. This was extremely considerate of him, as all I knew was that I was getting manzo - beef. I can’t imagine any other maître d’ doing the same for me, not in London anyway. And, of course, when the beef arrived, it was so tender and succulent that it really did not require a knife. The Barbera sauce was quite rich, but was beautifully balanced by the dollops of polenta and…mash potato (almost a purée) with Parmigiano Reggiano. I’ve heard the latter described, but have never had it until now. It was so simple and yet so glorious. Husband’s course looked stunning. ….

Cheese and dessert:

By this point, we were both feeling unexpectedly full. The portions were not large, but with all the extras, it was turning into a substantial lunch. Little did we know, we were only halfway through it. Antonio then asked if we wanted any cheese. After saying yes, wondering what we would get, he asked if we wanted ‘a little wine’ to go with the cheese. Glasses of excellent red Montesodi Frescobaldi (I forgot to note down the year, but husband assures me it was 2004, a good year) was proffered, followed by a generous top-up. Antonio probably thought it was bordering on criminal not to at least have a fine wine with the cheese…

While we were waiting for the cheese, we were handed the dessert menu. Husband ordered the Torta di Amaretti (caffè, panna, croccante e zabaione), a Dal Pescatore classic which has been prepared the same way for the last 40 years. I chose the Lingue di gatto (cats’ tongues) al Miele di Castagno, Frutti di Bosco e Crema Chantilly. Then the cheese arrived.

We were each presented with a tasting plate of five types of cheese, accompanied by fresh walnut and candied fruit bread. The cheese included Parmigiano Reggiano di Collina (Solignano, Parma, Emilia Romagna), Gorgonzola Malghese Angelo Croce con Mostarda di frutta (Lombardia) and Caprino della Capreria Occitana (Pinerolo, Piedmonte). The last one was incredible (the melted one in the photo), and my absolute favourite.

By now, feeling extremely satisfied, we were a little alarmed to be presented with a silver tray full of piccola pasticceria or pre-dessert delectables. We must have been given the largest selection in the restaurant. There were 11 different bite-sized ones, two of each. Of course, I had to save what little space I had left for the dessert, so husband had more than I did. As we were tucking in, glasses of delicious, slightly fizzy muscat wine arrived. Too weak to protest at this extended generosity, we duly drank up.

To top it all, instead of the two desserts that we ordered, four arrived. Two were full size, while the other two ’samplers’ were slightly, but not much, smaller. The lingue di gatto which I had ordered came as a sampler size, but I actually preferred my full size mille-feuille with forest fruits and vanilla ice cream. This wasn’t on the menu, but was featured in the Condé Nast Traveller supplement. The other sampler was Friabile al Rhum con ganache di fondente Valrhona e Zabaione al Marsala. Out of these four, I enjoyed the mille-feuille the most.

After the meal:

After coffee, it seemed about time to make a move. Not that anyone was in a hurry for us to leave. It’s so relaxing at Dal Pescatore. Once you arrive, you’re not expected to leave until you’re ready. There are various reading rooms with comfortable sofas where you could easily pass the rest of the day with a book from their extensive collection. There are no such things as first, second or third sittings there. Instead, we were offered some grappa. When the bill finally came, it was a reasonable €230.00 including service charge. We had not been charged for any alcohol, even though we certainly drank enough (cheese was €15.00 per person, plus two desserts at €28.00 each).

As we were leaving, I was presented with copies of the main and dessert menus, as well as the Le Soste 2008 Guide to the top restaurants in Italy (Antonio is the Vice-President, so I was given the special Dal Pescatore edition to mark Le Soste’s 25th anniversary), and we shook hands with the maître d’, Valentina, Giovanni, Antonio and Nadia. The kitchen was intensely busy when we returned to say our goodbyes, compared with the first trip, but that didn’t stop them from interrupting what they were doing to thank us for visiting and to wish us a safe journey.

The verdict?

Dal Pescatore is my first 10/10 restaurant experience. I’ve been searching for a 10 my entire life. Having read so much about the Santini family’s legendary hospitality, I can now confirm that it is all true. I don’t think I’ve ever been made to feel so special in any restaurant I’ve visited. Diners are made to feel equally welcome, whether they have arrived in a helicopter or rental car. Husband is still excited about the whole experience, which is rare indeed. The great thing is that nowhere on their website or in the restaurant do they mention that they have 3 Michelin stars. They seem to be far more proud of the fact they are an exclusive Relais & Châteaux destination. We left Limone at 9.30, arrived at Dal Pescatore at 11.30, left at 15.50 and returned to Limone just before 18.00. It was truly‘exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey, from anywhere in the world. I can’t wait to go back soon. Maybe by helicopter.

10 - Perfection, 9.5 - Sensational, 9 - Outstanding, 8.5 - Superb,
8 - Excellent, 7.5 - Very Good, 7 - Good, 6.5 - Above Average, 6 - Average

Contact Details:
Dal Pescatore
Runate
46013 Canneto sull’Oglio
Mantova
Italy
Tel: +39 0376 723 001
santini@dalpescatore.com
www.dalpescatore.com

Open Wednesday evening to Sunday evening.

Helen Yuet Ling Pang @ World Foodie Guide