Tag: Apostles

12 Apostles, the gastronomic renaissance of Verona – Italian Cuisine


The oldest restaurant in the city (and among the oldest in Italy) changes skin and wins a Michelin star. Doing gastronomic catechism on tradition, proposing apocryphal menus and an apostolic … kabbalistic cellar.

Legend has it that already in the eighteenth century, in this inn of Vicolo Corticella San Marco, a group of merchants of Piazza dei Signori sat in front of a bowl of pasta and beans and a glass of wine to do business. The Veronese had nicknamed them the "12 Apostles", from there the name of the inn, which after three centuries no longer changed its name. But the substance has changed a lot, because at the beginning of the twentieth century, Antonio Gioco took over the restaurant and transformed it into a high-level restaurant, then passed it to his son after the war, Giorgio Gioco, chef and among the first in Italy to conquer the double Michelin star, and then to Antonio.
The history of the 12 Apostles has a century of rainstorms, moments of splendor and difficult years: 1956, 1969, 1977, 1984, 1991. And then, after 28 years, the new recognition of the "red" in 2019. Today we are at fourth generation, that of Filippo Gioco. It is he who has decided to revolutionize the restaurant, eliminating the decor of the theme of the circus theme and taking a path of subtraction, which reported the frescoes in the role of protagonists – in one of the most beautiful rooms in Italy. "A Renaissance project, which considers the historical place not a museum, but the privileged fulcrum of a journey of research and gastronomic discovery". At his side, the chef Mauro Buffo, 38 years old, Veronese chef native of Soave.

The gastronomical catechism
It's called Specchi, and it's the tasting menu "to make a local mind". Some might call it the traditional menu, but they do not, they find it too demanding a word. "Tradition in a moment transforms into betrayal"And therefore this is a mirror because it is in the mirror that we understand who we are and who we have been, who we will become and what surrounds us. But Verona is all there, with its ancient recipes such as pearà, polenta, the day of grandparents with the horse, the stories of the neighborhood. It is the right menu for those who want to rediscover the memories and those who want to know the city, find its flavors and essence – it is good, warm, comforting, elegant, satisfying. It is haute cuisine that does not bend to fashions and speaks to everyone, and that for once is not overshadowed – in the near and in the breadth of the proposal – with the rest of the tasting menus. Not a child of a lesser God for the unlucky, but 8 courses that applaud: Interactive Polenta, Head naone and vinegar, Trippe of cod and sturgeon hard to beurre blanc, Horse with salsa verde in South American style, Grated pasta broth of hare and ragged egg, Bogon Bogonela snails risotto with acidity of Durello, His majesty la Pearà the infamous sauce with boiled meat, cooked and bitter Pomi in pumpkin. 90 €.

The apocryphal menus
Looks, Reflections and Turns. If with the mirror you see who you are, with the other three tasting menus the chef Mauro Buffo takes you for a walk, among the tastes that he likes, and along his experience as a cook and a man: a bit 'in Japan a bit' in Spain, passing through the kitchens of Marchesi and the United States (where he understood that one does not eat at all badly, on the contrary). Always 8 dishes with tasting menu (always at € 90), with dish like Bozen-Palemmmo, spätzle of spleen, sauerkraut juice, lemon or Ossttrreeggheettaa !!, oyster and marrow. Then there is Giravolte, 10 unimaginable courses, a sort of playlist of the chef among all the dishes of the paper, for those who are free of prejudices, eat everything and get bored often (110 €).

The cabal of 12
12 apostles of Jesus, as 12 tribes of Israel, as 12 chapters for the wine list. "I know how much work here the number 12 torments me" writes Niccolò Poli, a young sommelier who has also had the task of restructuring the wine list. And that he did it in a really clever way. 12 chapters, 12 bottles per chapter, and a proposal that changes every season, to explore new labels and depths of vintages. An "apostolic cellar" which is a very good idea. In addition to the usual proposals of Italian and French sparkling wines, a fine Scotch whiskey – Rum is for fun, whiskey is for business.

The apostolic award
Proving that this is more for Verona than a restaurant. The Premio 12 Apostoli was founded in 1968 and forty years has rewarded politicians and writers, artists and writers, from Giulio Andreotti to Rita Levi Montalcini, from Piero Angela to Claudio Bisio. In the jury they could only be in 12, intellectuals and prestigious signatures of our time. If on the names of the 12 Apostles of Jesus the debate lasts about 2000 years (and has not yet all agreed), the 12 Apostles of the Prize are Gian Luigi Beccaria, Milo Manara, Marzio Breda, Alfredo Meocci, Ferruccio de Bortoli, Ettore Mo, Luca Goldoni, Lorenzo Reggiani, Massimo Gramellini, Sergio Romano, Stefano Lorenzetto, Vittorio Zucconi.

Browse the gallery

Proudly powered by WordPress

By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. Click here to read more information about data collection for ads personalisation

The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.

Read more about data collection for ads personalisation our in our Cookies Policy page

Close