Gioacchino Rossini, had the manners of a true gentleman. Bon vivant, as his friends called him, and an expert gourmand, as well as a great musician (1792 – 1868), he was an assiduous restaurant goer and he used to greet the maître, the sommelier and all the waiters by shaking hands when he entered a restaurant. Without disdaining, before sitting at his table, to enter the kitchens to pay homage to the chef. The visit was not completely disinterested because from there he could take inspiration to get in the kitchen and create his specialties. Although in the case of the famous "tournedos" that have become famous over time no less than his extraordinary works, it is said that it was Rossini himself who suggested the recipe to the chef of Café Anglais, then considered one of the best restaurants in Paris, where the great composer spent the last years of his life. "Appetite is for the stomach what love is for the heart, the stomach is the conductor who conducts the great orchestra of our passions".

Also in this phrase, food and music go hand in hand for the composer: for an excellent result both required a deep inspiration. So much so that those who asked him how the Stabat Mater was proceeding on which he had been working for some time, the master replied: "I'm looking for the reasons but I can think of nothing but pies and truffles".

But let's get back to the tournedos: tender fillet slices that marry foie gras, in honor of refined French cuisine, and the fragrant truffle, a product of his native land for which Rossini had a real passion, to the point of defining it "the Mozart of mushrooms". Irresistible combination that has made this simple and at the same time ingenious dish the "international" success, one of the seven (just like the musical notes) certainly signed by the famous musician. Also thanks to the publication of the recipe, albeit with some variations, on authoritative works of gastronomy such as Escoffier's Guide to Great Cuisine.