Davide Caranchini closes and relocates: the Materia Restaurant will have a new home, but still in Cernobbio

by Andrea Cuomo

The message, posted on Saturday on the restaurant’s Instagram page, alarmed many fans of the Cernobbio restaurant. "Materia closes," it read laconically. In an era where high-end restaurants are dropping like flies in the face of economic crises, there was reason to fear the worst. Indeed, the comments below from users were rather worried. But an arrow drawn below the message pointed to more messages. "Sunday, July 15th will be our last service at the restaurant." Alarm still high. "The reason for this choice is difficult to explain..." Alarm at its peak. "But you can find out here on our Instagram profile on Sunday, June 2nd at 6 pm." Some hope.

Caranchini at the construction site of the new venue

Just 300 meters away

And at 6 pm, we connected and discovered that it is not a closure but a move, not even very far. A black-and-white video of a few dozen seconds shows work in progress and chef Davide Caranchini, who brought two forks from Gambero Rosso and a Michelin star to the Lake Como restaurant, wandering in a white jacket around a construction site. "Dear friends," it reads below. "It’s all true, the restaurant is closing... but to reopen! We are thrilled to announce that after almost eight years, Materia will move to a new location here in Cernobbio, at Via Trieste 1/b, just 300 meters from our current position." The space, explains the restaurant’s social media manager, has been designed together with the "talented" Emilia and Stefano from vparchitects.design, and "will allow us to express ourselves better and make your experience even more special." The first service in the new location is scheduled for August 1st, and the last in the Via Cinque Giornate location will be the evening of July 14th. Reservations for the new Materia will open soon. The post concludes with thanks. "Everything we have achieved," it reads, "would not have been possible without the special bonds we have built over time with our team, suppliers, artisans, and especially with you, our guests." The message is signed by Ambra Sberna, 34, front of house manager, Luca Sberna, 35, sommelier, and chef Caranchini himself, 34. The name of Marco Sberna, 37, another front of house manager and Luca’s brother, is missing.

Davide Caranchini

The greenhouse

Materia is one of the most interesting restaurants on the Lombard scene. Caranchini’s cuisine is provocative and bold, characterized by the chef's aim, who is a local, to enhance the products of a territory whose story has often been overlooked by those in fine dining with an international vocation, which is a challenge for those working by the lake. Among Materia’s standout features is the beautiful greenhouse from which the chef sources vegetables and aromatic herbs that are a fundamental part of many dishes, especially the entirely plant-based menu (Green Power, €100) which includes dishes like Mushroom Soup with Pickled Cherries, Grilled Salad with Black Truffle, Smoked Butter Risotto with Birch and Sea Buckthorn, Endive with Hazelnut, Whisky and Black Truffle, and Caramelized Celeriac with Rosemary Ice Cream. The other tasting menus are Revolution Revival (five courses for €100, seven for €120), and the theatrical The Last Dance at €160. It remains to be seen if this approach will remain unchanged in the new location. We will only have to wait two months to find out.