Massimo Bottura and Niko Romito are still the best chefs in Italy

Two champions at the top of the 47 shortlisted Tre Forchette, the Olympus of Italian dining according to the 34th edition of Gambero Rosso Ristoranti d'Italia 2024 guide. In Modena and Castel di Sangro (AQ), Osteria Francescana and Reale are cultural experiences before being gastronomic. Equal merit with 96/100, Massimo Bottura and Niko Romito are in fact “brothers form other mothers” who, with peculiar languages and perspectives, are writing the Italian culinary avant-garde. Bringing the best Made in Italy to the world.

The 2 best restaurants in Italy according to Gambero Rosso

Osteria Francescana in Modena

Massimo (nomen omen, today more than ever) Bottura's new menu is dedicated to Bob Dylan. A genius re-inventor of 'his' Emilian tradition filtered through childhood memories and reinterpreted with an eye to the world, as well as a prolific entrepreneur (the latest project in chronological order is the Gatto Verde), Chef Bottura has conceived much more than a mere 'remake' of his historical dishes of the last two decades. They are in fact dishes disassembled and reassembled according to the experiences and feelings of the 150 young people of all ages and almost everywhere in the world who formed the Francescana team (a dream team, aka the Francescana family). But it is also a true piece of talent.

The end result is both sparkling and moving. When, for example, the potato “that wants to become a truffle” (the now-famous Bottura labels have remained as they are) is transformed into a small bread - that anyone would like to eat every day - made from the flour of the potato itself cooked in truffle and hazelnut water and then dehydrated, with a soft creamy heart and with veils of truffle on it to vibrate like butterfly wings. But also the eel that swims up the Po, the trout in black, and the 'indigenous' fallow deer, dressed and pushed in taste towards fabulous boundaries by the yellow fruit and raspberry with which it is paired; the incredible black pork pudding, a distillation of ancestral and future that “is a dish, could be a predessert, could be anything” (Bottura dixit) are to be included among the all-time highs of the work of the frontman of Modena taste and his band. Which rotates without missing a step, including bottles moved to and from the cellar. 325 euro, is the price for the menu (plus 210 pairing, for those who do not prefer to seek out 'his' wine). Not cheap, certainly. But it really is a gift that’s worth every cent.

Osteria Francescana - Modena - via Stella, 22 - 059 223912 - osteriafrancescana.it

Reale di Castel di Sangro (AQ)

For the second year running, Niko Romito remains faithful to his choice: the meditated, but then all-out exploration of the opportunities for taste - hitherto, according to the extraordinary chef from Abruzzo, never fully brought to light - offered by the vegetable 'mine' (his 'signature' is 100% so) to those who know how to dig deep into its soul. And, when it comes to getting to the bottom of it, Romito, as we know, has few rivals. His cuisine is pure analysis, exploration, meditation, synthesis. Starting with the "absolutes" (on the menu among the historical dishes) with single ingredients, now, with the precision and rigour that belong to him, he often works on alliances or dialectics, pushing more and more on the extraction of primary flavours, even in the games of pairing. Begun perhaps with watermelon and tomato, not by chance again on the menu, but, like all repeated dishes, modified in the accents, in the rhythm of flavours, in their rise or fall. Because research at Reale really does not stop.

An example? After revolutionising the service of bread, bringing it whole to centre stage - opening a new route, a bit like the all "veggie" menu, fixed this year in many fine dining establishments - echoes the return to the "separate" (the special loaf, then the slice of the large loaf) both to aim even more at "no waste", and to exhibit its soul, crust and texture after cutting. In any case, in the 13-stage flight at 190 euro - a price that remains among the lowest in the top range - bread remains a box. In the others, the alcoholic misticanza and almond; the cazzarielli - super for tension and cooking - beetroot and lemon; two memorable "passi a due", green pepper and apple "married" by rice and aubergine and peach caramel; the "a solo" of escarole (but smelling of potato and seeming two things in one) and mushrooms. Desserts to be discovered. And service - Cristiana Romito in the dining room with a very young and strong team, Gianni Sinesi in the cellar and splash on the mixed drinks with a measured alcoholic content, almost a majority in the pairing - that is no longer a discovery, but an absolute certainty.

Reale - Castel di Sangro (AQ) - loc. Casadonna - piana Santa Liberata - 0864 69382 - nikoromito.com

Gambero Rosso Ristoranti d'Italia 2024 guide. Numbers and news

Edition number 34, we were saying. Gambero Rosso Guida Ristoranti d'Italia - almost 2,500 addresses and more than 300 new entries - is still an irreplaceable compass for finding one's way around the increasingly busy Italian restaurant scene. It is the only book with an analytical evaluation system (for restaurants, in addition to forks, there is a score in hundredths divided into cuisine, wine cellar and service, and for the other categories an evaluation with symbols, from one to a maximum of three), offering an updated and complete snapshot of the sector, intercepting and anticipating trends, a reliable service for customers and a showcase that enhances the value of those who carry out this - extremely difficult - work with serious commitment, perseverance and spirit of initiative.

It may not look like it, but the selection is very tight: according to Chamber of Commerce data recorded by Movimprese, there are almost 400,000 registered food-serving businesses throughout Italy, practically 1 in every 150 Italians. Establishments that in many cases can no longer be 'caged' in a specific category (restaurant, bistro, trattoria, etc.). Today we speak of formats, of multifunctional spaces, of agri and wine resorts, of hubs. On the other hand, the evolving language mirrors the changing reality. Just as the ways, times and habits of eating out are changing, and the geographical horizons and entrepreneurial visions are broadening: the large cities are no longer the only trendsetters in the sector, since social media has overturned - not necessarily in a negative sense - communication in the sector and the relationship with the customer. But in this oceanic setting, one thing is certain, and that’s great fine dining, the experience with a capital 'E', the restaurant that is worth the trip. And even a waiting list that can last weeks if not months.