Upon entering the gorgeous Casadonna hotel in Abruzzo, Italy, it’s possible you won’t even notice that it was formerly a 16th-century monastery.
The walls were refinished with cocciopesto, a compound of plaster and crushed terracotta. Rooms are decorated with sleek furniture and minimalist paintings, with wide windows overlooking the gorgeous natural scenery.
While this building was once a place of quiet worship for monks, it is now a culinary pilgrimage destination, thanks to the boutique hotel’s three-Michelin-star restaurant, Reale. At the helm are chef Niko Romito and his sister Cristiana, who worked painstakingly to restore the property and continue their father’s culinary legacy.
Who is chef Niko Romito?
Romito was studying economics at a university in Rome when he was notified that his father fell ill. His father had just turned the family’s pastry shop into a trattoria in Abruzzo’s Castel di Sangro.
To their surprise, they both fell in love with working in restaurant hospitality. When their father passed away in 2000, the siblings took over the restaurant. They kept its original name, Reale, but slowly moved away from the menu of local dishes. “That background was essential to my evolution,” says Romito.
It took a mere seven years for Reale to earn its first Michelin star under Romito and his sister. By 2007, his analytical, experimental approach to using simple ingredients and his visionary culinary style were renowned. A second Michelin star followed in 2009.
A Monastery Turned Culinary Destination
In 2011, the siblings moved Reale to Casadonna, a 16th-century former monastery they had painstakingly been restoring for four years. The austere building is just 15 minutes from Castel di Sangro, in the hills of Abruzzo’s national park. Its aesthetic and subsequent renovation are reflections of Romito’s culinary style.
“We were lucky to find a place we could rebuild from zero,” says Cristiana, who is general manager of Casadonna and maître d’hôtel of Reale. “That’s why there’s such consistency between the food and the decor.” Her brother adds, “There is a dialogue between the plate and the place— both must be simple, pure and essential.”
Wine, Landscape and Experimentation
The Casadonna hotel is bordered by vineyards growing Pecorino, Pinot and a few rows of Riesling grapes. They sit at 860 metres above sea level in one of the highest vineyards in Abruzzo, Italy. Originally designed as an experiment, the vineyard was planted to test how the different varieties of grapes would adapt to the soil and climate at a high altitude.
Romito works with these wine growers himself, and Reale serves a Pecorino wine from grapes grown on that very land. But his love of experimentation goes beyond wine-making. Over the past few decades, the self-taught chef has created a culinary world based around simplicity, study and innovation.
“Cucina Povera”: Niko Romito’s Culinary Approach at Reale
At the heart of Reale is traditional Italian cuisine. Or as Romito says, “cucina povera”—which focuses on cooking with humble ingredients like onions, carrots and chicory. Using that as a starting point, the chef began studying and interpreting what he describes as “purity extreme” and “simplicity extreme.” The results are exceptional.
For example, there is a bright dish inspired by colour. It features compressed watermelon, is dotted with Taggiasca black olive pâté and then mounded with marinated cherry tomatoes.
“My dishes represent a clearer and deeper expression of the ingredient: they are based on common and recognizable elements but with a greater intensity and complexity,” Romito says. “It’s much more difficult to work with an onion or a carrot than with caviar or langoustine. My role is to take an onion and make something extraordinary out of it.”
From Abruzzo, Italy to the World
Romito’s culinary vision continues to expand. There are now product lines, retail stores, and a vocational culinary academy for young chefs. The Beijing and Tokyo locations of Il Ristorante Niko Romito have also earned a Michelin star each. Through it all, Romito does make time to enjoy the occasional night off— and his favourite meal (meatballs and tomatoes), cooked by his mother, of course.
Plan Your Visit
Casadonna Reale and Ristorante Reale
Arbruzzo, Italy
Piana Santa Liberata, 67031 Castel di Sangro
nikoromito.com/casadonna
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