At the end of January, and with little media clamour, Da Vinci, Eataly’s gourmet restaurant opened to the public in Florence. At the helm of the kitchen, on the top floor of the noble palace a few steps from Florence’s cathedral, there’s talented chef Enrico Panero, born in 1987. The rooms are snug, with wide tables finely separated from one another. The setting is minimal yet the precious frescos on the ceiling remind us we’re in the town’s historic centre. The table setting is essential, lightened up by the 19th century style under-plates recalling the decor/ceiling. The menu, which includes four alternatives per course – interesting and moderately creative – celebrates what nature bestows. The dishes are certainly very contemporary, if by this we intend a minimal use of fat and the unbroken principle that a good dish can be noticed even after you leave the table. There are two tasting menus, fish or meat based, so one can taste the whole repertoire. The wine list fully interprets Eataly’s vino libero (free wine) spirit, with eco-friendly products, using no fertilizers, weed killers and sulphites.
Pici with borage, calamari and peanuts
The young and professional staff welcomes guests with an excellent
Franciacorta paired with fragrant sesame puff pastries, the first irresistible temptation for all bread lovers. This is followed right away by some nibbles as the kitchen’s welcome, and then the official start with
Calamari stuffed with king prawns, squilla mantis, ricotta and seaweeds which release lots of fresh flavours, separated and finely superimposed. We then receive a surprise homage, in the form of a
Scallop on cauliflower cous cous and puntarelle with citrus fruits which had made us very curious and in fact was a pleasant break before other interesting trompe-l’oeil.
Grilled squid on a bed of potatoes with squid ink and steaming rosemary
widen the borders of Tuscan regional approach and celebrate spring in the form of a field full of flowers. The
Grilled squid is unusually served on a
bed of potatoes with squid ink and steaming rosemary so finely simulating the embers that one almost wasn’t brave enough to start tasting it. This, however, would have been a real pity because the palate is intriguing and well balanced. The innovative variation on the squid and potato pairing also thanks to the complicity of the mayonnaise made with the squid cooking-water, becomes an elegant link between earth and sea. The last winter memories can be found in the
Steamed salted codfish with black cabbage, almonds and capers.
There’s more than sea, though. So to be fair, here comes the
Suckling pig with hazelnut purée and turnip tops which is no exception to the philosophy of lightness and harmony of flavours that characterise every dish by
Enrico Panero. Desserts also are focused on research. The chocolate and beer mousse has a perfect use of bitterness, while the classic
Tiramisu is refreshing and the
beetroot and milk make the
Dark chocolate cremoso rounder, in its unique gelatine form. Then there’s a delicious epilogue with micro-cakes making way for the coffee.
Da Vinci
via De' Martelli, 22
Florence
+39.055.0153603
Ristorantedavinci@eataly.it
Closed on Mondays and Sunday nights
Average prices à la carte: starters 19, first courses 20, main courses 25, desserts 10 euros
Tasting Menu75 euros
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Eataly Da Vinci
