Bernardo Paladini

We saw Bernardo Paladini at work and met him in the Hub's kitchens last June. Low profile, but great energy; born in Rome in 1989, Bernardo is one of those many brilliant cases of a path undertaken and then totally 'redesigned’, thanks to a magnetic, irresistible attraction towards the world of cooking.

The son of a journalist and a professor, before donning the chef's jacket, he graduated from high school and enrolled in the Faculty of Economics and Business: the circle could have closed there. But then passion played its part and Bernardo, after attending a cookery course, chose his own path – revolution.

Base camp: Rome, the cradle in which everything originates, which is why among his tattoos, in addition to two dedications to Faber, Fabrizio De André, there is also an artichoke, the symbol of Roman cuisine par excellence. In his mind, then, music, cooking and a great desire to travel, ploughing the world from culture to gastronomic culture. So, after his first experiences at 'home', at Giulio Terrinoni's Per Me and at Acquolina in Rome, Bernardo aims straight at his dream. Hence, a first internship at Osteria Francescana, where he met Massimo Bottura, and then the opportunity to oversee the opening of Ristorante Italia in Istanbul. His later return to Modena has him at the helm of la Franceschetta58, the Francescana Family's bistro, before supporting the opening of Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura in Florence.

But Bernardo Paladini is the name we proudly link, above all, to Torno Subito, in Dubai. This is the Modenese three-starred chef's brilliant creation that exports the spirit of the Riviera Romagnola of the 1960s to the Arab Emirates. The winning combination of sophisticated elegance and relaxed ambience where the classic flavours of Italian tradition dominate, reimagined in a contemporary key. Mind you, there is nostalgia here: Paladini seasons creativity with joy and playfulness, he has plenty of energy, and all in all, he channels his technique and irony to bring a star to Bottura’s gourmet establishment at the W Hotel on The Palm, Dubai.

Today, Bernardo's future continues on a new course, bound to Miami, where Torna Subito will soon find a new home in the world.