Rome in his eyes and in his veins.
A road that Andrea Antonini has traveled, voraciously observing everything that passed before his eyes, until he conquered the most incredible view of the Eternal City.
A well-earned peak, then, that of the Imàgo restaurant at the Hassler Hotel, crowning sweat, trials, and talent. Since 2019—when it earned a Michelin star confirmed after just six months—it has been home to the creativity of this young Roman chef, born in 1991, who took over from Francesco Apreda.
His path was not an easy one, but he always walked it with the right attitude, never holding back: he studied, he listened, and he did so in Italy, pushing himself as far as the Iberian Peninsula.
The first stop: Dénia, at Quique Dacosta's restaurant, where, before even beginning a stage, apprentices received a detailed handbook on what to do once there. Antonini not only adhered to it but followed it diligently, earning the trust of Juanfra Valiente, then in charge of Dacosta’s creative line, who wanted him by his side.
From one step to the next in a tasting menu, precision was born: the complementarity of ingredients, precision, and a magnetic balance between one dish and another. His journey continued in Spain, this time in the team of El Celler de Can Roca, then at Enrico Crippa’s court at Piazza Duomo, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Alba. In these two destinations, he developed a particular sensitivity to the service of snacks: the opening act is experienced as a solemn, complex, and decisive moment when approached with intelligence, unraveling a narrative of flavors that guides the entire tasting experience.
This craft—and approach—is something Antonini absorbs, along with rigor and discipline, becoming a gentle invitation to develop his own creativity, while the call of his native Rome begins to subtly take hold.
A desire that aligned with that of the Wirth family, particularly Roberto E. Wirth, the late patron of the Hassler Hotel, who was looking for a young, ambitious Roman chef ready to lead the Imàgo kitchen. A restaurant that, by its very nature, invites one to embrace vast horizons—between achievement and splendor.
Visions of Roman and Italian tradition meet contemporary forms, fresh in Antonini’s imagination; a concentration of flavors, a sublimation of raw materials, where research is deep and serious, with a constant refinement of his past interpretations. These are always enriched by new inspirations, converging toward a sense of maturity and substance that defines his present.
Now, Antonini takes flight, far from safe ground, bold in the solutions he presents at Hassler’s table. More confident, more focused, a guardian of taste who carries the words of the late Roberto E. Wirth: "We never look to the past because it distracts us from the present, and our goal is the future".
No need for upheaval. Far more important is to inspire emotion, and an oxymoron becomes the foundation of his vision: "You have to be very serious to create something truly fun".
