Horto
Horto, a restaurant recommended by a certain gastronomy media outlet, was hailed as a "Michelin three-starred chef's sustainable restaurant" and "the most delightful surprise." Yet, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and personally, I couldn’t take a second bite of any dish.
Stepping in was like entering Kiina, with its uniformly Nordic style of pale wood decor, even the chefs’ attire mimicked the deep blue hues. The space was expansive, with about 30 tables, but on a Saturday night, the occupancy was mediocre; arriving at nine, only five or six tables were taken. The air was tinged with the scent of medicinal herbs. The chef's table was adorned with various fermenting jars and the spread-out cooking book "Cooking the Mountain," certainly capturing the essence.
The restaurant’s much-touted Head of Culinary Strategy, Norbert Niederkofler, was the main chef at St Hubertus within the Rosa Alpina hotel in the Dolomites from 1995 until March 2023. He earned three stars in 2018 and a Green Star in 2020, a legitimate three-star chef whose restaurant also ranked #29 in the World's Best 50. Currently, that three-star establishment is temporarily closed due to hotel renovations. The head chef here, Alberto Toe, is Niederkofler’s disciple, having briefly worked in several restaurants after finishing hotel school, his credentials not particularly deep, relying mainly on his mentor's reputation to establish himself in Milan.
It's challenging to be delicious with the accolades of three Michelin stars and a Green Star while also ranking high in the World's Best 50, yet such places often excel in "culinary philosophy" and in creating a personal brand for good PR. But no matter the honors, they belong to the mentor, not this restaurant, which is merely tucked away on the top floor of an office building, an obscure eatery. Fortunately, my visit was scheduled for the second dinner service; otherwise, it would have been a wasted meal slot.
The restaurant offers two types of set menus: "Savoring" with five courses priced at 155 and "Knowing" with seven courses at 185, from which you can choose any two dishes for a custom menu at 110. I like restaurants that allow for shorter menus, giving a quick and efficient way to test whether they suit my taste. I chose the two-course option.
This meal left me feeling cold. The restaurant's vast space was empty, a chill of unpopularity. The dishes were served cold and stark, a second chill from a Nordic heart amidst Milanese surroundings. Instead of sleeping in the hotel, I came here to dine and ended up returning home at eleven at night, shivering in the drizzly, cold weather—a third layer of cold.
To start, green juice with bland cheese, clarified beef broth, and root crisps, followed by cold bread. The first dish was black truffle risotto with chestnuts. The second, raw sea urchin pasta. For dessert, chocolate, crisps, and roasted marshmallows. Not a single dish warranted a second bite. This restaurant wouldn't be worth mentioning, but having just earned a Michelin star, it seemed fair to write this for those considering a visit.
