Osteria Francescana via Stella
Osteria Francescana on via Stella gained its three Michelin stars in 2012, was crowned number 1 in the World's Best 50 in 2016, and featured in the first episode of the first season of the culinary documentary "Chef's Table". My conclusion from the visit is as follows: from a "technical" standpoint, it's unbeatable. The dishes are multi-dimensional; they don't look special or even particularly appetizing in photos, but eating them reveals a depth of skill as if chiseled into wood. In my lexicon, technique is "a power that’s difficult to imitate or replicate".
This is a restaurant where you must eat enough to appreciate its excellence. If considering atmosphere, environment, service, aesthetics, or even taste alone, it wouldn't rank as the world's finest. There are many restaurants at this level or above; visiting here, you won't be struck by the so-called wow factor. Here, you first eat not merely "deliciousness", nor "complexity"—since complexity often leads to a chaotic mix of many elements—and not even "elegance" or "wild creativity". If I were to describe the dishes here in one word, it would be "intricate".
Some dishes seem unassuming yet taste rich; others use common elements but show mastery in the details; some appear ordinary but are visually striking; and some may seem commonplace now but were pioneering years ago and carry historical significance. Such a meal lingers for a week with a persistent aftertaste that prevents me from reviewing other restaurants until I've penned this piece. This is Francescana via Stella, a one-of-a-kind restaurant, so unique that even the branches managed by the chef's wife struggle to imitate it.
The restaurant has no private rooms but two large dining areas on either side of a long corridor, invisible to each other, with five and seven tables respectively. The hall is S-shaped, with all guests facing a central point that doesn't actually exist. The tables are simply yet tastefully set with a bouquet of flowers and a silver dish for mineral water. Artistic paintings adorn each of the four walls. The ceiling is interesting, shaped like a waffle with wooden grids, with tiny lights suspended on thin wires, eschewing a main light or strong overhead lights.
To start, a long breadstick is served with three pre-meal snacks and beef jus. The appetizers include a marshmallow-like puff, a maple leaf-shaped crisp with wild meat tartare, a porcini mushroom cheese crumble earth tartare, and a cup of hot black vinegar beef jus. The opening act isn't extraordinary; there are at least 100 restaurants worldwide at this level.
The first dish, "A potato that wants to become a truffle", is a memorable one with hot, fluffy bread layered with a potato puree sauce and sprinkled with black truffle. It's soft, fragrant, just the right temperature, and mysteriously meaty. This texture and combination, subtly skilled, is perfectly placed on the menu to set the pace and start things off right.
The second dish, "Camouflage south", has a camouflage sauce that looks solid but is actually liquid, with an artistic earthiness as if symbolizing the land, sea, and wheat fields. It's made from local vegetables mashed into a puree, topped with some meat floss.
The third dish, "If I’m wrong I’m right", features a thick and pristine confit cod with a lightly toasted surface and a topping of floral and herbal sauce that's fascinating. The sauce is divided into two parts: one is a Thai milk spicy sauce freshly poured beside the fish upon serving, and the other is a deconstructed firework-like blooming gradient of herb sauce on the plate's edge. The sauce's gradient is not only in color but also in flavor, with the deepest green part exuding strong basil and mint freshness, while the white part is much milder. This dish is attractive, painstakingly crafted, and fun—I really like it. The name is also interesting, a soliloquy from the chef: You see my dish, you might think I'm wrong, you may be right, but try a taste, and you might change your mind and think I'm right. In the end, whether I'm right or wrong doesn't matter.
The fourth dish, "Lentils are better than caviar", sees mini lentils mimicking caviar, colored with squid ink, tasting like tiny potatoes but with a subtle briny flavor of caviar that makes you doubt your taste buds. You end up inspecting each grain in your mouth, only to find no actual caviar. Hidden beneath are tiny pieces of pork belly, each seasoned differently, some with a hint of
lemon.
The fifth dish, "From Cervia to Modena", is a purely onion dish. The main ingredient is onion, perhaps prepared in a special way that makes its flavor mild with a faint onion taste. It's mainly about texture, accompanied by grandma's ginger foam.
Sourdough bread serves as a transition, with a texture like brown sugar cake, quite fluffy, with large pores.
The first main dish, "A thousand layers of leafs", consists of fried veal thymus, tender with a bit of fat, reminiscent of Japanese pork cutlets, garnished with white truffle and dried leaves, quite dimensional in presentation.
The second main dish, "The pigeon hunt", is a whole blood-red pigeon breast, marinated in cranberry and other fruit jams, covered with two onion skins, exuding a nutty and berry flavor. The accompanying leg meat is coated with fried barley, crispy and fragrant.
The pre-dessert, "The little piggy went to market", is a piggy pudding drenched in chocolate sauce upon serving, the poor little piggy, perhaps paid its price at the market.
The first main dessert, "Consistencies of milk and herbs", features caramel and toffee-flavored ice cream, alongside a bouncy mousse gelato with coffee powder on top, like the ones from my childhood snack, topped with super-thin crisps, and sprayed with a grass mist at the table, creating a multi-sensory dessert.
The second main dessert, "Bread is gold", resembles bread covered in gold leaf but contains a mousse mixed with jam, candied fruits, nuts, and more. The gold is simulated with a very thin layer of chocolate, and miraculously, the chocolate and mousse are almost one, without the typical outer-inner layer distinction. I'm baffled by its creation.
The meal didn't fill me up, and the restaurant also served two of its classic dishes. I must say this meal is substantial, priced at only 315 euros, yet it's satisfying, including coffee with the dessert.
A cheese quintet followed. For those who can't handle strong cheeses, please be cautious.
Foie gras ice cream. The outside is a crispy shell, inside is frozen foie gras, with a core of balsamic vinegar. An old dish from many years ago, but still not outdated.
Post-dessert included caramel popcorn croccantino, mini lemon tarts, and bow-tie soft candies.
Is Francescana a restaurant whose fate was changed by a gourmand? That classic story has been long told: once criticized in the small town for defying tradition until one day, due to a traffic jam, Italy's most famous gourmet stumbled into the restaurant, and a review article of his experience brought in a flood of praise and support... It's a story fit for legend, but perhaps the truth is: the turning point brought by the gourmet was bound to happen, if not at that moment, then another, because the restaurant was ready. Is Francescana a restaurant that defies tradition and is rich in creativity? At least from a 2023 perspective, no, it has become a classic in itself. The so-called traditions it overturned are but a footnote in the long history of dining. What’s commendable is that even after achieving honor for so long, the chef still progresses on his own accord. The so-called classic dishes do not seem outdated today, and the seasonal menu is continually refreshing, even though the honors and fame it has already would suffice for the restaurant to rest on its laurels for a decade.
From a personal experience perspective, pursuing "deliciousness" is not difficult, as a certain gourmet once said, its essence is "protein, amino acids, temperature". But today, what I seek in the world's restaurants is not merely "deliciousness", but a "feeling", a mutual understanding, and I'm willing to endure much pain and fatigue for that fleeting sensation. Fortunately, I found that feeling in this restaurant.
