Gusto! A Culinary Tour of Italian Regions at JIA Shanghai’s Issimo (China)
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Gusto! A Culinary Tour of Italian Regions at JIA Shanghai’s Issimo (China)
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Category: Asia Pacific - China - Gourmet restaurants
- Gourmet restaurants
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2009-03-26
In keeping with its acclaimed reputation of serving truly authentic Italian cuisine, Issimo restaurant at JIA Shanghai will take diners on a culinary tour of Italy with ‘Gusto!’ a series of food promotions featuring guest chefs who specialize in the cuisines of the four of the most important gastronomic regions of the country – Campania, Sicily, Lombardia and Piemonte.
Gusto! means ‘taste’ in Italian and the week-long promotions, stretched over through the year, will each be hosted by William di Nardo, Executive Chef of Issimo, in collaboration with Enzo Carbone, Executive Corporate Chef Asia Pacific of Y’s Table, and featuring guest chefs who are native to the region, with the last one being a grand finale in which all four chefs will participate. There will be a charity gala dinner with each promotion, with Chefs William and Enzo in a fun, interactive evening with diners, to explain the cuisines of each region.
Gusto! starts with the cuisine of Campania presented from April 22-28, 2009 by Chef Enzo Carbone, who hails from a family of trattoria owners in Naples, the capital city of Campania.
This fertile region, famed for the Amalfi Coast, Mount Vesuvius and the isle of Capri, is also known for fresh seafood, distinctive durum wheat pasta, prized buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and the unbeatable traditional Neapolitan pizzas.
Enzo has created an extensive menu of Campania specialties including: Parmigiana di melanzane (Traditional eggplant lasagna filled with parmesan cheese and tomato sauce); Antipasto misto napoletano (Neapolitan mixed appetizers); Saute di vongole e cozze con crostini all’aglio (Clams and black mussel sauté with garlic bruschetta); Schiaffoni al ragu napoletano (Schiaffoni pasta tossed with traditional tomato pork ragu); Lasagne di carnevale (Napoli style lasagna filled with eggs, ricotta cheese, buffalo mozzarella, parmesan and meat ball); Baccala in casseruola (Atlantic black cod fish in casserole); Branzino all’acqua pazza (Whole Sea bass cooked with cherry tomato, garlic, parsley and little chilli peppers). Also featured on the menu is a selection of delicious Neapolitan pizzas and, for dessert, Pastiera (Ricotta cheese cake with grain seed) and Baba al rhum con gelato alla latte e panna soffice (Traditional Napoli rhum baba with milk ice-cream and whipping cream).
Over the course of 2009, Issimo, in this collaboration with Y’s Table, will take you on a culinary tour of Sicily with Chef Salvatore Boscarello; Lombardia with Chef Giorgio Pappalardo and Issimo Executive Chef William di Nardo who also represents this region; and ultimately this winter, in a grand finale, all four chefs will return to serve an exceptional menu from Piemonte, the region at the foot of the Alps which is celebrated for risotto, delicate truffles, game dishes stewed in rich red wines and the hallmark of the region's cuisine, antipasto.
The special Gusto! menus by each chef will replace Issimo's regular a la carte menu during the promotional weeks, although certain signature dishes will be included so that diners can still enjoy some of Issimo’s signature favourites if they wish – particularly the restaurant's wood-fired oven baked pizzas for which founder chef Salvatore Cuomo has won Napoli’s Pizzafest, the ‘world cup’ for pizza-makers, for three years in a row.
Chalet-inspired Issimo is on the second floor of boutique residence JIA Shanghai, both owned by young Singaporean entrepreneur Yenn Wong, in the heart of Shanghai’s business, shopping and entertainment area at 931 West Nanjing Road. The rustic 96-seat restaurant and bar has become known as the home of authentic, home-style Italian dining in Shanghai and was recently voted “Best Italian Restaurant” by Timeout and Modern Weekly magazines.
"At Issimo, our two key ingredients are the authenticity of our Italian cuisine and the passion with which we cook," said Executive Chef William Di Nardo “and this culinary tour will take our diners to experience the true tastes of these regional cuisines."
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