mentity who claims that spring in the metropolis, in Milan, you don’t even notice it. It is in the air, in the light, in the beneficial riot of pollen (malefic, for allergy sufferers). The desire for greenery and lightness is felt everywhere, too in the kitchens of prestigious restaurants and hotelswhich launch elegant vegetable proposals, green in an intelligent way. Three signals for all in the most noble center, from via Manzoni to the Gallery and surroundings, to book this season (or from which to draw inspiration for domestic spring dinners).
A season in Armani style
Peas with coconut milk and puffed rice, by Armani/Ristorante.
Meanwhile, the Armani/Ristorante headed by executive chef Francesco Mascheroni. Here on the seventh floor of the building that houses the Armani/Hotel, where the sunset with a view of the Madonnina and theessential interior with oriental echoes they deserve an honorable mention as always, spring imposes itself in dishes with a minimal aesthetic yet complex in substance.
Three paths of taste
Cultured, fusion dishes, presented in three tasting itineraries: “My vegetable cuisine”, “Present” and “Tradition in evolution”. For convinced vegetarians (and for vegans, with small modifications on request), the triptych “Asparagus” (white, with lettuce and yuzu), “Peas” (in a small glass, with coconut milk and puffed rice), “Eggplant” (in strips as in oriental cuisine, with miso, basil and flaked almonds). More it “spaghetti” with yellow datterino tomatoes and Parmigiano Reggiano aged 90 months (green light for the lactose intolerant): a pleasant surprise like the plating, which challenges you to recognize the pasta under the mound of sun-colored sauce.
San Pietro al wasabi by Armani/Ristorante.
More chances for omnivores, who range from lamb casserole to veal (sweetbreads, asparagus, morels, wild garlic), dai Dim Sum (roast, ginger, kimchi consommé, Gillardeau oyster, nashi pear) to St. Peter’s which looks like a sweet sculpture, coated with white wasabi butter. And, among the reinterpretations of classics, note of merit to Rice with smoked eel with soy sauce and Sea tripe Milanese style.
For info: Armani/Ristorante, tel. +39 02 8883 8703 – [email protected]
Open from 19.30 to 22.30, closed on Sunday and Monday evening.
The executive chef of the Armani/Ristorante, Francesco Mascheroni.
In the garden of the Mandarin
Ladies’ tea reinvented in a contemporary key. In the delightful garden of the Hotel Mandarin Oriental in via Andegari – pure décontracté luxury -, from 4 in the afternoon until evening it goes on stage a dance of pastel teapots with crystals set, tone on tone. Inside, however, there is Spring Punchfresh and fragrant, to be poured into service cups “Signum” Rosenthal for Swarovski.
Mandarin Garden’s Spring Punch.
No milk or lemon, but “design” ice garnished with a small flower for this more than original aperitifvery pleasant, which reinterprets the classic punch with a mix of Tanqueray Ten Gin, pink grapefruit and basil shrub, pomelo and pink pepper tonic water. He comes accompanied by sweet and savory delights (top the tartlets with meringue and lemon cream). And, if you’re lucky, by the presence of the mixologist Guglielmo MirielloDirector of Mandarin Garden, who created the Spring Punch: as a true enthusiast, he tells you a thousand curiosities about the history of cocktails (Spring Punch, 40 euros. From 16 to 21).
Ravioli stuffed with roasted aubergines and Piccadilly tomatoes from Mandarin Garden @MatteoCarassale
From breakfast to dinner
For those who stop for dinner (or arrive earlier, at lunchtime, here it opens at 7 for breakfast!), the two-starred chef Antonio Guida (who… also runs Seta, the fine dining restaurant) he thought a spring menu, very Mediterranean, fresh and colorful, in four proposals.
From the Creamed cod in extra virgin olive oil with gazpacho to the Ravioli stuffed with roasted aubergines and Piccadilly tomatoesto the Sea bass with celery and lemon confit. The dessert looks to the East, it’s called its own Oriental. It is signed by the pastry chef Marco Pinna: chantilly with mango and passion fruit, creamy vanilla and tonka bean, hazelnut sponge cake and sesame streusel. Try to resist.
For info: Mandarin Garden, Via Andegari, 9, Milan, [email protected], tel. 02 8731 8898
The spring green of Pellico 3
If The Dome of the Park Hyatt, with its glass vault, it is confirmed as an iconic space in the city centre, where you can stop for a buffet breakfast or dinner, or even just for a coffee, Pellico 3, the hotel’s fine dining restaurantexperience raw materials, cultures and traditions thanks to multifaceted sensitivity of the executive chef Guido Paternolloan engineer for studies at the Polytechnic and a cook out of passion that became a profession.
San Massimo reserve rice, bay butter, smoked eel, Siberian caviar, Pellico lemon 3.
Chromotherapy
If the color palette of the space signed by the architect Flaviano Capriotti ranging from yellow to brown to green, the menu “in nuance” is a consequence of the seasons. Now is the time for the “Sole alla meuniaia, green asparagus, citron, fish roe gremolada, asparagus jus”, of the “Scallop, turnip tops, navet confit, pollen”, del “Rhubarb confit, ricotta, rhubarb sorbet”. And, magnificent, some “Rice, bay butter, smoked eel, caviar and lemon”. Dishes all to be savoured, right down to the (highly sought after) details.
For info: Pellico 3, via Silvio Pellico 3, tel. +39 02 88211236
Hours: 19-22, open every day except Sunday and Monday.
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