Cooking is not the child of the stars

First and foremost the amuse bouche (a French term, coincidentally, that originated in the days of nouvelle cuisine), which I translated into ex voto or santini, at the opening of lunch or dinner.

To clarify, they are those little morsels that restaurateurs of all latitudes, in search of a place in the starry sky, feel obliged to distribute, with the corresponding GPS directions: 'start from the left with the tartlet, then the cannoncino with ragout, then the char tacos, amberjack sashimi, the fish cappuccino, corn and cod waffle, and finally to the right vegetable croquettes...'. The road story, in Gregorian chant, ends with: 'homage from the kitchen', to reassure the customer.

In reality, the cost of these pastimes, which are always more or less the same, is not by grace received, it is still a food cost that could be eliminated, especially when the fixed menu (another consequence of the Red Guide) is justified as a form of cost cutting and waste reduction.

The ritual of the ex-vow now forms part of the custom of the new table and has become for those sitting, for the first time, at a fine dining true souvenir.

Enough! Enough with the 'santini' (Antonio doesn't want me to, he really doesn't) with those Lego-like constructions, which confuse the flavours already at the first appetiser of the entrèe series. And again, enough with the fixed menu when it does not also include a free, separate menu. This is not a democratic proposal: the customer has the right to choose and the duty to pay for what he eats and not what is imposed on him.

The claim of chef cost containment by reducing food waste and discards from the set menu is unfounded; nowadays, a large part of the ingredients arrive already portioned from specialised distribution companies and, many ready-made preparations vacuum-packed.

'Everything ready to use', on the other hand, has created a real addiction for chefs; just as exotic ingredients have contaminated menus; penalised the local market and compromised the relationship with the land, the true expression of authenticity ofMade in Italy cuisine.

Over the years, we have witnessed a standardisation of menus, especially by aspirants to the Paradise of Stars, with the use of products such as the Caledonian blue shrimp, the black tail, the king crab, the Cantabrian anchovy, Asturian hedgehog, Wagyu meat, Galician vaca vieja, Rubia Gallega, Bresse chicken, Spanish or Segovian piglet, Kombu seaweed, daikon, miso etc.

Those who, more or less, faced with the invasion of new products, increasingly present in the 'creative' dishes of super-starred chefs, the protagonists of the many cooking shows, have tried to 'photocopy' them, often renouncing their own identity and authenticity.

The cost spiral has thus increased for the restaurant industry, but even more so for the would-be star restaurateurs who, among other things, in order to keep up, have invested in designer premises, to offer an image appropriate to the possible new status.

How then to cope with the accounts that do not add up? Especially for many fine dining restaurants, which do not cover the budget red with only the revenue of the customers present, every day, at the elegantly dressed tables.

The exception are the media chefs who manage to become stars of the entertainment world, increasingly catering entrepreneurs, consultants of other people's establishments and franchising companies, to whom they offer their name (which has become a real brand), testimonials of large corporate promotional events and advertising campaigns and, in more recent times, protagonists of second and third openings of their own restaurants.

And the others, the squadron, which every day sees the star as a mirage, will be able, with only the receipts from customers, to continue the business.

"Haute cuisine is highly challenging, the stuff of 5-6 champions at most, like the America's Cup," said Ferran Adrià (recently at Nutrire l'incontro, in Rome). In the face of this small number of kitchens capable of bringing innovation to gastronomic culture, an elitist profession, there is the 99% of cooks and chefs who, in the media, present themselves as creative, often neglecting traditional cuisine. But catering is above all about doing business and I would advise young people to be creative first, to be able to do the accounts, to drive the economic sustainability of the restaurant'. That's if I like it!