cucina
cucina
As a family business, the staff at Molto Buono use several recipes that have been passed down through the generations, in particular, the pizza dough. Simone added that nobody is allowed to come into the kitchen whilst the pizza dough is being prepared. However, he was keen to say this is not a "secret" recipe, but rather something that is cared for so much by one group of people that it should be left unspoiled by the public. The recipe is therefore kept within the family, and the team pride themselves with their use of ancestral recipes. Simone also commented that the Italian cuisine offered at Molto Buono is not from one specific region, despite originally from Naples. There is such a vast variety of regional cuisines that as an Italian chef, you need to be open-minded to learning about the food around you; Simone himself states that he knows about just 25% of Italian varieties of cuisine. He also shared that you cannot learn to cook the Italian way, rather, "you have to live that kind of culture". This significantly highlights the importance of Italian food for its people and promotes the idea that nobody outside of the peninsula can have as much of an understanding of the cuisine as those who are brought up surrounded by it.
Simone shows so much pride about the art of Italian cuisine. From the science of preparing the food, to cooking the final dish, he believes that the "authenticity is down to the ingredients". Every single element is fresh and Italian - even the salt used is from the Mediterranean. Simone has stressed the importance of fresh and authentic ingredients at molto buono stating that as an Italian chef, it is his duty to "do things the proper way". Nowadays it has become custom to recreate another culture's cuisine simply for monetary gain. As Simone says, so many people "put our flag on it but in the end they're not authentic". Yet, at Molto Buono you can be certain that you're getting the real deal: no ketchup, no mayo, no pineapple. That isn't how the Italian's do it, and so it won't be seen at this authentic trattoria!
The passion with which Simone speaks about his job and his work in this independent Italian restaurant cannot compare to a chain or corporation and has convinced me of the importance of cuisine for Italians. Both "mangiare" and "cucinare" need passion and love to bring to life what could seem like a simple tasty lunch. Here at Molto Buono everything is done properly - Simone says "I haven't got an excuse because I'm Italian." And so, on a visit to molto buono, customers should feel as though they've stepped into a restaurant in the backstreets of Naples. The food, the service and the atmosphere all combines to create a happiness that seems to be Simone's duty and joy to share in his restaurant. For those occasions when you need to escape from the everyday reality of Bristol student life and take a couple of hours out, you can be certain that molto buono will always offer a taste of real Italian hospitality.
@ Moltobuono! 59 Park St, Bristol BS1 5NU
Image: Ally Norris