Gala of Vanities

Each of us is born with special gifts and qualities. The latter can be sharpened over the years and may even exceed our natural limits, but they can never compete against those who are born with talent.

Massimo Bottura, born in Modena in 1962, is one of the few fortunate people who came into the world with talent. Not only that, he has devoted his entire life to refining it. And it is embodied in the Osteria Francescana.

This small temple dedicated to culinary art is to be found in Modena, in an old inn which, in 1995, became for Bottura the focus of all of his passions: music, design, art and obviously gastronomy. These passions are inevitably reflected in his cuisine.

This cultural triumph could do no less than lead to prestigious results: in 2011 he received a third Michelin star and this year the Osteria Francescana was awarded first place in the well-known classification,‘The World’s 50 Best Restaurants’. Many regard this acknowledgement as the most noble in the field of gastronomy and, thanks to Bottura, an Italian restaurant has been awarded it for the first time.

During the award ceremony, which took place in New York last spring, Massimo Bottura said to those present that he thought that being successful nowadays means using the ingredient of culture, because culture is knowledge, and knowledge opens consciousness and creates a sense of responsibility.

In Italy, a country whose culinary traditions are heartily traditional, Bottura has raised them to their highest level: that of consciousness.

Modena, November 2016