A burst of bright flavors from Campania will be coming to Pollenzo on Tuesday November 15, when Gennaro Esposito, chef at the renowned La Torre del Saracino in Vico Equense, near Naples, will be cooking at the Academic Tables.
One of Italy’s greatest chefs, Esposito has become a reference point for high-level Campanian cuisine, his cooking characterized by a focus on the local and a quest for the best ingredients.
His career has led him to work with great masters like Gianfranco Vissani and Alain Ducasse in Paris, where he learned his craft and a meticulous attention to detail.
After his experiences abroad, he returned home, opening La Torre del Saracino in Vico Equense in 1992 with his partner Vittoria. The first Michelin star came in 2001, the second in 2008.
Its splendid setting, overlooking the sea on the Sorrento Peninsula, along with its values of localness, culture and creativity, have helped make the restaurant one of Italy’s must-visit gourmet destinations.
Esposito has not rested on his laurels, however, and is also the creator and driving force behind Festa a Vico, which brings famous and emerging chefs to his hometown to cook together for thousands of guests. In 2014, he opened the restaurant Mammà in Capri, which received its first Michelin star the following year, and in 2015 he inaugurated IT in Ibiza, another outpost of his gastronomic philosophy. He has also embarked on a television career, as a judge on Sky’s Junior MasterChef Italia.
In an interview, Esposito has said, “This is my cooking style: drawing on the local area and putting together dishes that satisfy the senses and the minds of my guests.”
This week he will be bringing his unique style to the Academic Tables with a menu that will start with a 1980s-style soup of Nocellara olives, almonds, fennel and scabbardfish, continue with risotto with peppers and salt cod tripe and close with a classic Neapolitan babà with pastry cream and berries.
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