Naples hotel welcomes new restaurant by 21-starred chef

“We will be offering contemporary French haute cuisine but where local products will express their full personality,” he says. “The region abounds in magnificent resources, and we will obviously give them priority in our sourcing.”

Ducasse also explains how the evolution of the menu happened ‘very naturally,’ adding it was strongly influenced by the environment. “I’d say it’s more a question of complicity between us [Ducasse and Romeo], and of cohesion between the place and the food. A menu is never created in the abstract. The starting point is always the place where we are and the products available around us.” 

As for how Ducasse chooses which projects to work on, he insists it’s the people, rather than the location, that usually influences his final decision. “There are certainly some urban contexts with which I feel more at home than others,” he says. “But at the end of the day, when you meet men and women with whom you share the same vision, working together becomes a matter of course.” 

While Ducasse says he isn’t overly concerned with food trends, he does accept that haute cuisine has seen a ‘real, profound and lasting change’ in recent times.

The culinary icon has been a pioneer in championing plant-based dishes since the late 1980s, and is today esteemed around the world for his vegetarian-forward recipes. 

“Almost all chefs today are careful to choose local and seasonal produce, strive to reduce waste and develop recipes in which animal protein is no longer predominant,” he notes. “I’d like to add that I myself began this evolution at the end of the 80s, something I formalised under the name of Natural Cuisine 10 years ago, and that plants have become an essential component of my recipes in many of my restaurants.” 

Ducasse is also known for never duplicating menus – a skill he credits to his curiosity about the sociology of food: “I’m interested in everything and, above all, the way my contemporaries live and eat. It’s an inexhaustible source of discovery.” 

As for what he hopes to create at his new restaurant with Romeo Collection, his vision is simple: “Our partners at Romeo Collection rightly put a lot of emphasis on the cultural dimension of the hotel – from the architecture to the interior design. The dining room will also be very well thought out from an aesthetic point of view. As for me, I’m convinced that food is beauty that can be eaten. So, the atmosphere will be one of beauty, elegance and great taste.”