Le Calandre is the restaurant of chef Max Alajmo, which has held 3 Michelin stars since 2002. The chef was only 28 years old back then, and thus became the youngest chef with three Michelin stars of all time. This was the first time we were visiting this part of Italy since our previous dinner at Le Calandre in 2015, and so we were glad to have the opportunity to return.

Upon arrival we noticed immediately that there was still a ball of wool in the center of the table. This represents the chef’s motto: “Cooking is like a needle that, repeatedly passing through small holes, stretches a thread so thin and strong that it makes us all unconsciously tied together.” The restaurant has a large selection of dishes for a restaurant at this level. There are three degustation menus in which you can also make some choices, or you can build your own 3, 4 or 5 course menu with dishes from all the menus. The three degustation menus are all 8 courses for 280 euros. There is one menu with the classic dishes of the restaurant and two with novel dishes called Max and Raf. We opted for Raf with wine pairing (150 euros, 5 different wines with refills, the first 3 wines are paired with 2 dishes each).

We started with a sparkling Verdicchio, as we were curious to try it. Made with the classic method and aged for 48 months on the lees.

The snacks to start were really nice.

The first wine was a blend of Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Gewurzrtraminer from Alto Adige (Italy), very aromatic.

This was a good pairing for the “Nudo e crudo”, which means “naked and raw”. Six different appetizers of raw seafood. The “nude” refers to the appetizers to be served directly on the table (on a sheet of transparant plastic though). This included lobster with caviar, calamari and scalliops, oyster, and shrimp. Delicious.

The second dish with the same wine was a peanut paste that seemed like a mild vegan goat cheese, to be spread upon seed crisps, served with an asparagus salad.

The second wine was a Trebbiano d’Abruzzo by Valentini, a famous white wine aged in oak barrels. Nicely aged and complex.

The wine was brought to live by the risotto with tuna tartare, that was misted with whiskey. The risotto was very al dente and the tuna very tender.

The wine was also a good pairing for the tortellini with a creamy sauce made from fishbones and caviar.

The third wine was a Rebula (Ribolla Gialla) orange wine from Slovenia, skin maceration for two weeks and aged for 3 years in oak barrels.

This was first paired with the third and last primo: dumplings of black rice, a soup made from fish entrails, and a puree of fresh fava beans. The dumplings provided mostly texture, the soup was quite hefty, and the fava puree provided a fresh element.

The second dish with this wine was the secondo di pesce, a monkfish Rossini, with truffle, monkfish liver, and spinach. This was not as rich as a regular Rossini and the monkfish was a bit dry. although that was compensated for by the liver and the sauce.

The wine with the secondo di carne was a 2013 Aglianico del Vulture, nicely aged.

The young sommelier likes big glasses, as the glasses were getting bigger and bigger with each wine. This glass was huge and could easily contain more than a bottle in a single glass.

This was a good pairing for the pigeon with herbs and witlof. The pigeon was very tender and the jus very flavorful.

After the secondo the bread was removed, and the ball of wool returned to the table. We showed the staff the photo of Kees knitting ten years ago, so they came out with the knitting needles again.

The dessert wine was a 2022 I Capitelli by Anselmi, a passito from Garganega similar to Recioto di Soave. Nicely sweet and balanced.

First there was some nicely marinated fruit.

The dessert was a soft meringue with strawberries, mint, and verbena.

To finish there were some nice friandises.

Ten years ago we had the classics menu and wondered whether the other menus were more creative. This menu definitely was more creative, but I am unsure if it was more delicious. It was certainly all technically perfect and some dished were delicious, but some dishes were perhaps more of an acquired taste. This time around the service and the pacing of the meal were excellent. Although I would personally prefer a wine pairing with a different wine for each course (as having one wine for two courses is always a compromise), these wine pairings all worked. The wines were perhaps a bit on the astringent side, perhaps a preference of the sommelier. And important aspect that remained was the continual presence of the chef in the dining room. It is very clear how involved the chef is and that one way of keeping three stars for 23 years is his unrelenting focus on the happiness of his guests.