Even the commercial giant Airbnb has surrendered to the charm of the Romagna region thanks to Postrivoro, a project that has given life to a fresh new restaurant format in Faenza: a contemporary restaurant featuring international sous chefs who, together with sommeliers and designers, create a unique, once in a lifetime event. This small but creative town has officially made it into Airbnb Trips, the new experiential platform launched by the international sharing economy giant.
Using the historic railway that connects Faenza to Florence, Airbnb users can reach the old medieval town of Faenza and experience a high quality gastronomic adventure in the hall of the medieval cloister of Borgo Dubecco. The platform offers four tickets for every event organized by Postrivoro (not more than 4-5 a year on average, and available for a limited number of participants).
But what is Postrivoro? We’ve asked Enrico Vignoli, secretary of the association Chef to Chef Emilia Romagna, to tell us all about it. He is one of the inventive minds behind this new format, a project that has been supported since its creation by La Fenice Catering & Banqueting, the initiative’s main sponsor and technical partner.
“Moby Dick seeks thee not. It is thou, thou, that madly seekest him!”
H. Melville
I’ve participated more than once, and each time I was just as excited as the first time. Postrivoro is a monstrous cannibal that feeds on the stories of its stars, customers and us, failed handlers of magical creatures.
Postrivoro is surely one of the most revolutionary gastronomic events in Italy: the basic idea is to invite one of the most interesting young chefs in the world, often sous chefs from highly renowned restaurants or young and promising cooks who have just opened their own places; at other times, colorful figures whose enormous personalities fill the hall, giving rise to intense and unique stories while offering various beverages to match their passion and professionality.
At the same time, each event tells a different story thanks to different table displays and room set-ups conceived through the eyes of a designer or an innovative and visionary artist or architect. Every creative mind is given absolute freedom of expression; the only thing we ask is that they recount themselves through their professional skills.
The secret of Postrivoro’s success lies precisely in the warm, human relationship we create with our guests and the bonds our cooperative creates between professionals and enthusiasts. We live on that virtual barrier that separates customers from restaurant owners. In all of this, we are supported by La Fenice Catering: born and bred here in Faenza, they’ve believed in us since the beginning of our adventure, sharing their know how and providing support with logistics and equipment to ensure that Postrivoro is new and different in every one of its incarnations.
Five seasons have passed and we are working towards the sixth one. We’ve hosted chefs from every continent, we’ve given expression to every type of cuisine; we might have travelled a little less to find our wait staff – and narrators like us Italians are not always easy to find – but in any case we’ve managed to cover four or five nations.
There are a thousand different episodes we might hold up to demonstrate the value of our work we, but just to give you a small taste I would like to speak of the cooks who have gone on to open their own restaurants or become chefs elsewhere after their Postrivoro experience.
To begin with Italy, I would mention Yoji Tokuyoshi and Antonia Klugman who both received a Michelin Star only a year after opening, not to mention their other awards, and are quickly gaining ground in Italy’s gastronomic scene.
David Jesus became a chef in Belcanto, receiving his second Michelin star and entering the top 100 best restaurants in the world.
Rafa Costa e Silva immediately received a star for his Lasai in Rio de Janeiro, a location I unfortunately saw while it was still a construction site, and is listed among the top 20 restaurants in Latin America and top 100 in the world. Its impact is revolutionizing the scene of Brazilian cuisine thanks to its ability to work alongside fishermen and producers, changing the way the finest products reach restaurants.
David Pynt has been awarded Chefs’ Choice at Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants this year. In short, he’s the chef voted most highly by colleagues, not bad I would say, not to mention the fact that he made it into the top 10. Matthew Rudofker took the reins of Momofuku Ko in David Chang’s group, taking it up to number among the top 50 restaurants in the world.
Care, love and passion: Postrivoro is all this and much more. Feel like giving it a go? Check out our official website for upcoming events: www.postrivoro.it
