contact: info@bownsbest.com
contact: info@bownsbest.com
Friends do not guarantee a magnificent dinner. When, however, those friends include one of mankind’s greatest chefs, a restaurant manager famous throughout Europe and beyond for his pursuit of perfection and a sommelier who presides over a cellar of surpassing magnificence, one might wish to concede that the omens are good. And a few other details might be clues, too: a napkin specially embroidered with one’s own initials, the very finest Riedel glassware, an offering of numerous varieties of sea salt, silver-gilt table settings originally made for George IV and a ‘water menu’ containing bottles of some of the most expensive waters in the world. It will come as no surprise to you, dear reader, that my visits to the Ristorante La Pergola are times of pure, unadulterated joy.
I use the word ‘friends’, and such I am proud to regard the magnificent gentlemen who have made this restaurant a place which everyone who cares about great gastronomic experiences longs to visit and re-visit. I hope that the pictures I bring before you of the great Chef Heinz Beck and of myself with the Sommelier and the Restaurant Manager impart some sense of the pleasure which filled my bosom on the occasion of my last excursion to this Temple of Culinary Delight.
My picture shows me between the Ruler of the Cellar, Marco Reitano, and the Ruler of the Room (wearing spectacles), Simone Pinoli. On this occasion I have no picture of myself with the Chef, because he had been called away to the launch of the new Michelin guide to Italy (in which, yet again, he had been awarded the treasured three stars).
These two gentlemen escorted me through the calm dining room, past the Art Nouveau vases by Gallé and past the table made by Marie Antoinette’s cabinet maker (this is not an establishment which stints on the décor) to my own usual table - number seven - by the window. Before me was the View of views: the whole of the Eternal City set out as a twinkling panorama, with the illuminated dome of St Peter’s Basilica on the right. This prompted a fleeting note of sadness, for it seems that, when you are the Pope, visits to restaurants (even when they have three Michelin stars, like La Pergola) cannot be made. I knew that Benedict XVI – before his elevation to the Apostle’s throne - had enjoyed the food of his fellow German at La Pergola. What a pity he could not visit after his election. But then I recalled that Chef Beck did, indeed, go to the Vatican to cook for the Holy Father, so my spirits shot back up again.
A tasting menu is offered at La Pergola – 7 courses are 270€ and 10 courses are 320€ – and it brings a wonderful display of the kitchen’s invention and technique. My own five courses were from the carte (for which you should allow around 260€). Chef Beck is a man who possesses not only remarkable culinary ability but also a palate of the utmost refinement. His dishes are object lessons in the art of balance – the balance of tastes, the balance of textures and the balance of colours. Each of my dishes was a work of art, and the art was subtle, careful and totally successful. There is no harshness or aggression in this cuisine. Rather, it aspires to the Sublime. And I am ready to lead three cheers for that.
I began with warm duck foie gras, with peach and vervain (a herb), a dish so exquisitely luscious in its satisfying complexity that I felt Heaven had come down to earth. Then it was one of the great dishes of the world, invented by Chef Beck himself: Fagottelli La Pergola (pictured). These pasta parcels of egg and pecorino custard, with flecks of crisp pancetta make pasta lovers of us all. It is my custom to have this dish covered with shavings of white truffle from Alba, but alas! the season of the divine fungus was unusually late and the truffles had yet to arrive. My meat course was lamb (pictured), a gorgeous piece of rack, set off with myrtle sauce and carrots. From the temptations of the cheese trolley I plucked simply a little slice of the finest Parmigiano, and then it was on to the triumphant conclusion: raspberries au gratin with almond ice cream. After all these delights I had to look away when the miniature chest of drawers arrived, full of ravishing chocolates.
The wine list is one of the wonders of Rome. Prices begin at a level which will not cause cardiac arrest, but among the three thousand or so offerings are famous vintages of legendary wines. And for these you will need deep pockets. I will not give the prices of the following, but allow you to ponder without distraction the pleasures they would afford: 1893 Yquem, 1945 Latour, 1976 Romanée-Conti, 1961 Pétrus and 21 vintages of Sassicaia, including the 1985. My own drinking, thanks to the expert recommendation of Marco Reitano – who knows his cellar intimately, despite its vast size – included a wine made in the city of Rome itself. This chardonnay (Omina Romana, 2020) was entirely new to me. Had I been tasting blind, I would have thought its elegance, complexity and enticing hint of lemon indicated a fine burgundy. To find it was produced in Rome and was on the list for only 80€ startled me. It was wonderful drinking.
La Pergola occupies the top floor of the Rome Cavalieri Waldorf Astoria Hotel. It is in an affluent suburb of Rome, on top of one of the hills, and is a fine place in which to lodge, which is what you should do when you visit La Pergola. Its modern building houses a fascinating collection of antique furniture and oil paintings. I recommend the ‘Imperial Rome View’ rooms, which are spacious, comfortable and share La Pergola’s view over the city. They also afford access to the elegant Imperial Lounge, which serves breakfast and then exquisite nibbles throughout the day until the cocktail hour.
To stay at the Rome Cavalieri and to dine at La Pergola… Sometimes life is very good indeed.
Via Cadiolo 101, Rome 00136, Italy
Telephone +39 06 3509 2152
Fax +39 06 3509 2165
Email: ROMHI.LaPergolaReservations@waldorfastoria.com
Open for dinner only – Tuesday to Saturday
Closed: several weeks in January and August
Book well in advance
ROME CAVALIERI WALDORF ASTORIA HOTEL
same address
Telephone +39 06 35091
Fax +30 06 3509 2241
Email: ROMHI.GuestServices@waldorfastoria.com
Ask about the rates for specific dates