He remembers each dish and the year of its creation by heart, he loves travelling to discover new ingredients and techniques around the world, he delights the most demanding palates by proposing flavour combinations balanced between his Emilian roots and his London experiences. Valentino Cassanelli and his brigade confront each other to create dishes that smell of the sea caressed by the fresher tones of the Apuan Alps not far away, precisely to express that harmonious territory that hosts them and whose characteristics they wish to convey in their menu.
He is considered one of the most original and creative chefs of the moment and continues to unleash his creativity with different formats within the boutique hotel Principe di Forte dei Marmi: from the elegant Lux Lucis where the kitchen overlooks the sea and the light predominates, to Dalmatia, the beach restaurant where you can eat with your feet in the sand, caressed by the salty Versilia breeze.
You arrived at the Hotel Principe Forte dei Marmi as executive chef in 2012 and a few months later Lux Lucis was born. Can you tell us about this excursus?
"Actually, my arrival at the Principe was linked from the beginning to the birth of Lux Lucis. In fact, the management's plan was to create a restaurant, which would also be open to people from outside the hotel, and as a result, my arrival here was already planned to open soon. This year we will celebrate our first ten years. I did not want to arrive at the hotel and continue a classic procedure but to give a new input that could talk about food at 360°, also because inside we already have a more classic restaurant by the sea, "Il Dalmazia", which is more linked to the territory and to the idea of authenticity of the dishes: you can eat with your feet on the sand while maintaining our standard of 5-star luxury.
In addition, we have the 'Principe' restaurant with a more international vocation, where in winter we only serve breakfast, but in summer it is open all day with a focus on both local and more cosmopolitan cuisine, offering everything from sandwiches to any preparation that a customer used to travelling and staying in hotels like ours requires. Finally the Lux Lucis, with a more creative vein, where I and my team can give space to all our creativity in its 28 seats'.
Was the Latin name Lux Lucis your idea? Where did it come from?
"We studied it in the beginning. The literal translation is 'light of light'. It came about because of the enviable position of the restaurant, which is surrounded by glass windows and consequently, the light that floods it becomes the protagonist of the environment; then we wanted to use a Latin word to represent the idea of cuisine rooted in the territory and, finally, the concept of 'tradition that evolves' which is our working philosophy and with this name we tried to emphasise it'.
You are described as one of the most creative and original chefs: is it all natural talent or is there a lot of study and research behind it?
"First of all, I am pleased to be called that! It is obvious that behind it there is study, dedication and total commitment with respect to work, which, as I always say, is not a job, but a lifestyle, because when you marry a profession, there is no moment when you start and a moment when you finish, or a real break. Then there is constant study to keep up to date, to find new products in a continuous exchange with my brigade. I love to travel and I always try to find new ingredients, techniques different from our own. Finally there is the instinctive part, the personal part that gives the input to research and study through which I try to express myself in what I cook, hoping that it will be appreciated by most people'.
Is the cuisine at Lux Lucis mainly Emilian, like your origins, or is it a crossroads of tastes and cultures?
"My journey starts in Emilia and travels around the world: in fact, ours is a free expression of Italian cuisine as I describe it in our menu. I call it that because I consider it free in that it follows neither fashions nor threads but its own personal thought. We speak mainly of Tuscany and Versilia because we feel we are ambassadors of a very favourable territory, but it is clear that like everything that is expressed on a personal level, it also encompasses our background, so there is also Emilia both as ingredients and in the way they are processed'.
What is the smell that takes you back to your childhood in the kitchen?
"As an Emilian, needless to deny it, the main one is broth. On Sunday mornings you could smell the scent of broth flooding the house along with the other classic scent of soffritto. In fact, by combining these two aromas in 2018, I created a dish called "Radici" in which these two ingredients come together in this intense soffritto broth to accompany a meatball that recalls the filling of the tortellino, the one you used to steal when your grandmother kneaded on the table. 'Roots' in fact, to recall what it was like to wake up on a Sunday morning as a boy'.
So when you create a new dish do you start from memory or from the ingredient?
"Let's say it's a mix of both. Each pact has its own story and comes out in a totally different way. The creative process often starts from an expression that you want to imprint, like a snapshot. It is the elaboration of a moment, so obviously it goes fishing in the memory but also in seasonal ingredients, perfumes, colours: a mix of memories, raw materials, techniques and personality'.
What is your favourite dish among all those you have created over the years? Do you carry one in your heart that you can't get off paper?
'Fortunately there is more than one (laughs). The 'marinated mullet with maritime pine' comes to mind, which is one of the dishes I love most and usually when we open Lux Lucis in spring, we include it as an appetiser, because it is no longer on the menu since it dates back to 2013. When I taste it, it takes me back to the same emotions as when it was born: the idea was to combine this classic salty breeze of Versilia and the pine forest with this predominant fish typical of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Other dishes that I have in my heart are definitely the 'maccheroncino con il karkadè' and the 'anguilla al timo'. My memory is fresh because this year we will be celebrating ten years, so we are dredging up many of these historic dishes and reworking them for this anniversary that is so important for us and of which I cannot reveal anything yet...'.
You collaborate with the University of Pisa and local producers to promote local products. How important is it not to lose our heritage of raw materials? Is it passed on to young people in schools in your opinion?
"I sincerely hope, with all the noise that is being made about the sustainability of the territory and the proximity of raw materials and products, that schools will also work in this direction to convey how much wealth we have and how best to preserve it without creating further damage by becoming ambassadors of the territory with our work.
Who was your master in the kitchen? What is the most important lesson he passed on to you?
"I have been lucky in my journey to have met people who have given me so much. In all the places where I have worked, I have received something and not only from the chefs but also from the guys in the brigades. When you work in an environment where there is a continuous exchange of ideas, of flavours, of opinions, of subjective but also objective things, it is normal that there is always a growing exchange with anyone without any hierarchy. From Giorgio Locatelli at Locanda Locatelli to Nobu to Cracco and Baronetto, they have all opened up a world for me to be inspired by and have passed on something fundamental to my training'.
Are you working on any new projects or aiming for a second Michelin star?
"We are changing several things regarding breakfast and lunch to give our guests something new because we have many returning customers. For Lux Lucis we are gearing up to celebrate our 10th anniversary and we will do something special, continuing with our idea of innovation but always focusing on our territory. The second star would certainly please the whole team, we always work to get the best results from what we can and we try to give our customers the best so that they can have the best experience of their lives! The second Michelin star would be nice, even if it is not the only goal we work for, but of course we think about it, there is no denying it.
A funny anecdote you want to share.
"Having a kitchen open to the public with nothing in front of it, a lot of funny things happen both inside and outside, but definitely the thing that made us smile the most was when a funny character, our guest, stopped and asked us where the bathroom was (laughs)".
Preview photo - Credits: Matteo Andrei
English 
Italian