Morelli is a world-famous expert on rice, together with Carlo Cracco and Massimiliano Alajmo, the great masters of risotto, followed by Davide Scabin and Paolo Lopriore. Unlike the above-mentioned cooks, Giancarlo is a classical and evolutionary –very evolutionary– chef as well a great authority on typical Italian specialties, especially Lombard ones. He proposes five tremendous rice dishes, a series of pasta recipes that are getting on for 9/10, and two sublime meats, one of which is the personal version of the famous cotoleta alla milanesa. The chef’s rigor always starts with the product selection, followed by the concretion of his precise technical knowledge and by the final seasoning with his particular palatal refinement. The result of it is a delicious pinkish chop, coated in breadcrumbs, which has a subtle consistency; a whole that invites you to go on eating. Morelli’s ossubuco, as impeccable as the cotoleta, can’t be beaten either: intrinsic quality of the veal leg –utterly tender and juicy, with exquisite marrow–, whose juices melt with an extremely tasty and aromatic vegetable stew; a real MUST. In a more contemporary style, try the grilled foie gras escalope accompanied with chicken breast and two terrific complements: rosti with olive oil and segment of caramelized Fuji apple.
The different kinds of selected pasta are perfectly done and dressed with great sauces and seasonings: spaghetti with tuna, red onion cooked in red wine and breadcrumbs seasoned with mint; asparagus and burrata cheese raviolis with marinated tomato pesto; egg tagliolini with hop, sweetbread covered with pistachios and stout juice; etc.
The rice proposals are really excellent –we insist. Starting with the risotto alla milanesa: unbeatable al dente and uniform doneness, preservation of the natural flavour of the cereal, exquisite creaminess perfumed with saffron, marrow medaillon – a pure delight– and a line of red wine reduction that gives freshness and power. The sophistication and the magnificence of the Best Italian Rice by the Gallo Guide are frankly unique: carnaroli Pavese Great Reserve bound with slightly smoked buffalo ricotta and served with red prawns, black truffle and anchovy juice; a well-deserved award. If you look for strong sensations and impressive modernity, taste the Roccaverano goat cheese cake served with black garlic candied in port and Marsala liquor, candied lemon and Parmesan crackers. This new 10/10 is deserved for the quality of the raw materials, for the extreme precision and homogeneity of the doneness –which reinforces the natural virtues of the products– as well as for the seasonings, which provide strong counterpoints.
