The original name of the restaurant was Wine & Fish and in 1960 it was changed to dal Pescatore, but the history goes all the way back to 1925 when Teresa Mazzi and Antonio Santini opened up a small tavern on the countryside of Mantua. Their son Giovanni Santini was born 1927 and in 1952 he married Bruna. 1953 their son Antonio Santini was born and he married Nadia in 1974. Their son Giovanni was born 1976 and they also got a second son Alberto Santini 1983. Giovanni Santini married Valentina in 2010. The incredible with the Santini family’s history is that everyone both works and lives at the restaurant and its property and the restaurant is just getting better and better. More polished, more refined and with a taste for everything that is good in life.

Nadia Santini is the Head Chef, Antonio Santini is the Restaurant Manager and the rest of the family holds other key positions in the restaurant, but they all work as one big family knit together.

The restaurant is located close to a small village way out on the countryside, but a visit to it is a must for everyone who loves food. The cuisine is mainly classic Italian, but the flawless execution of it makes it feel up to date and the taste is fantastic. The vegetables and herbs are grown on the property and that includes the amazingly delicious saffron that you will have in the risotto of the Menu dalla Campagna tasting menu. There are two tasting menus to choose from and the other is Menu di Primavera. You can eat à la carte as well, but we recommend you to dine with someone close to you, order in both tasting menus and then share each dish to have the full selection of what this truly amazing restaurant has to offer.

East of Milan and north of Parma and you eventually end up in the commune of Canneto sull’Oglio in the Province of Mantua in the Italian region Lombardy. A GPS helps a lot for everyone not used to the Italian countryside, but the fact is that many great restaurants are somehow located somewhere far away from the typical hotspots for top restaurants, like Paris and New York.

The Santini family welcome you to their home and restaurant and give you some of the very best gourmet experiences available in the world. The restaurant is certainly traditional, but that in a good way and dal Pescatore is genuinely haute cusine at one of its most shining moments.

Written by Andy