It's time for recognition, the kind to be put outside the doors of restaurants, taverns and bistros. While we wait for November 5, when the new Michelin stars will be revealed in Modena, today is the day of Gambero Rosso and its 2025 Restaurant Guide, which presented the 2,425 restaurants visited and reviewed by the guide at the Eliseo Theatre in Rome.
A guide that follows the changing times, through a new narrative and the inclusion of new special awards, to pay homage to a cuisine that is increasingly direct and less convoluted in its presentations and ingredients, but that wants to keep up with a contemporaneity that requires perfection, but also simplicity of intent and taste. "Tighter times and leaner recipes: the three ingredients per dish are now an unwritten law, away with baroque presentations and less stiff service, which is accompanied by the search for fresh and local ingredients. Customers are looking for welcoming environments and a more informal experience" — commented, in fact, also Lorenzo Ruggeri, director of Gambero, at the opening of the awards ceremony.
Alongside the most famous names, those that dictate the lines of haute cuisine, with Niko Romito and his Ristorante Reale in Castel di Sangro, in the province of L'Aquila, and with Enrico Crippa and his Piazza Duomo in Alba, in the heart of the truffle, there is also a long list of Sardinian establishments, demonstrating how the gastronomic offering on the island is increasingly a cultural fact and not just a tourist one. In fact, there are seventy restaurants featured in the pages, with sixteen new entries, which see a predominance of the Sardinian capital, increasingly ready to welcome names and proposals for a panorama of customers that today is no longer satisfied, but rather puts the gastronomic experience first, whether you live in the city or come to Cagliari for a tourist stay.
Two Sardinian names stood out the most, with the assignment of the much-coveted Tre Gamberi: Arieddas in Marmilla, the first example in Sardinia (the property is Su' Entu) to offer a restaurant inside a cellar, and Osteria Abbamele in Barbagia, where chef Mauro Ladu brings his idea of local cuisine, cloaking it in contemporary techniques. "The Tre Gamberi really mean a lot to us" — said an emotional Francesco Vitale, chef of Arieddas, who works with the consultancy of the Romagna chef Pier Giorgio Parini — "It pushes us to commit ourselves even more in that path that we decided to take from the beginning, it enhances the daily work of our team and our producers through which we are able to tell the story of Marmilla on the table. Thanks to them we have shed light on a territory that deserves to be told and we are very happy to be part of this cultural exchange". A story of the territory that is the same that can be found in the other places awarded with the various recognitions, including the new symbol of the Bistrot, the Tavolini with eight signs in the guide and four with Due Tavolini: to be noted the presence, in this case, of Raices, in Sant'Antioco, of the very young Simona Balia, winner last year of the Girotonno together with Federico Durzu. Due Gamberi then went to La Rosa dei Venti in Sennariolo and La Locanda dei Buoni e Cattivi in Cagliari.
There were also many Two Forks, to be precise, twenty-one were awarded. Luigi Pomata is at the top of the list with his creative and dynamic cuisine, together with Terra, the restaurant in Palazzo Tirso led by Alessio Signorino together with Valerio Fermani, both of whom grew up at the school of Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence. Then there are the starred Fradis Minoris in Pula, which also confirmed the Green Fork this year, tied with the same score with Fuoco Sacro del Petra Segreta Resort in San Pantaleo and the new entry Da Thomas in Santa Teresa Gallura. Also scoring above 80 points are I Sarti del Gusto and Josto in Cagliari, La Saletta and Rafel in Alghero, Da Nicolò in Carloforte and Il Mattacchione in Olbia, Mema in Pula, Arke in Quartu Sant'Elena, La Spigola in Golfo Aranci, Da Andrea, Al Tonno di Corsa, both in Carloforte, Sa Cardiga and Su Schironi in Capoterra, Amano (which also won the special Best Quality/Price award), Chiaroscuro in Cagliari and Musciora in Alghero.
"A Sardinia that comes out with its head held high from the new edition of the Restaurant Guide, the result of the new editorial line of Gambero Rosso, according to which it is no longer enough to cook well to be rewarded and recognizable, but it is important to give value to projects, themes and ideas of catering" - also declared Giuseppe Carrus, curator of the Gambero Rosso Wine Guide and television face of Gambero Rosso Channel. "It is no coincidence that in this edition two trattorias are awarded with the Tre Gamberi, which have made it clear what it means to make a high-quality trattoria with the maximum valorization of the territory and raw materials, where the recipes and dishes are not traditional but are inspired by tradition. As for Sardinian restaurants, I would say an excellent performance by the Island, even without Tre Forchette. The scores are very high and with many Due Forchette. Likewise, great performance for bistros, grills and wine bars. A restaurant guide is not a competition, there is no winner and loser, Sardinia is not recognizable not only for the prizes that are important, but do not exhaust the excitement of Sardinian catering, which with 70 restaurants in the guide and with very important scores makes us look at our region with a pinch of satisfaction".
Whether it is a competition or not, it is obvious that the guide is undoubtedly an important recognition for those who are inside. And now everyone is waiting and holding their breath for the names that "La Rossa" (Michelin for those in the sector) will throw out: there will certainly be some news for Sardinia too.
