Articolo disponibile anche in: Italian

“The Tenda Rossa” (Red Tent) has been a landmark of Italian restaurants since its inception in 1971. The Santandrea and Salcuni families have been joined by its new generations with Cristian and Maria in the kitchen and Barbara, Cristiana and Natascia in the dining room.

Love, passion and constant commitment in the search for fine elements for the creation of Tuscan cuisine are sought after in an intelligent and creative way. The wine cellar is rich in labels with a surprising depth of vintages and formats, fruit of years of history, offering an intriguing selection of single glass tastings, We spoke to them about the fundamental role of extra virgin olive oil: in the kitchen and on the table.

We are here because your restaurant offers only high quality olive oil. During your professional life, what perception did you have regarding olive oil?

Cristian: “Being born into a family of restauranteurs, since I was little I was lucky enough to have only the highest quality oil on the table. My breakfast consisted of bread and olive oil!”.

Maria: “I was born in Munich. In Germany, Tuscany is synonymous with high quality olive oil. Adding it to a dish is an act of generosity: I adore it”.

When did you begin to understand the importance of oil as an actual resource and not an additive? And how does it improve your service?

“On some dishes different oils are used and listed as fundamental elements of the recipe”.

Lately there has been fraud in the world of olive oil. It seems that sometimes even the label lies. Because of this, how does a restaurant come to terms with the selection of an oil with a rapport quality/price without making a mistake?

“We often use the same suppliers, ones who we know personally, or we take advantage of the professionalism and seriousness of the AIRO”.

When you sell to your customers, how do they react to the oil that you propose? Has anything changed over the years in the attitude towards this product?

“Today the customer is more informed and ready to listen. We bring our version of bread and olive oil to every table as a “welcome” and usually offer at least two different types of olive oil which are clearly described to our guests”.

We close with a forecast…what is the future of extra virgin olive oil in general and in your endeavor?

“Indispensable and irreplaceable; it is a fact”.

Filippo Falugiani