Santabbondio Restorante, Sorengo-Lugano Switzerland (Ticino)
A not-to-be-missed find in the hills above Lugano.

Peter and Linda D'Aprix 2002

Our meal at the Santabbondio Restorante (one star Michelin) could only have been improved by the weather! But even the pouring rain could not extinguish the marvelous the food which is filled with sunshine and light. The cuisine of chef Martin Dalsass is a delight of Italian Mediterranean flavors rendered with the culinary discipline found in Switzerland and supported by Chef Martin Dalsass's passion for the gastronomic intricacies of the wide range of tastes available in olive oils.

It is refined with flavors so carefully balanced that a special peace descends on the taste buds with every bite. The several small, intimate dining rooms are under the thumb of Martin's wife Lorena who extends a warm and professional welcome to her guests. They were both born in Italy and together they make the perfect team, and a team who are obviously both comfortable with each other and their smoothly run establishment.

Jumbo shrimp salad with 3 different varieties of asparagus.		Entrance to this charming house converted to restaurant.
Main dining room. Mr. and Mrs. Martin Dalsass.		Layered strawberry tart with rhubarb and almond biscuit and nectarines.
Click on Photos where the mouse turns into a hand for bigger versions.
© 2002 photos Peter D'Aprix

This is a cuisine that clearly demonstrates that a harmony of intellect and passion transcend the products of either alone. Coupled with a questing creativity, the results are superb. Martin, like most chefs, has a core passion - olive oil. For some chefs it is wine, for others sea food, but Martin devotes all his private time, mostly from the end of March to mid May revisiting olive oil producers up and down the length of Italy, on the coast (a stronger tasting olive oil, perfect of cooked dishes) to the hills of Tuscany (a light oil perfect for salads and delicate dishes) as well as other countries from France to Spain.

Ask him about it and he will regale you with stories of Paolo Vezzola on Lake Garda, to the fontodi family in Chianti and on to Umbria. Then over coffee, he will tell you about his pal Luigi Cafiero of San Ferdinando di Puglia in the "toe of the boot" in the south. Like Jaques Chibois, he is a connoisseur of olive oil. It is hardly surprising his dishes feature at least one from his daily palate of over 13. Even his chocolate mouse has olive oil as an ingredient and superb it is too!

Of course, an olive oil must be matched to just the right vinegar. He can tell you about that too. His wine cellar, cut into the hillside in the basement of the restaurant provides the perfect conditions with the dark and a constant climate. Here there are barrels made of chestnut, mulberry, cherry or juniper wood in which the Balsamico vinegar is allowed to rest. As it matures, it, just like wine, is moved from barrel to barrel in order to absorb the specific tannings and aromas of the various woods.

A palate teaser of olive oil, fresh vining tomatoes salt and toast rounds.		Basil gnocchi with jumbo shrimp and olive oil.
Roast pigeon with pine nuts.		Olive oil chocolate mouse with loquats.

Even his simple country dishes are far more sophisticated that they might appear to the eye as they are served. How could they not be when even simple olive oil and vinegar is pampered like royalty? His basil gnocchi with jumbo shrimp and his white and black seafood pasta are an orchestration of harmonious tastes. When he is aiming for sophistication, his roast pigeon with pine nuts and his jumbo shrimp salad are excellent as is the Timbale of Asparagus which is a mini-log fort made of upright asparagus spears stuffed with goat cheese and sun dried tomatoes surrounded by several other varieties of asparagus, if you arrive, that is, in asparagus season.

The ambiance inside is a little subdued with several small dining rooms only one with a fireplace that was very welcome the cold and rainy spring day we arrived. In good weather, the spacious deck is open and lovely with a view out over the tree filled back garden.

Guide Michelin has clearly run out of stars to award. With so many fine young chefs arriving on the scene daily it seems, this elderly publication holds onto its awards like Scrooge his gold. This chef deserves a higher rating that "one star" for his cuisine. If only the ratings were based on food alone and not on other things like bathrooms, hat stands and such.

Martin Dalsass was born in Italy in 1956. He does not boast internships with world famous glamor chefs, but has cultivated his talent and culinary discipline at such notable establishments as the Grand Hotel Bellevue in Gstaad, Hotel La Palma in Locarno, Hotel Losone in Losone and La Maree in Paris.

A light starter of sardines, potato, tomatoes, melon, carpacio of radishes in a drizzle of olive oil		Timbale of baby asparagus stuffed with sun dried tomatoes in olive oil marinade on top of a bed of goat cheese
Crisp and light 1999 Pinot Grigio from Tenimento dell Ör, Ticino.		Black and White pasta with squid, tomatoes, basil and olive oil.

He and his lovely wife Lorena and their two sons opened this restaurant just minutes from downtown Lugano in 1985, so it is no new boy on the block. They have carefully nurtured their menu and refined their techniques. Even if Guide Michelin is myopic, Gault Millau gives him 18/20 and named him a cook of the year in 2001. The vitality in his cooking may be a carry over from his lust for life. He is an avid athlete and fisherman. Often the fish he catches show up on the evening menu.

His wine cellar is filled with the marvelous wines of the region. Many diners love to drink only the wines that are their favorites. But we would encourage you to try the wines of the Ticino from the lovely Pinot Grigios to the unique whites made from Merlot and other red grapes. You may find yourselves pleasantly surprised. The wine waiters will be happy to guide you in the right direction based on what menu you have ordered.