Orto

The story

Orto, Monopoli: Transformative Vegetable Cuisine with Michelin Recognition

A Vegetable-Focused Tasting Menu in Monopoli

Orto, set within the Nina Trulli Resort near Monopoli, offers an intimate fine-dining experience that earned a Michelin Recommended designation for 2026. With just twelve seats per service and a single tasting menu that changes each month, the restaurant embodies a philosophy centered on seasonal, contemporary cuisine.

The kitchen is led by executive chef Fabrizio Tucci, whose work transforms ingredients beyond their familiar forms. "The ingredient can become transparency, density, shadow, acidity, memory," the restaurant states. Vegetables, herbs, roots, cereals, and even spontaneous wild plants are pushed into new textures and expressions. The focus on vegetables is not a limitation but a creative departure point: dishes such as Ramen alla Melanzana (eggplant ramen reimagined with Puglian pasta) or Pomodoro e Kimchi (tomato and kimchi in a cold, fermented broth) demonstrate a dialogue between tradition and technique. The cuisine is neither decorative nor ostentatious, but aims for depth and unexpected contrasts.

Chef Cinzia Mancini, the project’s creator, set the conceptual direction, while Tucci executes an essential, intense cuisine. His approach uses fermentation, oxidation, extraction, and temperature to alter perception rather than to show off skill. The result is a meal that feels both precise and intuitive.

The setting is quiet and unhurried. The dining room, surrounded by white stone, olive groves, and the iconic trulli of Puglia, allows the experience to unfold over about three hours. The only choice is between a wine or juice pairing. The menu cannot be adapted for dietary restrictions (except for a gluten-free option), reinforcing the chef’s vision.

For those open to a non-conventional, vegetable-led path, Orto offers a deeply considered encounter with seasonal ingredients – and a Michelin-recognized one at that.