/gu.stà.re/ oltrecucina

The story

/gu.stà.re/ oltrecucina: Modern Cuisine in Borgomanero | Michelin Recommended

/gu.stà.re/ oltrecucina: A Sincere Taste of Modern Cuisine in Borgomanero

In the center of Borgomanero, /gu.stà.re/ oltrecucina is a restaurant built on a simple, direct idea: cooking is a verb, a way of being and acting. Here, Chef Valentina Maioni and Maître Manuel Ettoumi have created a warm, welcoming space where modern cuisine meets the sincere flavors of Piemonte.

The restaurant’s name is a play on words—gu.stà.re means "to taste," and oltrecucina signals a philosophy that goes "beyond the kitchen." This is not a formal, hushed dining room. It is a comfortable place where guests are invited to linger, to share a moment of quality time, and to interpret the food with their own senses.

Chef Valentina’s cooking is rooted in memory. She grew up making gnocchi with her great-grandmother, learning the feel of the dough and the scent of potatoes. Later, she trained at Milan’s Food Genius Academy and worked in kitchens across the Novara hills before opening her own place. Her inspiration comes directly from the produce she sees—a zucchini flower suggests a crispy chip for a branzino dish; a ripe peach sparks a new idea. Her signature dish remains the ravioli del plin: fresh egg pasta filled with veal, served with a Parmigiano reduction. The menu, a five-course tasting selection called "Il Gusto che Vale," changes with the seasons and her spontaneous creativity.

Maître Manuel Ettoumi manages the dining room with a rational, observant eye. A native of nearby Orta San Giulio, he built a career in fine dining—including a stint at Milan’s Joia—before joining Chef Valentina. He curates a wine list that pairs naturally with her plates, favoring the intense reds and fresh whites of the region. His goal is to make every guest feel at ease, from the moment they arrive until they leave.

The result is a restaurant that the Michelin guide has recognized as Recommended. But /gu.stà.re/ oltrecucina resists easy labels like "gourmet." Instead, it offers something rarer: an honest, flavorful, and genuinely personal expression of modern cuisine in Borgomanero.