Hong Kong's only restaurant focusing exclusively on the northern Italian region of Piedmont, Castellana, is imminently due to open at its new home on Duddell Street in Central, after leaving its home of close to three years in Causeway Bay this past June.
The new space sits in the historic Club Lusitano and takes over two floors, with interiors designed by JJ Acuña. Themed around a casual, chef-centred cucina di casa concept on the lower floor and a formal dining room on the upper floor, Castellana's new design iterates on the warm and sophisticated atmosphere of the original location with burl wood rustica ceilings, wall-to-wall vineyard-inspired carpeting, painterly frescoed wall coverings, handcrafted Italian lightings, and sleek dining chairs.
Also (relatively) new to Castellana is Piedmont-born head chef Romeo Morelli, who has revamped the restaurant's culinary programme with a renewed focus on the terroir of the region—in particular, highlighting Piedmont's renowned truffles, chestnuts, and Fassona beef—with the occasional intervention using Asian produce. Morelli was most recently the executive chef at Relais San Maurizio, as well as being a Wood*ing Wild Food Lab-accredited Master Forager.
"We want to add creativity and innovation to every dish. Having said that, we will continue to use the highest-quality ingredients available because this is what has set Castellana apart from others. The new menu was created to appeal to guests' palates in a metropolitan city like Hong Kong while preserving the legacy of Piedmontese recipes."
Castellana is slated to reopen on 20 September 2022. Stay tuned for more updates.
"We will be concentrating our efforts more on the rediscovery of Piedmontese traditional cuisine in the new menu," Morelli told Tatler Dining.
