Yes Chef! Romeo Morelli, Connoisseur of Piedmontese Cuisine at Castellana
Asia is one food-crazy continent! We take great care to pick restaurants based on culinary vibes, rankings in international gourmand guides, mentions in magazines, Instagramability, and added allure. Yes, Chef! features the region’s chefs' stories of love and labor in kitchens, which has made some of our restaurants the next big thing in Asia.
In this installment of Yes, Chef!, The Beat Asia spoke to Chef Romeo Morelli, a Piedmont local, and master of the region's cuisine at Castellana Hong Kong.
Tucked away on Ice House Street, Central, Castellana is a favorite destination for residents and visitors alike seeking mouth-wateringly delicious Piedmontese cuisine and service. Helmed by Executive Chef Romeo Morelli, the fine dining destination boasts beautiful Italian masterpieces complemented by an artfully curated wine collection.
Hailing from Asti, Piedmont, Romeo developed a passion for hospitality early as he grew up with his family's restaurant. He didn't make a beeline for culinary school, however, and studied engineering at university instead. Still, his passion for food drew him back and so Romeo began his journey working at top dining establishments across the world, from Abu Dhabi to Singapore.
Prior to working at Castellana, Chef Romeo was personally mentored by Chef Luca Zecchin at renowned 5-star establishment, Relais San Maurizio. With Chef Luca, Romeo refined his craft and developed the philosophy that would define his career, placing emphasis on food that is not only beautiful, but flavorful and nutritious. At the core of his work, his guests' needs come first.
Having lived in Hong Kong for only three years, Chef Romeo has already developed Castellana into a reputable fine dining establishment serving authentic Piedmontese cuisine. Since opening, the restaurant has been awarded the prestigious Two Forks award from the “Top Italian Restaurants” category for 2024 from Gambero Rosso and will be participating in the World's Best Restaurants Opening Ceremony in Torino, Piedmont in June 2025. What's next? Chef Romeo has his eyes on a Michelin star.
Read on to explore Chef Romeo's impressive culinary journey, the ethos behind his craft, lessons learned along the way, and many exciting developments at Castellana, including their new white truffle menu!
Can you introduce your F&B journey and culinary background to us?
I grew up in a family that has a restaurant. So I take the passion that I have for this industry [from my parents]. I didn’t [go] to culinary school, I [studied] to be an engineer. I was working for one year in an office then thought, this will not be my life.
I went to the first restaurant [I worked at] and started from the bottom washing dishes. After a while, my first big opportunity arrived: Abu Dhabi. They offered me to become the Head Chef at an Italian restaurant there. I worked there for nearly two years and had the opportunity to grow up and develop flavors out of Italy.
After Abu Dhabi, I moved to Germany for one year. I was trying to [learn] the Nordic kitchen style. After that, I went to Singapore. Singapore was my first big restaurant; it was actually 200 seats. I was in charge of the whole restaurant.
It was my first job in Asia, and it was tough. Asia has another concept of food, especially not having the same flavors as Europe. In Europe, we like things very simple; in Asia, everything has to have strong flavors. It was quite challenging in the beginning and Singapore is like Hong Kong because it’s very competitive, so it took me 3 to 4 months to [pick things up].
After that, I was in Relais San Maurizio where I was the Executive Chef. It gave me the opportunity to [think] in a fine dining way. With [Chef Luca Zecchin], I changed a lot, I grew up and set up my style.
[In a way] he created me. He changed the way that I see food. Every dish has to be beautiful and flavorful. Food has to be real, and the nutrients inside the food have to be preserved.
After that, I met Matteo [Morello], the owner [of Castellana], and he invited me to follow him to Hong Kong. It was quite challenging because it was during [COVID-19], and everything was totally different from Singapore. After one year, I found a good way to serve food.
What inspires you to keep creating in your career delivering Piedmontese cuisine across the world?
In Piedmont, the landscape is very generous and varied, so we have many ingredients [to cook with]. Thanks to the [regional] wine, every part of the world knows Piedmont. I had the opportunity to link the wine to the food, and specialize in Piedmontese cuisine, also because we have many kinds of food — not only lasagna and pasta.
When you cook for someone, it’s an act of love, and you put yourself into the dish. When this person eats your food, [they get to know you]. I’m a part of Piedmont. Cooking Piedmontese cuisine is [like saying], 'I’m this, this is my childhood. This is what motivates me to continue.'
I take inspiration from my life, so I'm here in Hong Kong. I have this Piedmontese background, but also the possibility to see a different ingredients. I try to combine them because I can't serve pure Piedmontese cuisine with the cheese or butter we have here [when it’s] 38°C. I'm trying to give real recipes adapted to the environment.
How did your experience at Relais San Maurizio alongside Chef Luca Zecchin lead to you becoming Executive Chef at Castellana, Hong Kong?
When I started with Luca, he trained me for six months. During that period, I worked with him every day and learned how to make food with flavor and substance. When you eat a piece of meat, it's not just beautiful, but also nice to eat. Another thing he [instilled in] me is to give guests what they want to eat.
What Luca taught me is to deliver what guests want, because, in the end, they are [the ones] eating the food. Don't cook for yourself or your ego, cook for the guest. After many years, I understood what he was saying very well, especially now: when someone asks me to change a plate, I'm very happy to do it.
For me, food has to be a pleasure. That's why Luca inspired me in many ways, not only how to cook, but the philosophy beyond cooking. It's an honor to cook for the guests because they trust you, they came here to eat food they don't know how you’ve prepared it. It’s an extreme act of trust. That’s why you have to deliver them good food, and what they want.
When I left Relais San Maurizio, Matteo, the owner of Castellana, talked to me and said, ‘Romeo, you are only 28 years old, I can give you the opportunity of your life.’ Then he told me about the project of Castellana, the only Piedmontese restaurant in Hong Kong.
I matched with him and that's why I'm here. We are doing pretty well; this is the third year that I'm here in Hong Kong, and Castellana has a good reputation. We recently won Two Forks [from the “Top Italian Restaurants” category for 2024] from Gambero Rosso. And we will try to win [a Michelin] star.
Also, this year, we will host our second truffle auction. It’s very important for us because the white truffle comes from our region. So having the possibility to manage this is something we are very proud of.
How is working in Hong Kong’s culinary scene different from your Italian roots?
The big difference I noticed is in Italy, we are going out, because we don't want to stay at home. Restaurants are a place where we can relax. In Hong Kong, mostly, it’s a place where we work; when you want to close a deal; or celebrate your birthday.
Hong Kong people are very sensitive to salt. This surprised me and I learned how to use other ingredients to give taste to a dish. In Piedmont, we cook everything with anchovies, because they give an umami taste like salt. Or instead of adding salt to meat, I make a very intense gravy which can be spread with sauce on top of meat. I think this is very good compared to Europe where we have a lot of problems with salt and sugar. Here, I understood why Asian people are healthier sometimes.
Another thing that is different is the [people's] approach to the chef. Here, the chef is important. Back in Italy, I was just doing work. Here, when I say hi to my guests, they are very happy, smiling, and want to take a picture with me. I never had this [before]. It’s very important to have a relationship with the guests, and they are very proud to know me, it’s fantastic!
Can you share more about the concept behind the menu you have crafted at Castellana?
We have two different menus. One is the Chef’s Signature, and the other is the Immersion in Piedmont.
We created [the Chef’s Signature menu just six months ago. After two years of history, we took the best of the dishes that we created for a seven-course menu that represents these years.
For example, the Tiramisu in Castellana is lighter, we make foam and homemade biscuits, so it's quite different. We have the Porcini Risotto. Another plate that is a piece of the history of Castellana, is the Fassona. Fassona is a breed of local cow that grows in Italy. Piedmont only has Fassona. It’s a huge cow, so it's very lean. We take fillets of Fassona with breadcrumbs and fry them in a pan with sage, thyme, and rosemary. We create a crunchy part outside, and a very tender inside. This is the main course that people go crazy for.
In the Immersion in Piedmont menu, we want it to be a little trip to Piedmont for guests. For example, Acciuga or anchovies, with green sauce, or Bagnetto Verde, a sauce prepared with garlic and parsley. I stuff the anchovies and serve them raw. We also have pasta served with truffle. Immersion in Piedmont has two different menus a year, because there are two kinds of truffle: black during summer, and white during autumn.
Also, we have lobster, even if lobster is not a traditional ingredient in Piedmont, we prepare it with a Zabaglione sauce from Piedmont that is generally sweet. In this case, it is salty, because we prepare this ingredient in our style.
[Guests] also have the possibility to have snacks. They can drink more than 50 different wines by the glass, thanks to Coravin technology.
The snacks are inspired by what we call Merenda Sinoira or happy hour in Piedmont. We have a cheese platter, and different varieties of salami that came straight from Piedmont like venison, boar, and artisanal. We also have bell peppers stuffed with tuna.
With white truffle season kicking off this September, can you share a little more about what to expect from your Alba White Truffle Degustation Menu?
I'm pairing scallops with white truffles for the starter. The seafood and truffle flavors represent earth, so it's quite interesting what [you'll taste].
We will have a new kind of pasta, Tagliatelle made with chicken and butter. These two ingredients balance the power of the white truffle very well, and the chicken elevates its aroma.
We also paired lobster with truffle. We will bring to Hong Kong the original sweet Zabaglione — so basically egg yolk with sugar and sparkling wine. We are using Alta Langa, a kind of wine we have in Piedmont. We cook [the lobster], and then serve it with hazelnut and white truffle on top. It’s a bomb, because you have something hot, but creamy that gives the right humidity to feel all the aroma of the truffle.
It's incredible. I hope many people come to try it because I'm very proud of it.
With a low waste ethos at the core of your values, how do you incorporate more eco-conscious efforts into your work at Castellana?
First, don’t waste money. Don't overpay for ingredients or buy very expensive items just as an accessory. For example, if I take a spoon of caviar and throw it on every dish, it’s a waste. There is another kind of waste [where you] don't eat [an ingredient]. Maybe using [a small amount] and then throwing out the rest.
For the first kind, every chef has to think ‘Why am I putting this ingredient on my plate?’ ‘Does this plate need this ingredient or do I just want to add value to the plate?’
We would like to focus on building a menu that has to be premium [and] made with very high-quality ingredients, but we combine these ingredients to not waste your money. I’m giving you a plate where you have your premium ingredients, but not five in one dish. Just [keep it] simple so you can taste each ingredient.
For example, we [serve] the Guinea Fowl and I try to use all the meat. I’m cutting the breasts, the wings I make a croquette with, and the legs are served in a different way, [and we make a sauce with the bones]. I’m using the whole animal so it is not wasted.
I’m not using a lot of vegetables from Italy, because I think importing a lot of vegetables I can source in the markets here, could save some energy. Also, I think one of the most important things is the nutrients; veggies are very delicate and after 17 hours of flight, I don't know how many nutrients they still have. Of course, some vegetables, like tomatoes, I buy from Italy, but from a [wholesale] supplier.
I think it's another philosophy that’s different. I don’t think [many] other chefs think in the same way. I just want to try to do the right thing. Chefs have a very important role in balancing food in a way that doesn’t waste too much, but also delivers.
What are some elements of Piedmontese hospitality you are bringing to Hong Kong diners?
In Castellana, we developed a different kind of service. Fine dining is very precise, systematic, and has the right timing. This is right but we are also trying to make it family style. When you come in, you don’t feel ‘I’m in a fancy restaurant so it has to be serious,’ but we would like to give a little bit of pleasure to [guests].
So don’t feel you’re in a restaurant, feel you’re going to your friend's house to eat very good food. This is what we would like to bring from Piedmont which I think is quite different from normal fine dining restaurants.
Do you have a favorite featured dish on your menu at Castellana?
This is a hard question!
It’s the bell pepper filled with tuna — this was one of the best. I recently I developed one of the signatures that we have now and removed the bell pepper but kept the tuna. It's called Vitello Tonnato. We put a veal slice with raw tuna from Japan, not the Mediterranean. The sauce is made with veal juice.
When you eat it, the feeling is you're eating meat, but it’s tuna. After a couple bites, you figure out the flavor of the tuna, and we make [the mayonnaise] here, so everything is quite interesting.
This became my favorite dish right now, so from one idea, it became another one. All the guests like it, so it’s not only me.
What’s next for you?
With Castellana, we would like to deliver the idea that food has to be real, not only good for Instagram, but good for our health. Sometimes we like to take a picture and this is right, but we have to ask ourselves if the food [is] good for our body. I want to deliver food that is good to see and feel, but also has nutrients.
Something new for Castellana is we will be a part of the ceremony of the 50 Best Restaurants in the World in June 2025 in Piedmont. This year was in Las Vegas, [next] year will be in Torino, so as a Piedmontese spot here in Hong Kong, we are very happy and proud to say we will be back in Torino for a couple of days to open the ceremony.
Is there a parting message you’d like to leave with our readers?
Try Castellana after you read this interview. I think it's very important that these are not only words, but we are here to deliver really good food to our guests.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Learn more about Castellana by visiting their website and following them on Instagram and Facebook. It’s truffle season! Treat yourself to Chef Romeo’s four-course Alba white truffle degustation menu from September 2024 until the end of the year. Find more information and place a reservation here.
Enjoyed this article? Check out our previous Yes, Chef! articles here.
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