Master Chef Massimo Bottura Opens The Whimsical Torno Subito In Miami

“I first went to Miami in the 80’s on vacation and it was lots of fun. At the time it was South Beach, Café Milano, the News Café and a beautiful beach. So when the investors came to Dubai, saw Torno Subito and the concept behind it, they said, this would work in Miami so well. So we’re doing it, saying come to Italy with me but it will also be Miami.”

That’s the framework as explained by Michelin three star chef Massimo Bottura of this city’s Torno Subito opening August 21 in downtown Miami atop the multicultural food hall Julia & Henry’s which opened last year. The overall tone is that fun and whimsy that he first experienced in Miami combined with the similar spirit of the Italian Riviera during the La Dolce Vita era of the 1960’s. The décor is sunny and bright—a vivid red bar and yellow pizza oven surrounded by red, yellow and black and white striped banquettes and chairs, the colors of his childhood visits to the beaches in Rimini. Additional whimsy is provided in the black and white photos dotting the walls, such as one of a foot (Bottura’s) lassoed by rope from below, apparently meant to signify his staff trying to keep him somewhat earthbound.

Another essential element, according to Bottura, is that the local head chef is calling the shots; it’s the way the empire radiating from his esteemed Modena flagship Osteria Francescana operates. In Miami, that person is Bernardo Paladini who led the Dubai Torno Subito to a Michelin star and has been in Miami for a year and a half getting to know local purveyors-the cheesemakers, farmers, ranchers and fishermen of the South Florida area while also incorporating trademark ingredients such as 36 month old Parmigiano Reggiano and Bottura’s Villa Manodori balsamic vinegar.

The result is a menu created by Paladini that hopscotches across Italy with South Florida infusions.(Even on the cocktail list with choices such as the Bellini Mojito created in collaboration with New York cocktail haven Dante.) There are fanciful inventions such as the Milano-Portofino risotto that blends the signatures of both cities—the saffron and bone marrow of Milan’s risotto with Portofino’s langoustines- with rice cooked in langoustine juice, saffron, lime, bone marrow and marinated Mediterranean langoustine; Seabass Porketta: Mediterranean seabass stuffed with pork bacon, rosemary, dill, lemon emulsion and grilled lettuce and a spin on Tiramisu that combines the classic tiramisu on the bottom with cookies soaked in coffee, cacao and mascarpone cream topped with more modern ingredients: espresso ice cream and a superlight foam of mascarpone cheese. Covering it is a biscuit that you have to break as you sometimes have to break traditions, a hallmark of the Bottura philosophy.

Not everything is completely out of the box, though, there are also sublime versions of dishes that are more familiar such as Tagliatelle al Ragù , Fusilli al Pesto, 5 different pizzas and Tortellini in a creamy Parmigiano sauce. “In every restaurant of Massimo’s, we’re going to do tortellini,” says Paladini. “It’s Massimo’s dish of the memory, when he was a kid stealing tortellini from his grandma who was making it for the family.” Here, the tortellini are formed by Tina, a grandmotherly Italian woman who moved to Florida to be near her son and crafts tiny, perfect tortellini that Paladini covers with a sauce so redolent of Parmigiano that every other version pales in comparison.

Some dishes are angled specifically to Florida, none more obvious than a spin on a famous dessert from Osteria Francescana. In Modena, the trademark Oops, I Dropped the Lemon Tart actually did result from a pastry chef dropping the lemon tart; the resulting smashed, deconstructed version then became a staple on the menu. Here in Miami, the dessert is Oops, I Burned the Key Lime Pie composed of key lime pastry cream, citric crumble, lime ice cream and foam plus a slightly browned crispy top.

“It’s all about being ironic,” says Paladini. “Food is happiness, after all.”