Davide Bonato grew up bothering his grandmother in the kitchens of Il Convento, an idyllic resort made up of a hotel and a traditional restaurant, located in Trill, Italian village of the real ones, in the region of Piedmont.
The gastronomy of this Italian region prioritizes two of the products of its land, land where small microclimates occur and are influence by the “Nebbia”, giving a constant and perfect humidity for the white truffle and rice.
Daniela and Davide have known each other since childhood, but they reconnected one day in the restaurant of Il Convento, when Davide worked there. It didn’t take much more than love to bring their lives together and create two projects: one of them, have two great daughters, and the other, Gioia, their first restaurant in Madrid. Davide was clear he wanted to create a creative cuisine proposal, with textures, shapes and colors, but always with a base from his land, his products and his personal experience.
When you’ve been sitting at one of Gioia’s tables for a while, you’ll probably forget you’re in a restaurant and start feeling like you’re in the living room of a family home. The mixture of elements and furniture seems natural, which happens with these varied processes in which you learn and accumulate stories with nostalgia and affection. These sensations are necessary to enjoy the gastronomic proposal of Davide, honest and curious in equal parts, because he himself enters and leaves the kitchen to approach customers and share some anecdote, to serve his dishes or try to get opinions of his dishes directly.
They have prepared a tasting menu for an incredible price, which we recommend if it’s your first time in the Piedmont kitchen and want to let the chef take control. Start with an appetizer that varies and a glass of Prosecco to give them time in the kitchen to surprise you with a dish that speaks for Madrid, a morbid egg poached with a crust of venere rice, confetti of Iberian ham and a crispy leek. You could not miss a plate of homemade pasta, some Tagliolini al tartufo, with yolk cooked at a low temperature, white truffle and cheese cacio nerone. A very basic dish where again we see the importance and power of their products. Second is a classic conflict, meat or fish, beef loin, matured for 30 days, or bluefin tuna in sesame crust. For dessert, another decision in which there is no conflict, you can’t miss their tiramisu.
Gioia is a jewel, Gioia also means joy. To find a corner of Piedmont hidden in the heart of the Chueca neighborhood, where you remember perfectly the taste of each of its dishes, the sensations, that friends, it’s clear that you know what I’m going to say, that is, Gioia.
Phone: 23. 915 245 547
Average price: 35 euros; chef’s tasting: 29 euros (without drinks).
Text: Lucía Gomez Meca
Photos: Borja G.