italian red
In the romantic and captivating Italian language, 'noi' means we. A monosyllable that in its three letters collects all The essence that emerges from the open kitchen of this restaurant and floods each of its corners.
A contemporary Italian, in the words of his own chef, Giani Pinto : “an Italian from 2020 projected to 2030”, and here Made in Italy is defended but any iota of nostalgia or melancholy is renounced.
"What you see right now is life, it's what's cooking in Italy and in the world right now," Gianni tells us, who although he acknowledges that his recipes are based on tradition, what prevails is always restlessness and the desire to excite with each bite.
Forget any concept of Italian cuisine that you had until now and simply let yourself go, we assure you that you will not forget –indeed, you will repeat– this trip to la felicità.
the terracotta room
ITALY FROM NORTH TO SOUTH
The boot: from north to south and from south to north, with the occasional special stop and many twists and turns, that is the travel plan proposed by chef Gianni Pinto, originally from Ginosa , a town in the Italian region of Apulia, in the south of the country.
The seven years that Pinto was in Milan went a long way: he worked in Cracco (two Michelin stars) , jewel and in Il Marchesino , by Gualtiero Marchesi. “I did the military service with Carlo Cracco –he says between laughs– but now I can tell you that it was a wonderful experience".
“It was a stage both hard and beautiful, of great rigor and discipline but above all of look at things from another point of view”, explains Pinto.
From the north of Italy, it is undoubtedly carried seriousness when working "Milan is very tough, it's a hyper-competitive city, in short, whoever gets out of Milan well goes straight to paradise," says the chef. But not only that, it also takes “many memories and many people”, he adds.
After his debut in Spain with Sinfonía Rossini, Gianni says he is reaching a balance in Madrid: “In my opinion, the lifestyle here is similar to that of southern Italy, people put the desire to live before producing, and sometimes that is not an advantage, but many others it is”, account to Traveler.es
Burratina with baked tomato juice and Sicilian capers
AND THEN CAME NOI
** NOI landed at number 6 Recoletos Street with the help of the El Pradal group** : “the search for the premises lasted about seven months”, he tells us Javier Gassibe, the head chef at Noi , and friend of Gianni. “I told him: 'I want to open a restaurant, will you come with me?', the rest of the story is in front of you”, says Javier.
They thought about the name a lot: Osteria Gran Gusto, Gianni, Mi amo... and After a brainstorm that broke out in a WhatsApp group, NOI was born. “And I clarify: not only NOI, but NOI, Italian in Madrid” Gianni points out.
And it is that entering this space is enter Gianni's house, especially if you ask for the one baptized as 'chef's table', with direct views of everything that happens in the kitchen “People don't just go out to dinner, they go out to live an experience, and in this case the setting is this, my house. I like people to greet me when they enter and say goodbye when they leave, telling me how things went”, says the Pugliese chef.
An experience that many Italians are also encouraged , sometimes reluctant to try their gastronomy outside their borders. “Every time an Italian comes, I already know that he will tell me something, but it also happens many times that the Italians who come here and leave very happy”, says Gianni, who declares himself a lover of Spanish food.
“Potatoes with broken eggs drive me crazy. It is an imperfect dish, and it has a mixture that I am not telling you is umami because it lacks a bit of acidity, but the flavor is incredible, with chistorra, of course, ”he concludes.
Italianity in a pop key
ITALIANITY IN POP KEY
The interior design of NOI bears the signature of the studio ilmiodesign , which describes the project in three words: “Italianity in a pop key”.
The essential inspiration when developing the project has been 'Italianness', "but based on authenticity", they tell us Andrea Spada and Michele Corbani, founders of Ilmiodesign.
"So, the chromatism, the materials, the furniture… they breathe and are based on the most genuine Italy, far from the clichés to which we are accustomed”, they tell Traveler.es
And they continue: "All this is mixed in a space with an 'Italian pop' style that generates a surprising as well as harmonic effect”.
The materials used have been mainly ceramics, terrazzo and concrete lattices , a reflection of the Italian architecture of the 1970s.
Temperate carabineros flan with peach and hazelnuts
ITALY ON THE PLATE AND IN THE ATMOSPHERE
The references and evocations to the country of the boot come from the direct experience of Spada and Corbani, from the environment where they were born and lived: “for example, terrazzo was a very typical material for the portals of Milan in the 70s and of many houses, which for us has a lot of soul”, they expose.
“Also warm colors like terra di siena they are very typical in the buildings of many Italian cities, and in particular of Rome, although to these we have wanted to add a touch “SPRITZ” saturating them”, they continue telling us.
Colored ceramics is another reference that is very much alive in their imagination when thinking about the kitchen they had in their own home. “In fact, in the restaurant we wanted to create a high seating area in front of the open kitchen, where the diner enjoys the dish next to the chef, exactly as if I were in the kitchen at home”, they add.
the green room
THREE COLORS FOR THREE SPACES
NOI's color palette is pure Italy: "To achieve that Italian quality that we mentioned, we have used terracotta tones, characteristic of the buildings of many Italian cities, and specifically from Rome; reds, reflecting Italian passion; and green, color full of vitality, also very characteristic of our country and our flag”, they explain from Ilmiodesign.
The very typology of the premises was what inspired the studio when it came to differentiating the NOI spaces: “it made no sense to try to standardize a place with so many different environments. The restaurant is organized in three spaces that are connected through a common denominator that is the floor, a tongue of red and white striped tiles, which guides the customer from the entrance door and accompanies it to the dining rooms and the kitchen”, explain the architects of the project.
Everything (even the lighting) is designed to guide the diner – from the main door – throughout the premises. The first space is terracotta and simulates a typical Italian salumería. A terrazzo bar welcomes us and the products in the display case already make our mouths water.
The first dining room is dominated by red, accompanied by a series of mirrors located on the walls and a longitudinal lamp. The green space houses the second room , in which this color is chosen as a nod to the Italian style that inspires and permeates all interior design.
What sets NOI apart from other Italian restaurants? “Without a doubt, authenticity”, they think “NOI is an Italian restaurant, but authentic, that goes beyond the typical Italian iconography to which we are accustomed and goes beyond the current trends proposed in the sector.
As for the furniture, “for this project we have combined our own designs with those of other firms. For example, the chairs are Italian, from Chairs and More , and at Ilmio we have personalized the finish by choosing non-catalogue fabrics that support the warmth of the premises. The rest is of their own creation, made to measure for the project”, they explain.
Caponata, aubergine emulsion and confit tomatoes
**ENTERING THE KITCHEN (LITERALLY)**
Open kitchen, open heart and open mind. After a delicious appetizer based on zucchini and a mortadella that we eat without realizing it As we watch Gianni and his team work, we started with the antipasti, –and of course, we let ourselves be advised by the chef–.
First, a cevision of the typical sicilian caponata in which the fried onion and aubergines are replaced by the grilled aubergine emulsion accompanied by candied tomatoes, celery and carrot.
Don't miss out either red tuna and pineapple carpaccio with vitel toné sauce or the smoked pannacotta with anchovies, figs and black truffle.
"We made the letter sitting in the Retiro Park" Gianni confesses. Between works, comings and goings, we imagine the people who sat at the table, how they ate, the energy, the music... and that's how the gastronomic proposal came about”, adds Javier.
A menu whose antipasti includes proposals that are pure mix, that works on the plate and on the palate: burratina with baked tomato juice and Sicilian capers, tempered carabineros flan with peach and hazelnuts or the arch-defendant fried pizza with basil pesto and buffalo mozzarella.
And what about the bread, better for Gianni to say it: “at first the bread was a butter bread, without much mystery and after a few tests, we changed it for another made with virgin olive oil and 100% sourdough”, many customers ask him where to buy it.
Smoked pannacotta with anchovies, figs and black truffle
THE PASTA, WHAT A PASTA!
In the pasta section, the chef's twist continues but without abandoning the base of Italianness that we have not stopped savoring at any time.
Among the proposals that attract the most attention –and we see the most come out of the kitchen–, the rigatoni with Genovese ragu, the linguine with green pesto and black truffle or the toasted gnocchi with eel and caciucco sauce.
Our recommendation? A "classic", because here everything has a point of surprise: the spaghetti alla carbonara, which are accompanied by bluefin tuna tartar marinated in Pablo Salvioni miso and mullet botarga. Stirred, not shaken, and of course, al dente
If you fancy meat or fish, you will not fail with the red mullet with marinated Iberian pork or the milanese cotoletta (which as you may have already guessed, is not the traditional cotoletta, far from it).
Spaghetti alla carbonara, red tuna tartar and mullet botarga
AN UNFORGETTABLE TIRAMISU
Don't even think about saying no to the dessert menu, because you will regret it, a lot. The absolute star is the tiramisu, which is served inside a sphere of white cocoa butter and whose interior breaks freeing a mascarpone cream on a coffee crumble.
For the second occasion, if you can resist the temptation to order the tiramisu again, the dessert menu contains very Italian proposals, such as the cannoli with pistachio cream and other more exotic ones such as chocolate with passion fruit or cold lemon cream, peanuts and meringue.
THE TIRAMISU
THE WINE!
You'll want to tear out the first page of the wine list, where you'll find a map of Italy divided into regions as an index: the sparkling wines from Lombardy, the Proseco from Veneto, the fruity rosés from Puglia, the mineral whites from Sicily, the powerful reds from Sardinia or the famous Barolo del Sur, in Sicily.
Aren't you wine? Order a Spritz and let the (Italian) rhythm not stop!
Always NOI.
The NOI bar