(Agen Food) – Rome, 19 June. – When in May 2020 Casa Carmen opened its doors in Fregene, on Lungomare di Ponente, it was an immediate success. Thanks to the fresh and fun format, with a holiday atmosphere, the place quickly became a point of reference on the Roman coast. A result that pushed the two partners and entrepreneurs (and couple in life) Annalisa Polo And Roberto Tomasini to open a second location, inaugurated last April 24th but this time in Fiumicino.
The new address opened on Lungomare della Salute and, unlike the one in Fregene, it has a sea view. “When we saw this vacant place, we immediately felt the desire to open a second location: it is a beautiful, perfect environment – say the partners -, even more cared for”. The same holiday spirit is maintained, with Latin influences also on the menu: “In each restaurant we put something from our travels, from our experiences, between Spain and Mexico”.
Casa Carmen in Fiumicino is open for lunch and dinner, as well as for an aperitif, it has around 80 indoor and 70 outdoor seats, and as for Fregene there is barbecue in the room. The environment plays with light colors, especially white, with the addition of unique details, such as the large handmade bottle.
The proposal becomes broader, not only fish, but also meat and vegetables. The brigade is led by the Executive Chef Antonio Rossetti, born in ’84, who also runs the Fregene restaurant. Of Salento origin, he followed a different path for a long time, but the passion for cooking handed down to him by his family made itself felt: so many experiences began in restaurants and hotels in the capital to lay solid foundations of traditional Roman cuisine.
A first step which, combined with many trips and the desire to experiment, gives life to a proposal full of contaminations which finds its perfect implementation at Casa Carmen. Next to him are the Sous Chef Samuel Ridolfi and a young and creative team. The cuisine respects tradition and raw materials, carefully chosen from selected national and international suppliers to find excellent and niche products.
The meal from Casa Carmen start with fish, meat and vegetarian tapas. From the selection of seafood to the ceviche with Leche de Tigre granita, and then ham croquettes, flambéed Picanha carpaccio and Padron pepe (fried friggitelli and Maldon salt), strictly to be shared among the diners. Italian cuisine makes room for itself with spaghetti with clams, sautéed mussels and a fun reinterpretation of Sardinian culurgiones, proposed here with mussels, pecorino and mint.
The most representative dish of Casa Carmen, however, is paellain good five variations: fish paella, meat paella (which in addition to chicken and rabbit, can also be tasted with beef meatballs and oxtail), mixed, vegetarian (with peppers, courgettes, mushrooms and brava sauce) and finally the black version cuttlefish, with aioli sauce and raw red prawns.
The menu changes often, “we like to change” explains the chef “there are always many new things every week”, but there is never a shortage of proposals from the grill. Don’t miss the charcoal-cooked octopus with chickpea hummus and aioli and the Galician ribbon (diaphragm slices of char-grilled Spanish beef).
A cuisine that is also based on the principle of zero waste, working only with seasonal vegetables. The bread making work is also important: the bread and focaccia served are homemade, “every day we make a different type of bread with different toppings”, says the chef.
The same goes for the desserts, which have also been revisited. Try the cheesecake, which at Casa Carmen is served between two crunchy and thin wafers, or the tiramisu of which only the mascarpone cream remains, the cocoa becomes a crumble and the coffee a cream.
He takes care of the welcome Jonathan Rossi, a very good host who also took care of the wine list, both in Fregene and in Fiumicino. An important list with a prevalence of whites and bubbles, but there is no shortage of rosés and reds: Italian labels, from north to south, but also France and obviously Spain, up to Brazil. There is also a selection of sangria.
A central role is occupied by mixology, entrusted to the barman Simone Mentrasti who thought of a drink list that recounts the symbiosis with the sea and kitchen waste, showing coherence with the philosophy of the chef and his dishes. Tai Rija, for example, has as its base a dessert of Spanish origin with sponge cake and cinnamon, chosen to recreate a homemade orgeat and develop a reinterpretation of the classic Mai Tai.
Or the Casatini, a twist on the Vodka Martini, where a glasswort vodka and a Dry Vermouth flavored with caper leaves (picked by the staff on the rocks of the Ostia beach) are used, which give salinity, minerality and character. Fun, sustainable cocktails that don’t deviate too much from classic tastes, while offering new flavors.
