His pasta has become famous all over the world, so much so that it has “bewitched” illustrious figures such as Pope Francis, the former Queen Elizabeth, Barack Obama and Prince Albert of Monaco. It is no coincidence that Valerio Chiesa is the “King” in Livorno and his counter at the Mercato Centrale is one of the most characteristic as well as the most renowned. Inside, six rows of spotlights illuminate a black and white checkered floor and a series of golden elements: the frames of the paintings, the inlaid wooden legs of an elegant marble console, the sign that reads “The King of Pasta”. But we are not in a New York or Paris boutique and behind the polished glass of the counter there are no jewels but rather tortelli, gnocchi and tagliatelle.
From artisan workshop to international pasta factory, the story of Valerio Chiesa
A true Livornese born in 1980, Chiesa took the reins of the artisan workshop founded by his grandparents in 1969 and revolutionized it according to his style. In 2018 he moved the laboratory to an adjacent space, making the work visible to the public, in line with the widespread passion for show cooking. He organizes cooking classes to spread the art of fresh pasta and offers express first courses to the people of Livorno and to the many tourists who increasingly choose to visit the city of Livorno, a landing place for international cruise ships.
The fresh pasta that Formula 1 likes
Valerio recently attended the 50th birthday party for Giovanni Pasquini, the founder of the Italian Gesture brand, where he took care of the catering together with the Cristiani pastry shop, another local excellence. Chiesa’s collaborations with the golden world of Formula 1 are consolidated: in May he took care of the hospitality above the pits of the Monaco GP and in September he will participate in a Ferrari-branded gala for which he had a fresh pasta mold made in the shape of the Maranello house’s emblem: “It will be the star dish of the event”, assures Valerio in the interview given to CiboToday.
The Pope, Queen Elizabeth and all the other celebrities who love The King of Pasta
One of Valerio Chiesa’s secrets is precisely that of knowing how to reinterpret the tradition of fresh egg pasta in new variations, tailor-made for the guest of the moment. The other is that the story of the dishes served on the most prestigious tables in the world seems almost like a fairy tale, complete with princes and a happy ending. “It all started in 2012 when I was called to cook in Monte Carlo for Prince Albert of Monaco. I prepared tortelli in red and white pastry with lobster filling. Among the guests there was also Queen Elizabeth II of England, who ate my pasta, was pleasantly surprised and invited me to Buckingham Palace for the 2012 jubilee. On that occasion I prepared pasta girasoli with lobster filling, while for the 70th jubilee I sent her ricotta and spinach ravioli”.
From Livorno to the most important tables in the world
But it doesn’t end there. “In 2016 I was invited to the White House, I cooked for the then President of the United States Barack Obama during a dinner dedicated to Italian excellence attended by former Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, Bebe Vio, Roberto Benigni, Paolo Sorrentino and many other Italian personalities from the world of entertainment and business. They asked me for potato-filled tortelli”. And then he proudly adds “The Holy Father likes lobster-filled girasoli”. Yes, because among the many important personalities fond of the Church’s pasta there is even Pope Francis, “The first time the Vatican secretariat called me I hung up thinking it was a joke!”, he says.
The raw materials of the Livorno pasta factory and the golden ravioli
The strength of a project like Chiesa’s is based on the solid foundations of quality raw materials and traditional recipes: “We only use Apulian flours and semolina among the best in the world. Free-range Livorno chicken eggs, pure sheep ricotta produced in Tuscany, Italian meats, Modena mortadella, we do not use substitutes. I have kept my grandmother’s and father’s recipes, which I have integrated with the search for new fillings”. In 2017, after years of research, Chiesa gave a new twist to his entrepreneurial history by creating King Gold, the pure gold tortello made famous by a few-second video that Flavio Briatore published on his social media, renaming it Raviolo Billionaire. “Those seven seconds changed my life. In the following days we received something like 2,783 orders from all over the world”.
A replicable future for the pasta of the stars
For Pastificio Chiesa, the golden raviolo marks the entrance into the luxury food market. From that moment on, its pasta enters the menu of the most prestigious restaurants (310 to be exact) in Italy and beyond: “We also export to Dubai, Paris and Madrid” says Valerio. A dream that is only missing the last piece to come true: “I would welcome with open arms a great entrepreneur who said to me: Valerio, let’s replicate what you have done in other cities”. The invitation is open.
