The manager of Identità golose (Gluttonous Identities), reveals us his aces in the hole at the moment of a critic
Writer, journalist, into philosophy and Asian cuisine. We are talking about Gabriele Zanatta, manager of the editing of Identità Golose, who told us not mince words about the secrets of a fair critic. “Acting with honesty”: an unavoidable element to start from. “Putting yourself in the chef’s shoes”: empathize with the reality and the work behind the scenes, “creativity”: if one demands flair from the chef, the critic himself must have it while writing: a culinary review needs originality, no set phrases, and maybe a solicitation of memories in the readers’ minds. Well, we did not even have the time to ask a couple of questions, as the manager of Identità Golose has already given us material for a whole article. There are three main point in order to make a fair and serious wine and food critic: honesty, objectivity and creativity. What else could we add? Much, and much more… Mr. Zanatta did not only linger on the three elements; he actually confesses us that these are the key points to start from, but that a fair and complete critic must have a wider range. The “pleasantness” of a restaurant, this is how he calls it, is commensurate to the wellness of every customer: that is to say how comfortable every guest is: courtesy and kindness, although they are often underestimated, play a key role in order to make any evaluations, not only of critics but also of the so-called amateurs:those who, to say it better, get close to a type of cuisine to experience something new. This is not all about the dish, food is only the last ingredient of a sensorial journey that every commensal starts, from when they enter the door of the restaurant to when they leave it. Mr. Zanatta confesses us then that he does not like writing bad reviews, he would rather avoid them not mentioning the restaurant; this distinguishes him from many other colleagues who absolutely do not disdain a bad review. He avoids giving points, as this is a world of emotions that cannot be reduced to a number. He is constantly searching for something new, because this is, he confesses us, a world necessarily made for the discovery of new tendencies. According to him food is passion, it can be compared to art, and being a critic represents the successful completion of such love. Well, we cannot tell you to keep calm when he enters your restaurant, but in the end it will not be so bad.
“One has to act with honesty”
– Gabriele Zanatta –
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