Culina Reveals Modern Italian Chef Victor Casanova

The Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills has undergone that massive $33 million dollar redesign, so not a big surprise to hear that the Four Seasons would introduce a new modern Italian dining concept, Culina. The last bout of news brought word of potential menu items which included handmade pastas, thin-crust pizzas, meat and fish at "an approachable price point," though neglected to mention the chef-to-be. However, the hotel has now appointed and announced its forthcoming kitchen king, Victor Casanova, who has worked at Il Terrazzo at the Phoenician in Scottsdale, Nero’s in Caesars Palace and Buca Giovanni in San Francisco.

More on the menu. Antipasti and a variety of salumi will be available as appetizers (Burrata di Stefano served with peperonata, “Manni” extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany and sea salt; baby octopus cooked sous vide, then grilled and served with frisee, fingerling potatoes, guanciale, sous vide egg and rosemary vinaigrette) in addition to raw bar offerings from their "live action" crudo bar (Gamberetti Marinati with lemon oil, basil, Italian parsley and peperoncino; red snapper with tomato conserva, oregano, Ligurian black olive and smoked Sicilian sea salt). House-made pastas (Spaghetti alla Chittara braised in San Marzano tomato sauce with peperoncino; Pappardelle prepared with a slow-cooked lamb ragu tossed with fresh mint and pecorino) and paper thin brick-oven pizzas plus grilled fish and meat entrees round out the menu.

On the sweeter side, pastry chef Federico Fernandez has created a menu of traditional Italian desserts with whimsical touches (tiramisu is topped with a puff of cocoa snow and a crispy coffee bean meringue; cannolis are stuffed with olive oil gelato filling and crystallized pistachios) and the restaurant will serve an Italian-centric wine list with over 200 bottles offered.

Design-wise, look for a bar/lounge area with three communal tables made from a salvaged 200 year-old magnolia tree. In the main dining area, a 25-foot light fixture of hand-blown Czechoslovakian glass traverses the ceiling, and get this, there's even a living wall of succulents. So, this brings the total now to three restaurants utilizing this plant wall situation: Hatfield's, Mixt Greens, and now Culina. Watch for an opening the first week of March.
·Plywood Report: Culina, Tender Greens [~ELA~]
·Culina To Debut Inside Revamped Four Seasons BH [~ELA~]