Possibly the most iconic example of a Puglian città bianca, Ostuni is a white-washed beauty on a hilltop; its buildings caracoling downwards from the cathedral of the old town to the newer streets on the lower levels.
A quick internet search of the best place to view Ostuni in all its glory brings you to Dish, a restaurant set slightly aside from the new town (but just a short walk away) with a panoramic terrace offering the perfect vista. When we arrive for dinner it’s already dark, the night sky illuminated by the orange glow of the town just beyond.
With such prime positioning, Dish could easily attract crowds even with a sub-par menu. Far from it, its kitchen serves up high-quality, magical concoctions made from local ingredients, and served as you’ve never experienced them before.
The owners of Dish have rightly recognised that the view is the main attraction here and so the majority of the seating is focussed on a large outdoor terrace. Facing west, it’s the perfect spot to watch the sun go down, and the restaurant serves an impressive aperitivi menu offering Beluga caviar, pickled guinea fowl, oysters and sashimi. So far, this feels like a decidedly above-average experience.
Inside, arched stone ceilings give the impression of dining in a wine cellar. Centre-stage is the kitchen – open, offering guests exclusive access to a live magic show of culinary alchemy, soundtracked by the satisfying hiss of pans. The décor is tastefully minimal: industrial shelves cover the walls, filled with plants, ornaments and glassware; garlands of identical lights drape the length and breadth of the ceiling. So far, the surroundings appear muted in contrast with the outlandish menu, save for the theatrically long cutlery sets on each table.
We start with a sparkling white wine from Puglia and an amuse bouche of earthy flavours made with mushrooms typical of the region.
The Dish concept is not designed for safe eaters with bland palates. The menu is a whimsical amalgam of contrasting flavours. In ordering, you put your faith in the expertise of the chefs and await the end result with an open mind and perhaps slight trepidation. Unsurprisingly, there’s method to the madness.
For the first course we choose beef tartare (from Podolica cattle native to southern Italy) served with mustard ice cream and seasonal truffle, atop a sort of poppadom-style fried flatbread. The mustard ice cream is surprisingly satisfying, the coldness tempering the sting of the mustard. While the form is anything but traditional, the beef and mustard make a classic pairing, enhanced by the seasonal trimmings.
Wine pairing rules seem irrelevant in this environment where the MO is to push flavour norms, so we order a white wine to accompany the beef course – the Askos Verdeca from Masseria Li Veli, a winery one hour south of Ostuni.
It is a beauty of Italian dining to be offered a ‘first course’ between the antipasti and the main, and we take it as a cultural responsibility to oblige. Orecchiette is the speciality pasta of the region and can be found on almost every menu. It’s a hearty example of cucina povera; however, the Dish twist on a classic is more refined with roasted pepper cream and wild herbs from the surrounding countryside.
The main course is seafood, so we continue to throw caution to the wind and order a negro amaro from Salento to go alongside.
However descriptive the menu, the experimental presentation of our main course still takes us by surprise. It’s a melange of monkfish, squid, mussels and langoustines on a chilli cream sauce, covered with a lemongrass foam and served alongside vermouth ice cream.
Again, it’s a very unconventional form of serving flavours that naturally work well together. The chilli cream and seafood complement each other as in a classic pasta dish, while the citrus tang of the lemongrass and vermouth bring out the freshness of the fish.
It’s a light dish served without accompaniment, keeping the spotlight firmly on the strong flavour combinations.
However tempting the homemade fennel bread on the table, we manage to save some room for dessert.
Choosing just one from this irresistible menu of sweet shop concoctions is no easy task. We opt for lemon curd with ricotta cream, rosemary meringue, garnished with a Speculoos crust.
The flavours are perfectly well-balanced, with the freshness of the ricotta equalising the tang of the lemon curd, and the rosemary adding a subtle herbal flavour to reduce the sweetness.
There are several excellent restaurants to choose from in Ostuni, many of them very highly rated. Dish stands out for several reasons. The first, and most obvious, is that incredible view, which is well worth experiencing even if just for a drink. A good wine list is on hand to assist.
However, to really understand what makes Dish unique, we encourage you to indulge in the full flavour experience. Far from being a gimmick, this is a menu of fresh and seasonal produce from the region, bringing together complementary flavours in an unconventional format. To eat at Dish is to place your trust in the mastery of the resident chefs and to leave culinary rules at the door. Just make sure you leave room for dessert.
Dish Restaurant
Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, 37
Ostuni
We ate
Antipasti
Podolica beef tartare with mustard ice cream and seasonal truffle – €20
Primo Piatto
Orecchiette with roasted peppers and seasonal herbs – €22
Secondo Piatto
Monkfish, langoustines, mussels and shellfish on a chilli cream with lemongrass foam and vermouth ice cream – €22
Dessert
Lemon curd with ricotta cream, rosemary meringue and Speculoos crust – €10
For reservations, book directly on the restaurant’s website.
This was a media visit – all opinions are our own
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