Chef Mattia Agazzi has a smile so bright it could light up Bergamo’s Alta’s Cathedral at night, and probably also Rodeo Drive for that matter. 

Imagine Agazzi, Head Chef at Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura in Beverly Hills, calling his Nonna Natalina in Italy to tell her that Hollywood’s elite–including Paris Hilton, Ben Affleck, and Dakota Johnson–have all dined on his food. On occasion, it has even been the same dish she fed him for the first five years of his life. No, not caviar or truffles, but a simple polenta with taleggio and ragù that could even be called cucina povera or “peasant food” in Bergamo. Paris Hilton even asked for seconds. 

After five years at the hip, “fine dining” sensation Gucci Osteria, Agazzi is kicking serious goals. At 35 years old, he has already been awarded a Michelin star four years running, and is making his mark as a young hotshot on the global culinary stage. Despite the pressure of the gig, he’s rarely seen without that Duomo-illuminating smile. Indeed, he’s a world away from Bergamo’s tranquil, verdant landscapes and cobblestone streets filled with the sound of Donizetti arias. But his northern Italian upbringing in a close-knit family that cooked together, ate together, and laughed together over the table is no doubt the secret ingredient in his recipe for success in the top job.

Agazzi knows Italian food. He also knows that, at a restaurant like Gucci Osteria, diners expect to be thrilled by the level of innovation and creativity on their plates. Striking a balance between traditional Italian “wholesomeness” and global culinary artistry is no easy task. But Agazzi is doing it, and having a ball in the process. Cominciamo, his vibrant menu of pasta, main, and dessert courses reflects regional Italian flavors and ingredients with an unexpected twist. There’s “Risotto Camouflaged as Pizza”, a little trompe l’oeil trickery in which the namesake rice, cooked in tomato water, is finished with semi-dried tomatoes, basil cream, stracciatella, and burnt caper powder, resembling an abstract impressionist painter’s pizza. There’s “You & Me in Capri”, a rose-like raviolo stuffed with lemon ricotta and topped with bottarga, and let’s not forget the “Casoncelli Bergamaschi”, morsels of pasta, which, in an elegant tribute to his hometown, feature veal, pancetta, sage, and apple. Left room for something sweet-ish? Let’s try the “Sapore di Sale”, an umami mix of almond sorbet, seaweed jam, and lemon granita. If the critics’ reviews, celebrity praise, and social media hype are anything to go by, Agazzi is doing something seriously right. But his philosophy on “fine dining” isn’t about striving for ostentation or luxury, it’s about working magic with simple ingredients, just like his mother and his Nonna do back home. 

“For me, a ‘fine dining’ experience means being able to take a simple vegetable like a turnip, for example, and transform it into a dish that someone remembers for a long time. We have this dish called ‘The City is in Bloom’, which pays homage to the colors and textures of springtime. It’s a vegan dish made from almond cream, sauteed enoki mushrooms, and a fermented pink turnip. Guests often say they’ve never eaten a turnip like that,” Agazzi shares.

LA feels like home for Agazzi now. Or at least, he has worked hard to make it so. He moved to the city in January 2020 to take up this “job of a lifetime” at Massimo Bottura’s world-renowned restaurant, starting in his role just two weeks before the pandemic hit. Despite the challenges of this first year, the exuberant chef quickly found a like-minded group of friends that shared his passion for work, nature, and culture–most of them are chefs, but some aren’t, and definitely not all of them are Italian. He says he feels settled, happy, and “at home” because he’s created a healthy lifestyle for himself based around good food, supportive people, and lots of surfing–a revelatory pastime for him that most Bergamaschi would probably never be able to entertain given their geographical location. Naturally, though, his kitchen team at Gucci Osteria was, and is, his first “family” in LA. He takes pride in supporting each of his team members, nurturing their skills and strengths in order to create a dynamic and cohesive “squad” in the kitchen:

“I still follow the local soccer club from Bergamo. It’s one of the less-popular clubs in the league, ‘the underdog’ if you like. Incredibly though, they won the European Cup this year. How? Because the coach believed in each of his players. He focused on their strengths to get the best out of them. He knows who the star defender is, and who the star striker is. That’s exactly how it works in the kitchen,” he explains.

You can’t quite imagine Agazzi unleashing stereotypical Head Chef tantrums that rip people to shreds if they do something wrong. He reflects on how they expand their skills and knowledge together in and out of the kitchen, learning from others in the community and those who have shaped their ethos around food since childhood:  

“During the pandemic, when the restaurant was closed, my team and I volunteered with the Hollywood Food Coalition, a non-for-profit organization that cooks for people in need across the community. We cooked for 250 people everyday, using leftover and donated food and making the most of every resource available. When I was a kid, my grandparents taught me the importance of never wasting food, and I was also able to demonstrate this to my team through the volunteering experience. We took many lessons from that project back to the kitchen,” he says.  

So, as an Italian living in Los Angeles who knows more than most about high-quality culinary culture, where does he go for a proper caffè? What about aperitivo? “For a good espresso, I go to Euro Caffe. I’m there almost every morning after my early training session. Yes, the coffee is great, but it’s not just about the coffee. I have become friends with the two owners, and it felt like they adopted me from the first time I went there. It’s about the atmosphere and the environment they create, and that’s why it’s always packed,” Agazzi says. 

“I’m also lucky to have become close friends with chef and restaurateur Giacomino Drago, of the Sicilian culinary Drago family, who has nine restaurants here in Beverly Hills. He understands what the pressure of this job can be like, so whenever I need a good chat, a spritz, and a plate of salumi, I go to one of his diner-style places like Il Pastaio.” 

While California’s food scene is another world away from Bergamo’s in terms of multicultural influence and diversity, Agazzi says the quality and variety of fresh produce is very similar to what he grew up with in Italy; from the local farmers’ market to the cheesemakers and the butchers, it all feels very close to home. In fact, if asked for advice about where in LA one can eat “like a local”, he’ll tell you to follow him to the Santa Barbara Farmers and Fish Market; there, he’ll show you all the different varieties of carrots you never knew existed. But there’s something very special he can’t get in the United States, or anywhere else in the world, which often comes into his mind: his nonna’s lasagne. 

“For me, that’s the taste of family. When I’m sitting at Nonna Natalina’s table eating her lasagne, that’s comfort, that’s home.”