If you want to immerse yourself in the most authentic Veronese cuisine, inspired by an unforgettable chef for all the city’s inhabitants (Giorgio Gioco) and now proposed by another chef of national renown (Giancarlo Perbellini), you must stop at the Ristorante 12 Apostoli – 12 Apostles restaurant – in the centre of the city, in a street rarely visited by tourists.
It is the temple of traditional Veronese gourmet cuisine.
The ancient stained glass door of the 12 Apostles is reopened. From this entrance came all the great interpreters of Verona’s popular and intellectual life. One of them was our poet Berto Barbarani, to whom Giancarlo dedicated an exquisite dish: Risotto alla Berto Barbarani. It is to the credit of the Veronese chef that he has managed to combine history with the demands of contemporary haute cuisine. An extraordinary open kitchen with a pyramidal architectural solution that increases the space and makes everything more airy and bright. The fascinating Roman stone cellar remains an unaltered icon of the splendour and uniqueness of this centuries-old gourmet venue.
At the new “Casa di Giancarlo Perbellini”, guests will be able to choose between the three tasting courses offered in the restaurant’s two historic rooms, the Vòlto and Affreschi rooms, and the unprecedented Chef’s Table, the most eagerly awaited novelty of this project. An experience in continuity with the intuition of Casa Perbellini, one of the first restaurants in Italy to have a room overlooking the kitchen. The formula includes a surprise menu, the same arrival time for everyone and a service that is staged at lunch and dinner as a show for a limited number of guests, twelve, like the apostles who give the restaurant its name. An intimate and convivial setting where you can admire the brigade at work from a unique perspective and be amazed by the chef’s flair, seated at a single table with exclusive access to the backstage area.
THE FOOD AND WINE ROUTES
Giancarlo Perbellini has devised three tasting routes inspired by seasonality and memory, offered in the restaurant’s historic rooms. Io e Silvia (Me and Silvia), dedicated to his wife and the shared dream of a new guest house; Io e Giorgio (Me and Giorgio), in homage to Giorgio Gioco, which includes some of Giancarlo Perbellini’s signature dishes as Wafer and iconic dishes from the 12 Apostoli restaurant revisited by the chef, such as Sfogliatina, celery, gorgonzola and truffle; and L’Essenza (The Essence), a vegetarian, gluten-free, dairy-free, fish and meat menu, offered to guests with allergies and intolerances. For those who wish, two dishes can be ordered from the three à la carte tasting menus. In the new patisserie, Giancarlo Perbellini has also dedicated a dessert menu.
The experience reserved for guests at the Chef’s Table is different: the chef has devised a special menu for them, SoloX12, which includes all the stages of the Io e Silvia tasting path with the addition of three surprise wildcard courses, which may vary from day to day. The menu is paired with a selection of wines, to be discovered at the moment.
OPENING HOURS
The restaurant is open from Tuesday to Saturday, for lunch and dinner, at 12:30-14 and 19:30-21.
The Chef’s Table is open Tuesday to Saturday, for lunch and dinner, at 12:45 and 19:45.
