Nadia Santini, the 3 Michelin star chef of the Dal Pescatore restaurant, has died at the age of 73

Nadia Santini died at the age of 73. The first female chef to obtain a Michelin star, Nadia Santini had been ill for about twenty years but in all this time she had never stopped working, bringing her restaurant to the top of Italian cuisine. The chef was the owner, together with her husband Antonio Santini, of the famous haute cuisine restaurant Dal Pescatore in Runate, in the province of Mantua: a place where you can taste the best Mantuan specialties expressed in a creative and elegant way. Chef Santini passed away on November 2nd surrounded by her family. “Nadia, surrounded by her dearest loved ones, fell asleep in peace and ascended to heaven”, are the words with which her family announced the news on social media. "She has traced a deep furrow in our lives aimed at sensitivity, empathy and love. We are grateful to her for having educated us in moral rigor, work ethic and simplicity. Thank you Nadia, thank you Mum".

Career

Nadia Santini's passion for cooking began as a child, learning to cook self-taught. Nadia Santini was born in San Pietro Mussolino, in the Vicenza area, into a peasant family. She had studied food science at the women's technical institute and had then refined her skills thanks to her mother-in-law, whom she met after meeting the man who would become her husband, Antonio Santini.

Career

Santini was the first Italian female chef to receive the highest recognition in the world of cuisine: the first Michelin Star arrived in 1982, followed six years later by the second; finally the third Michelin Star, won in 1996 and maintained since then, becoming the longest-lasting in Italy. Another important recognition came in 2013, when Restaurant magazine named her the best female chef in the world, Veuve Clicquot World's Best Female Chef, as part of The World's 50 Best Restaurants. She herself loved to define her cuisine as "humanistic" because it was characterized by a connection with the history of her land and affections. His sons, Giovanni and Alberto, born in 1976 and 1983 respectively, carry on his name.