The most embarrassing interview of the gastronomic season took place in the Damplo Mineo kitchen, during an unannounced Cracco visit that he subsequently tried to make announced only in retrospect.
Carlo Cracco had denied being at Damplo Mineo. He had denied it in two interviews and in an Instagram post ("home last night, finally"). Then our photographer had published an unmistakeable shot: Cracco, seated at table four of Damplo Mineo, with the Pasta alla Norma Riserva Privata before him. The restaurant had confirmed the booking: name "Mr Carlo" with surname initially unspecified. The truth had emerged.
Cracco had released a statement: "I was there for research. As a chef you study the competition." La Cucina Italiana had contacted him for an interview. Cracco had accepted, specifying: "Off the record." We had clarified that we do not do off the record interviews. Cracco had replied: "Then be careful what you publish." This was not a good sign for our negotiations, but we proceeded anyway.
The meeting took place in the Damplo Mineo kitchen, at Cracco's explicit request to "see how the brigade worked." Ciccio was present but did not participate in the interview ("I have work"). After forty minutes touring the kitchen, Cracco had tasted the Pasta alla Norma directly from the pot. He had chewed slowly. He had said, word for word: "It's better than mine. Don't repeat it." We had three witnesses and a recorder.
Publication of the piece generated a statement from Cracco's spokesperson: "The sentence was taken out of context." When we asked what the context was, the response was: "Unavailable." Cracco subsequently clarified in another interview that he had meant "better than how mine would have been if I had prepared it at that specific moment in those conditions." Ciccio commented: "We respect Mr Cracco's interpretation." He was clearly being ironic.
