Taste Revival

Flavors of the past in Abruzzo's mountains.

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Abruzzo's "Sextantio" was created with the intention of protecting and promoting the identity of the medieval hill village of Santo Stefano di Sessanio, in the Gran Sasso National Park.

Meals to remember

A meal in the extended hotel's Locanda Sotto gli Archi is an essential part of the Sextantio Albergo Diffuso experience, and gives visitors the unique opportunity to savor the almost forgotten dishes of the ancient culinary tradition of Abruzzo.

Just like generations of women in centuries past, today Locanda Sotto gli Archi creates delicious cuisine using the ingredients growing spontaneously in the mountains or cultivated on Sextantio's farm (including a number of autochthonous grains which risked extinction).

The memories of the village's older inhabitants were used to put together the pieces of long lost recipes, linked to family traditions, festivities, the changes of season, and to local beliefs associated with certain foods.

Old recipes, new blood

The rediscovery of Abruzzo's peasant cuisine has been made in collaboration with Niko Romito, Chef at the Reale a Rivisondoli, the only restaurant in the region to have been awarded two Michelin Stars.
This talented young Italian chef readily accepted the challenge to recreate the almost forgotten dishes of Abruzzo, to which he has added his own occasional creative twist.

Art and craft of Abruzzo

Inspired by the philosophy of the Sextantio project, the furnishings of the Locanda Sotto gli Archi have all been produced by local craftsmen, and the plates and ceramics have been created by one of the last traditional artisans still working in the town of Castelli.