It so often happens that I fall in love…. I’m sometimes the victim of love at first sight. Maybe because I’m an aesthete or simply because I’m an enthusiast. I see something and in a moment I’m totally and unconditionally captured by it. Once I happened to fall in love – and I am still in love today – with the “Marchese del Grillo” (The marquise “del Grillo”).And I’m not talking about an old-fashioned gentleman… it is a place on the hill of Fabriano, in the Marche.
The “Marchese del Grillo” is a historical building from the 1700, once owned by the Marquise Onofrio del Grillo, famous thanks to the film interpreted by Alberto Sordi. The location today hosts a family-run hotel and restaurant.
In the D’Alesio family, the mum is a chef and the dad is a patron, and they take care of the lodge with loving devotion, as they would with their own home. Also their son and daughter actively work in the hotel (and in my opinion everything is in their hands): Mario, a sommelier and Serena, a pastry chef.
The hotel almost completely maintains its original look, with fresco’s, decors and marble statues, and that 18th century feeling that you can almost taste in the air. The rooms are large and well cared for, up to small details; the great beds accompany you in a pleasant sleep, also thanks to the peace and silence there is in the evening and it feels like being in a pleasant trance where there is only peace of mind.
I also had the pleasure of tasting Serena’s cooking: a mix of emotion and taste united with experience and tradition. An explosion of endorphins! When I tried her creations I felt a bit like Anton Ego, the terrible critic from the cartoon “Ratatouille”… do you remember him?
The excellent food and wine, the enchanted historical location, the care in all details and the warm welcome of the D’Alesio Family are comforting even to the most rational, impassive and demanding of guests.
