La famiglia the Calvani family
A family restaurant, now with two generations
Calvani belongs to a father, a mother, a son and a daughter. Each has their own place in the restaurant, and together they make sure you eat well.
How it began
Paolo Calvani grew up above his parents’ restaurant in a village near Alba. After training as a chef in Turin he came to the Netherlands for a summer, and stayed.
In 1994 he and Rosanna opened a restaurant with twelve tables. The menu was small: a few antipasti, three pastas, a risotto and always a braise. That set-up hasn’t changed in thirty years. But a cellar has been added, a room for groups and a second generation.
Matteo learned to cook next to his father and then in restaurants in Turin and Bologna. Since 2019 he has written the menu. Giulia qualified as a sommelier in Italy and now runs the cellar. Paolo is still at the dough in the mornings. Without him, no tajarin leaves the kitchen.
Dal 1994 in brief
Thirty years of Calvani
- 1994
Paolo and Rosanna open Calvani with twelve tables and a single sheet of paper as the menu.
- 2003
The cellar becomes a real cantina. The first Barolos go in, to be laid down.
- 2011
The room behind the kitchen becomes La Saletta, for dinners with family or colleagues.
- 2019
Matteo returns from Italy and takes over the kitchen. Paolo keeps doing the dough.
- Now
Giulia runs the wine. Six pastas a day, by hand, and still no rush.
Chi siamo who we are
The family at work
And of course it’s not just the family: nine more regular staff work in the kitchen and dining room, most of them for years.
Paolo Calvani
Founder
Started in 1994 with twelve tables. Still kneads the dough before seven.
Rosanna Calvani
Host
Has welcomed you at the door for thirty years and knows the menu, the wine and the regulars by heart.
Matteo Calvani
Chef
Worked in Turin and Bologna and has cooked the menu since 2019. Loves slow braising and simplicity.
Giulia Calvani
Sommelier
Qualified sommelier (AIS). Visits the winemakers every spring and so tops up the cellar.
Gli ingredienti origins
Few ingredients, but good ones
A classic Italian kitchen stands or falls by the basics. That’s why we buy from people we know, in Italy and close to home.
Parmigiano Reggiano
Aged thirty months, from a small cooperative in the hills near Parma.
Carnaroli rice
From a family business near Vercelli: the rice for every risotto we make.
Olive oil
Taggiasca oil from Liguria, mild and round, just right for fish and vegetables.
Eggs
From a farm just outside Voorbeeldstad, with the deep yellow yolk our pasta needs.
Vegetables and herbs
From a market garden in the region, which delivers whatever is growing now.
La serata your evening
How an evening with us goes
- I
Welcome
Rosanna shows you to your table. Bread and olive oil are waiting, and an aperitivo comes with the menu.
- II
Explained at the table
We take you through the menu. Something you don’t like or can’t eat? The kitchen can almost always adapt a dish.
- III
At the table
The courses come at a relaxed pace. With three or four courses you will easily be at the table for two hours or more.
- IV
To finish
A dolce, an espresso or a grappa. Your table is yours until we close: we don’t send anyone home after two hours.
Prenotare bookings
Come and meet us at the table
Open Wednesday to Sunday. Book online or call Rosanna.