Il Tempo Nuovo - Fine Dining - Michelin Guide - Castello di Ugento 5* — Restaurant in Ugento

After 3 years, our return to Castello di Ugento and its fine dining establishment, Il Tempo Nuovo, didn't disappoint. They say good wine improves with age, and so did Castello di Ugento and Il Tempo Nuovo!

The food, the setting, the staff, even the fixtures - like Diana's expertly curated table settings - are outstanding. But where to start?

When we departed, the Il Tempo Nuovo dining room was still under construction. In digging down for a wine cellar it was discovered that the castle was actually built upon a Norman tower from the 11th century. Diana and Massimo told us about their vision for the restaurant, and on that vision they executed superbly. The restaurant will take your breath away. Now finished, you have your choice of dining inside on a glass floor under vaulted ceilings looking down upon the tower, or outside on the patio enjoying the evening under the Salento sky. Either way, you can't miss. Show up an hour early, and enjoy an aperitif in the newly finished lounge, or in the spectacular garden. The setting is perfect for a either a romantic evening for two, or an opportunity to dine with other guests at the restaurant.

The entire staff gets special accolades for their professionalism, their enthusiasm, and their warm and welcoming demeanor. We were greeted by old friends and made new friends on the team. During our stay, the staff took the time to understand our preferences and ensured we were always comfortable. Chef Tommaso continues to amaze in the kitchen (you may even find him in the castle's garden selecting something that will be used in your meal that night), while Luigi concocts artisanal cocktails you are sure to enjoy, and Guisy finds the perfect Apulian wine to go with your meal. GianMarco ensures the timing of each course is perfectly paced, and explains each plating in perfect English.

My favorite meal at Il Tempo Nuovo is "Chef's Choice." I don't think it is on the menu. For each meal, I left the decisions to Chef Tommaso. His passion for keeping Apulian culinary arts alive is unmistakable in every dish, but his execution is nothing but contemporary. The menu has a simple dish of spaghetti with roasted tomatoes. I will guarantee you, you will never find spaghetti with tomato sauce the same again, ever. Another special dish was the duck breast, which was melt in your mouth perfection. Be sure to try a ravioli dish, as you can't go wrong. I was lucky enough to be there for my birthday, and I believe the best tiramisu ever made was for dessert. However, the team can't carry much of a tune when singing "buon compleanno."

A word about Chef Tommaso's passion for cooking. If tasting everything on Il Tempo Nuovo's menu doesn't convince you, then by all means, try to avail yourself of a private cooking class with Chef. He nears sainthood in my opinion for his patience with me in the kitchen (i can't boil water). For each dish we created he explained it's background and history. Only the freshest ingredients were used, and I learned a little about what it takes to run a restaurant kitchen. In four hours we made six dishes as well as taralli. Each of the dishes are something you can replicate in your kitchen at home. All simple, fresh and very tasty!

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the wonderful breakfasts. Every day you are greeted cheerfully by Danny and her side kick claudio…who gently corrects me when I say “Buona Sera”…and then promptly serves me with a smile two cappuccino. Local eggs, freshly squeezed orange juice, some pastries, some fruit… Wait! Didn’t I just say I couldn’t eat another bite just eight hours earlier? Of course breakfast is served in the beautifully ancient garden under the flowering jasmine where your new friends/guests from the night before are planning their day.

In short, should you be fortunate enough to find yourself at Castello di Ugento, there is no need to look elsewhere for your dining experience. Stay, enjoy, savor the tastes, the setting and your surroundings and immediately start planning your...

To start with the positive, the location of this restaurant (including the garden where you can enjoy a drink or a cigarette break), is spectacular and renovation has been done with a great sense of taste. The chef is also very talented even if the portions are somewhat on a very small size - even for fine dining standards. I was particularly disappointed by the Bombete described as XXL in the menu and which was probably a joke of the chef as it revealed itself to be the size of a small potatoe.

The joke got sour on the last points: a general disrespect of the personnel (from bad advice to frankly impertinent answers) from the Maitre d’ / sommeliere or the waiters. And a disastrous wine list which, not only is overpriced, but also mostly consists of natural wines, each one more questionable than the others. We struggled to find one which we thought drinkable and eventually had to resort to sampling what was as “neutral”’as possible. The insult added to the injury when I realized they had charged us 13 eur and 16 eur per glass for respectively a very basic Rose and a sub standard Pinot Noir. I expect those prices in a 3 star Michelin Parisian or London restaurant- not in a fine gourmet table in Urgento.

In short, disappointing and feeling sorry for the chef who is not properly elevated by those two important points -...

Buonissimo! Buonissimo! Buonissimo! My favourite word to describe our dinner here. After we left, I have no other words to describe what we experienced. When we booked with our friends, we knew the place was charming, but little did we know that they would seat us in their stupendous garden alongside the ancient castle walls. The way they organised the tables, felt like a little oasis of calm, as if the garden was all to ourselves. The food was wonderful. Only wish I'd had the chance to see the menus before we got there, so we had more time to select from the options. I think the menus should be posted online or sent to clients. Staff a bit inexperienced, but this seems to be common these days in restaurants, at least this part of Italy anyway, and didn't affect us because they were all so eager to accommodate us. Oh, and they have a sweet young woman who describes all the dishes as they arrive with so much passion. We can't remember her name, but she was wonderful! Wish we'd had the chance to meet the Chef, but understand he's busy. We can't wait to be back!! A must on anyone's tour throughout...