Roberto Costa is relaunching his original UK restaurant in South Kensington as Casa Macellaio, an osteria-inspired concept rooted in the traditions of his family’s restaurant near Genoa in north west Italy. First opened in 2012, the site that introduced Costa’s Macellaio RC brand to London is entering a new chapter, with a more relaxed, Mediterranean-spirited atmosphere and a menu celebrating the regional cooking of Italy.
Led by executive chef Edoardo Ferrera, the offering will centre on traditional dishes, seasonal ingredients and accessible prices, reflecting Costa’s belief that Italian food is as much about memories and heritage as it is about flavour. Born and raised in Genoa, Costa has spent more than three decades in hospitality. The business has had a tricky time post pandemic closing in a number of locations and currently operates three Macellaio RC restaurants in London and a further site inGenoa as well as the recently launched God Save the Pizza in Exmouth Market. In 2017 Costa was appointed as the Genoese ambassador in the world and as the first Genoese Gourmet Ambassador in 2018.
Costa’s relaunched venue highlights the importance of showcasing Italy’s regional cuisines and how he hopes to preserve the warmth and generosity of traditional Italian hospitality.
Why have you decided to relaunch your South Kensington restaurant?
Since opening, it’s been a great journey in London, but also a wonderful opportunity to experience the food and gastronomic cultures of different countries around the world. London is a hugely competitive market, and the more I competed, the more I found my roots becoming even more firmly attached to my home country. The relaunch is about everything I’ve learned over the past 14 years. It’s more about regional food now.
How much creative freedom does your executive chef Eduardo Ferrera have with the menu?
The menu is a four hands collaboration. Eduardo is based in Genoa, where we also have a restaurant, so he brings his experience to the table, and we work together to structure the menu so it’s a combination of different experiences, but with our roots firmly in Italy.
What are the key changes you’re making?
The food will be more regional. We focus on vegetables as well as working more with charcoal and fire, while also making greater use of British produce. That means fish from Cornwall, produce from Scotland and other ingredients sourced around the UK. Also, we’ve completely renovated the two upstairs rooms, and we’ll soon be creating a private dining room downstairs as well. The restaurant is being made cosier, more relaxed and more Italian in character.
What makes the restaurant different from other Italian restaurants in London?
We serve recipes and dishes that come from the food culture I grew up with in Liguria. It’s about the value, the flavours, the history and the stories behind the dishes. I want to share dishes with guests and see them fall in love with them too.
Is this a concept you’d like to expand into multiple locations?
I think so, but first we need to get the foundations right. It’s a very uncertain period, but I believe the concept deserves to be introduced in other locations because it has such a strong Italian identity.
How did you approach selecting the team for the restaurant?
It’s more or less the same team, although we’ve brought in a general manager who, in my opinion, is particularly well suited to the role. He comes from Puglia, in southern Italy, and he has a very strong Italian character. He’s a big personality, but hospitality is in his DNA, which makes him a great fit. Despite the difficulties we’ve faced over the past five years, we still have people who have been working with us for around 13 years. They form the backbone of the company.
Tell us about your other new restaurant project God Save the Pizza?
My background is more in restaurants than in pizzerias, so I wanted to apply that knowledge. The idea is to take restaurant-quality recipes and put them on top of a thin pizza base and keep it affordable. We also want to be a little more adventurous, for example, offering toppings such as spaghetti.
How do you go about developing new restaurant concepts?
Throughout my career, I’ve opened around 42 different restaurants, and I’m 52 years old. I’ve made plenty of mistakes and failed several times, but there’s always something to learn. Passion helps you start a project, but it isn’t enough; obsession is what makes the difference. When I develop a new concept, I draw on my experience and on what I see happening across Europe and sometimes around the world.
You were named Genoese Ambassador and the first Genoese Gourmet Ambassador. How are you promoting Italian food internationally?
There was a British couple who came to the restaurant for a pre-theatre meal and they ordered spaghetti with tomato sauce. The following week, they came back and asked to speak to the owner and they explained that they couldn’t afford to travel to Italy at that point, but eating that plate of spaghetti had made them feel as though they were there. That means an enormous amount to me. If I can give someone that experience through food, that’s what being an ambassador means.
How have customers’ expectations of Italian food changed since you opened Macellaio RC in 2012?
London has at lot of Italian restaurants, and I believe no other city outside Italy demonstrates the diversity of Italian cuisine in quite the same way. Why? Because in London, it’s not just about Italian cuisine in general; it’s about regional Italian cuisine. You can find restaurants representing different regions, each showcasing their own traditions. Today, people want to understand Italian food in greater detail and so the conversation has moved beyond Italian food as a single category.
How do you maintain food quality while keeping prices affordable?
It starts with the relationships you build with your suppliers. If you’re a good company, you pay your suppliers on time and establish long-term relationships. That allows you to negotiate good deals. The second factor is simplifying the concept. There are two major costs that can put pressure on a restaurant: food costs and labour costs. You need to balance both carefully. We will never compromise on food quality, however, we can manage labour costs differently because we’ve built an academy where we train people to cook according to our standards. It’s not simply about teaching people to cook Italian food; it’s about teaching them how to work in our company and our restaurants. This allows us to recruit people who may have fewer skills initially, train them properly and help them develop.
What are the biggest challenges facing restaurateurs at the moment?
Before COVID, there was generally one major crisis at a time, now, we’re facing uncertainty on multiple fronts. The international geopolitical situation is extremely difficult, and restaurants are under pressure from energy costs, taxation and staffing. Simply being busy isn’t enough to guarantee that a restaurant is financially successful. Being a good restaurateur today is no longer just about preparing good food and providing excellent service. You also need to understand social media, public relations, finance and business planning. You need to know how to calculate your costs and manage your margins correctly. There are so many different skills involved. The real challenge is recognising that you must keep learning and adapting.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned throughout your career?
I can’t do everything by myself. You need a great team that shares your vision. It isn’t always easy because, as Italians, we can be quite eccentric. We often want everything to revolve around us. But you have to trust people, give them direction and make their responsibilities absolutely clear. And when we think about training, we tend to focus immediately on training our employees. But the first people we need to train are ourselves as entrepreneurs.
What are your priorities for the coming year and beyond?
Stability is my main responsibility and my biggest priority. We need to communicate consistently and keep improving what we already have. That’s our focus for now. Once the businesses are stable and performing well, it becomes much easier to consider new projects.