Chef Peter Sanchez-Iglesias will open Casa, his new Italian restaurant, on the former site of his Michelin-starred restaurant Casamia in Bristol on 16 November.
This new opening marks the next step for the Sanchez-Iglesias family, who have created neighbourhood restaurants in Bristol for over 30 years.
Casa will act as a sibling to Sanchez-Iglesias’s Michelin-starred Spanish institution Paco Tapas next door.
Executive Chef Joel Breakwell will continue to act as executive chef across both Casa and Paco Tapas, supported in this new venture by head chef Alex Brownrigg, while Paco’s long standing restaurant manager, James Stavert, will be coming on board with Casa also overseeing both restaurants.
Dishes will be made using ingredients from Italian and British producers, working with many of the same local suppliers that the team has partnered with for years.
As a nod to the original Casamia, the menu will revive beloved dishes, served on plateware archived by the family.
A signature potato ravioli will be built on with a Lion’s Mane mushroom ragu, and the family’s tiramisu will return.
Antipasti bites including fried semolina with parmesan and prawn crudo, as well as a selection of premium cured meats and cheeses will be on offer, followed by a seasonal selection of pasta plates, like tortellini in brodo.
Carne courses will showcase Italian classics such as slow-cooked veal ossobuco and a sharing portion of steak florentine, with vegetable sides including cime di rapa and cabbage with pancetta.
The wine offering has been curated by former Casamia sommelier Tom Lakin, with a focus on Italian grapes, but encompassing expressions of these varieties by producers from around the world.
Housed in a listed former hospital, the interiors will see a dramatic change from Casamia’s previous black interiors – the space will be fully opened up to overlook Bristol’s harbourside, featuring maple and birch finishes created by local craftspeople, and tables surrounding a busy open kitchen.