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Tucci Brunch

Stanley Tucci at brunch. Credit: Kelsey Cherry Photography

A Morning with Stanley Tucci: Espresso, Baccalà, and Entertaining Advice

8 Minute read

Tucci, in many ways, is S.Pellegrino’s most quintessential brand ambassador and most effortless host. Fresh off hosting Easter dinner for his family (he had served a roasted spring lamb), he charmed the small crowd (notable attendees included Kerry Diamond of Cherry Bombe; Gary He, the author behind McAtlas; Ewa and Jeromy, the duo behind YouTube channel Nom Life; and chefs Esther Choi and Nick Curtola). He dispensed sound advice for hosting and regaled everyone with tales of his favorite chef’s knife—“I love it, it’s carbon steel, I use it for everything. It’s the equivalent of a samurai sword. I go on vacation with it, when I’m going to cook.”—and how his go-to coffee order is a double espresso, three times a day: “I don’t eat a huge amount of dairy. I have one double in the morning and a single in the afternoon, and then I’m addicted to Nespresso Ristretto. It’s the closest you can get to having coffee in Italy.”

Tell people to go away.
“I have difficulty not conversing with people when I’m cooking. They want to talk to you, especially if you haven’t seen them for a while. And right in the middle of making a risotto, they’ll be like, how have you been? I have finally now learnt to say to people, go away, I’ll talk to you at the table. Because if I talk to you now, we won’t eat. And when we do eat, it’ll be terrible. A lot of Italian food happens fast. You do your prep, and once you cook those ingredients, it needs to be eaten immediately. Otherwise, it just falls flat. Unless you’re doing a roast, which you can time and have sit out. I hate when people talk to me. As a host, set that precedent. Don’t talk to anyone.”

Don’t run out of wine (but don’t spend too much money).
“Just have a lot. Don’t run out. I don’t buy really fancy wine. I try to find stuff that is drinkable and good, but I don’t believe in spending copious amounts of money on wine. That sounds like I’m being cheap. But what are you serving? It should match the food. Sometimes you want to serve a Meursault, but you also want to serve the Meursault to someone who knows what they’re drinking. Not my in-laws.”

Make a timpano (but make it good).
“It’s something my family makes—essentially pasta inside of a crust. It’s very heavy but very delicate. I made one for my aunt and uncle once and I f-ed it up. That was really embarrassing. They’re dead now. I think about that every night.”

Don’t be intimidated by the tête de veau (if you’re the diner).
“What is that?” someone in the audience asked.
“I have no idea,” said Tucci. “But I was at a restaurant and I think it was like a lamb’s head. I was afraid of it, so I ordered it. It was amazing. Incredibly rich. So I felt ill afterward, but I kind of loved it.”

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