Massimo Bottura is Chef and owner of Osteria Francescana (located in the historic center of his native Modena),[1] which has earned three Michelin stars and a green Michelin star.[2] The restaurant has been ranked among the top restaurants in the world, including first place in The World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2016 and 2018.[3]
In 2014, the chef won the White Guide Global Gastronomy Award, which honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to gastronomy.[4]
Early life, family and education
Born and raised in Modena, Massimo Bottura developed an interest in cooking from a young age, watching his mother, grandmother and aunt as they prepared meals.[5]
After graduating from secondary school, he enrolled in law school at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, but in 1986 he interrupted his studies and chose instead to join the family business.
Career
Training and early career
Bottura initially worked as a wholesaler of petroleum products.[6] Also in 1986, however, he took over Trattoria del Campazzo,[7] near Nonantola, where he studied Emilian cuisine with the support of rezdora (matriarch) Lidia Cristoni.[8] He later studied French cuisine by taking lessons from Georges Coigny, which provided him with a culinary foundation that combined regional Italian cuisine with classical French training.[9][10]
In 1993 he moved to New York and worked in an Italian café. There he met Lara Gilmore, his future wife.[11] After nine months, he returned to Modena and in 1994 began an internship of several months with Alain Ducasse at his restaurant Le Louis XV in Monte Carlo.[12] He returned to Modena and took over a traditional trattoria in the heart of the city, Osteria Francescana, which officially opened on 19 March 1995.[13] In 2000, Catalan chef Ferran Adrià invited Bottura to the kitchen of his restaurant El Bulli in Spain, where the Modenese chef learned the basics of molecular cuisine.[14]
Osteria Francescana
On 19 March 1995, Bottura opened Osteria Francescana in the historic center of Modena.[15] Osteria Francescana holds three Michelin stars, a distinction that has been maintained since 2012.[16] It has been ranked first on The World's 50 Best Restaurants list twice, in 2016 and 2018.[3] Since 2019, the restaurant has been part of the Best of the Best list, a category that includes all the restaurants that have ranked first on The World's 50 Best Restaurants list and are no longer eligible for voting in future editions.[17] The restaurant has also received top marks from L'Espresso, Gambero Rosso and the Touring Club guide.[18]
In 2020, Osteria Francescana was awarded the new Michelin Green Star for its constant commitment against food waste and in favor of a more equitable and sustainable food system.[2]
Ascension
In 2002, Bottura received his first Michelin star, followed by the second in 2006 and the third in 2012.[2]
In 2011, again in Modena, he took over the restaurant Franceschetta58.[19] It provides a more casual dining experience than his first restaurant, serving local ingredients in a convivial atmosphere.[20]
In 2013, he participated in the Year of Italian Culture in the United States[21] and was featured in an episode of the fifth season of the TV series Il Testimone, hosted by Pif.[22]
In 2015, he was the featured chef in the first episode of the Netflix documentary Chef's Table.[24]
In October 2016, he was named one of The Greats by The New York Times.[25]
In 2018, Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura opened in Florence with the aim of honoring the union between local traditions and multicultural encounters. The restaurant was awarded its first Michelin Star in 2019. In February 2019, Bottura worked in collaboration with W Hotels to open Torno Subito at W Dubai - The Palm on Palm Jumeirah. At the beginning of 2020, Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura also opened location in Beverly Hills, California. More locations followed: Tokyo (August 2021) and Seoul (February 2022).[26] In 2024, he opened Torno Subito in Singapore,[27] in collaboration with COMO Group,[28] and a few months later also Torno Subito Miami.[29]
In 2019 he was named among Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People.[30] In May of the same year he opened a new concept of hospitality together with his wife, Casa Maria Luigia, a guest house in an 18th-century property in the Emilian countryside.[31] In 2024, the guest house obtained three Michelin keys.[32]
In June 2020, together with other chefs, architects, Nobel Prize winners in economics and leaders of international organizations, he signed the appeal for a purple economy ("For a cultural renaissance of the economy") published in Corriere della Sera,[33]El País[34] and Le Monde.[35]
In June 2021, Bottura reopened the restaurant Cavallino in collaboration with Ferrari and the architect and designer India Mahdavi.[36]
Beyond restaurants
Beyond his work in the restaurant industry, Massimo Bottura has been producing IGP balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil since 1995 with his line of condiments, Villa Manodori, which was the result of his search for the highest-quality ingredients.[37]
In September of the same year, Massimo Bottura was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) during the inauguration of the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste.[38] Since 21 September 2024, he has been an ambassador for the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).[39][40] In September 2025, he created the menu of the G7 Agriculture at the Neapolis Archaeological Park.[41]
Food for Soul
In 2015, coinciding with the Milan Expo 2015, Bottura collaborated with Caritas Ambrosiana to create a project called the Refettorio Ambrosiano.[42]
In Brazil, the project was inaugurated during the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in collaboration with chef David Hertz, resulting in the Refettorio Gastromotiva.[43]
In 2015, Bottura and his wife founded Food for Soul, a non-profit organization that, through the daily work of the Refettorios around the world, focuses on combating food waste and social isolation through the quality of ideas and the value of hospitality.[44][45]
To raise awareness about these issues, Massimo Bottura published the book Bread is Gold in 2017, published by Phaidon Press – Il Pane è Oro, published in Italian by Ippocampo and Phaidon. The book gathers recipes, ideas, and experiences from the chefs who first cooked at the Refettorio Ambrosiano, inviting readers to look at the ingredients in their pantries and refrigerators with new eyes. Since then, Food for Soul has developed several projects worldwide in collaboration with local partners. By creating community spaces where people are invited to connect around a meal, Food for Soul aims to demonstrate the value and potential of people, places, and food while encouraging the served community to support social change.[46]
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Refettorios of Food for Soul continued to work and support those in need. Furthermore, a fundraising campaign was launched, which enabled the recovery of over 35 tons of food surplus in a single month and the delivery of more than 100,000 meals to vulnerable people and frontline healthcare workers.[47]
Refettorios Mérida and Lima opened their doors in 2020, along with Refettorio Harlem in New York and Refettorio San Francisco in California. In 2021, the Refettorio OzHarvest in Sydney and Refettorio Geneva in Switzerland were launched. In 2024, the Refettorio Modena will reopen, while other projects are in development.[48]
Kitchen Quarantine
In March 2020, after the temporary closure of Osteria Francescana due to the first COVID-19 lockdown, Massimo and his daughter Alexa started Kitchen Quarantine, a series of Instagram live broadcasts conducted by the Bottura family every night during quarantine. The project was created to interact with families around the world, cook together and exchange ideas on how to reduce household food waste; an innovative way to bring an extra smile during a particularly difficult time for communities around the world. The 24th annual Webby Awards honoured Massimo Bottura with a 2020 Webby Special Achievement Award as Chef of the Year for his Kitchen Quarantine series, showcasing his family meals to fans around the world.[49]
Pro. Attraverso tradizione e innovazione (with Cicco Sultano), Bibliotheca Culinaria, 2006.[50]
Parmigiano Reggiano, Bibliotheca Culinaria, 2006.[51]
Vieni in Italia con me, Phaidon-L'ippocampo, ottobre 2014. The book documents twenty years of cooking and the evolution of Osteria Francescana with images, storytelling and recipes that best represent the chef.[52]
Il Pane è Oro - ingredienti ordinari per piatti straordinari, Phaidon-L'ippocampo, novembre 2017. The book collects recipes, ideas and experiences of the chefs who first cooked at the Refettorio Ambrosiano, to invite readers to see the ingredients in their home pantries and refrigerators with different eyes.[53]
Slow Food Fast Cars, Phaidon-L'ippocampo, 2023. The first and only book about Casa Maria Luigia, Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore’s idyllic guest house just outside Modena.[54]
Books translated in other languages
(EN) Never trust a skinny Italian chef, Phaidon, 2014[55]
(FR) '"Ne jamais faire confiance à un chef italien trop mince, Phaidon, 2015[56]
Osteria Francescana Three Michelin Stars and a Michelin Green Star (2020)[90][91]
Massimo Bottura receives the Premiolino-BMW SpecialMente award.[92]
Food for Soul receives the Compasso d'Oro award.[93]
Massimo Bottura is named Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), on the occasion of the inauguration of the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste.[38]
Webby Special Achievement Award as Chef of the Year; Kitchen Quarantine program receives a Webby Award.[49]
2021
L'ESPRESSO guide, Lunch of the Year, score 19/20.[94]
America Award from the Italy–USA Foundation at the Chamber of Deputies.[100]
2023
Massimo Bottura and his wife Lara Gilmore receive the Cultural Diplomacy Award from the Consulate General of the United States of America.[101]
Massimo receives the No Waste Award from Identità Golose.[102]
2023 Culture Award, established by Confartigianato Emilia Romagna.[103]
2023 McKim Medal awarded by the American Academy in Rome.[104]
Massimo Bottura receives the Farnèse d'Or pour la Culture, a high recognition for cultural commitment promoted by the Chamber of Commerce France Italie CCI.[105]
L'ESPRESSO guide, Lunch of the Year, score 19/20, platinum hat.[106]
↑ "Refettorio Ambrosiano". caritasambrosiana.it. Caritas Ambrosiana. 13 August 2018. Archived from the original on 13 August 2018. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
↑ "Massimo Bottura laureato ad honorem all'Università di Bologna"[Massimo Bottura Honorary Degree at the University of Bologna]. magazine.unibo.it (in Italian). University of Bologna. 7 February 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2025. Massimo Bottura is an exemplary case of managing a small Italian family business, achieving unprecedented success and global fame in just a few years.
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