The Project
Nomina is the name of the restaurant located inside the Roma Luxus Hotel, part of the ambitious project of owners Roberta Battista and Francesca Neri, who, in parallel with the renovation of the entire 5-star boutique hotel, decided to enrich the proposal towards the international public and Roman clientele, inaugurating a space where food is the protagonist.
Here, in the guise of a chef and with all his flair, Chef Andrea Fusco is ready to welcome diners from all over the world, sharing with them the idea that in order to live well, one must know how to have fun in life as well as at the table and at cuisine.
Thus was born the gastronomic project Nomina - cuisine Ludica: on the one hand, the word Nomina takes its cue from the Latin concept "Nomina sunt consequentia rerum,""names are a consequence of the reality of things." It all starts with understanding the deeper meaning of a term, drawing from it all the information it encompasses, providing a clear indication of what it represents. Only after dwelling on the naming of things in the manner of the Latins, that is, grasping their essence and qualities, is it possible to experiment, to try, to play. And how does this translate into cuisine? Only after acquiring a deep knowledge of ingredients, raw materials and techniques is it possible to transform cuisine into a place to have fun, through dishes that allow themselves to be discovered and rediscovered in every part.
The Concept
Nomina is spread over three differentiated spaces: the indoor restaurant (26 covers), the veranda dehor (42 covers) and the outdoor garden (20 covers). The renovation project, by interior designer Rocco Bellanova, took into account the place where Nomina was born and its history: located in the upper part of the Monti district, the Roma Luxus Hotel is an integral part of the Angelicum complex, whose ancient splendor revives in the suggestions of eighteenth-century Rome, a popular destination for cultural and artistic heritage during the Grand Tour. With reference to the travelers from England, who on visits to the Eternal City recounted its beauty and atmosphere through sketches and notes in their travel notebooks, Bellanova designed a stylistic makeover for Nomina called "Old English Eclecticism."
The indoor restaurant environment is developed according to a regular, rectangular floor plan with a double height that allows ample space for the entire room; on the two long sides, the wall scanning is dominated by tall and sumptuous pilasters, emphasized with an antiqued mirror cladding that reflects the surrounding space but does not invade its privacy. The wall surfaces feature a series of ramages with birds, hand-painted in a Japanese fresco technique by artist Valeria Molaioli. The ramage decoration is also declined on other elements of the room, such as on the restaurant table tops, on which the same theme is silkscreened. On the smaller side of the room, the Victorian-style counter bar stands out, framed on the two opposite sides by walls covered with antiqued mirrors. Large plum-colored silk velvet sofas positioned on the wall and elliptical in shape designed as love seats, identify areas of the room dedicated to moments of conviviality and special occasions, while in the rest of the space, large tables with cone bases and glass tops with gold foliage decoration alternate with other tables with crystal tops and ramage and bird decoration. To balance the lighting, custom-made brass stem lamps have been installed on the walls at the large pilasters, while large suspended light circles descend from above on different horizontal planes in a magic of precious reflections that play with the mirrored surfaces.
The veranda dehor that can be used in all seasons is bordered by glass windows that recreate its atmosphere of a winter garden. Here, whose design created by Bellanova harks back to the opulence of the late 1700s. The pre-existing cementine floor has been preserved and recovered in its missing parts. The dehor space has a rectangular floor plan, open on one of the long sides to the outdoor space, and with counter bar with counter on the other major side, creating a longitudinal distribution of space. The space itself is bright and, thanks to the glass windows, visually creates a continuum with the outdoor space. The concept of the renovation "Old English Eclecticism" is declined in the outdoor area in new forms: between chairs and sofas upholstered with soft fabrics in plum, emerald green, and deep orange tones, tables that pick up on the ramage and bird decor alternate.
The counter bar is a counter that demarcates the space between the dining room and the open cuisine , where it is possible to observe the chef engaged in finishing dishes, and is embellished with a lozenge-shaped majolica tile covering with a three-dimensional effect in shades of silk white. A large circular central chandelier, with cylindrical alabaster light points made to design, takes center stage in this precious winter garden, along with other cylindrical pendants that emphasize the longitudinal development of the salta. This space also has an outdoor extension with 20 covers, characterized by scenic effects and reflections, thanks to large elliptical mirrors that develop vertically. These reflective sculptures are embellished with Medici cups and plants, and the base supporting them is covered with handcrafted majolica tiles in deep cobalt blue. The other, larger mirrors are positioned on the outer side toward the preparation area to create two scenic backdrops with a lush wall of vertical greenery behind them.