For the two generations since the Aga Khan built it, the Cervo hotel has been a mainstay for Costa Smeralda’s well-heeled set who adore its colonial Spanish revival vibe and, especially, in-house restaurant, Il Pescatore.
The latter – designed by Jacques Couelle as the port’s first fine dining restaurant – has just emerged from long-delayed face-lift courtesy of London-based studio Blacksheep, alongside a new moniker, Quattropasi al Pescatore.
The brief may have been the classically vague ‘contemporary luxury’, but the result is a lighthearted, yet slick, take on a rustic fisherman’s adobe where a roof of roughly hewn bleached logs and planks rests on sinuous white washed walls, terracotta tiles, raw stone surfaces, and rattan pendant lamps. Very cleverly, Blacksheep diffuses the harshness of the exterior light into the space through recessed wall-wells.
The kitchen, meanwhile, is admirably served by executive chef Antonio Mellino who serves a warmly satisfying Sardinian menu dominated by seafood accented by fresh herbs, bottarga and saffron. Two concessions are made to carnivores by way of veal and lamp chops, but for the rest, Tonelli disarms with amberjack tartar, lobster spaghetti, and pasta stuffed with fish and scampi.
ADDRESS
Cervo Hotel
Costa Smeralda Resort
Porto Cervo
Costa Smeralda
-
Fancy a matcha-beer cocktail? Visit this dashing new LA restaurantCafé 2001 channels the spirit of an American diner with the flow of a European bistro and the artistry of Japanese cuisine
-
Los Angeles businesses regroup after the 2025 firesIn the third instalment of our Rebuilding LA series, we zoom in on Los Angeles businesses and the architecture and social fabric around them within the impacted Los Angeles neighbourhoods
-
New book 'I-IN' brings together Japanese heritage and minimalist architecture at its finestJapanese architecture studio I-IN flaunts its expert command of 21st-century minimalism in a new book by Frame Publishers
-
Sun-soaked European destinations to visit in springDreaming of Florentine palazzos and Greek islands now that the weather is starting to turn? Check into one of these beautiful European hotels and holiday homes
-
Everything you need to know about Italy's Lake Maggiore, according to FormafantasmaFrom baroque gardens to panoramic views, Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin show us around this Italian escape
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Romeo Roma: a new hotel that’s one of Zaha Hadid’s last projectsLocated within Rome’s Tridente, Romeo Roma is a palimpsest of periods in which the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid left her avant-garde mark
-
Five influential women hoteliers reflect on the changing face of hospitalityAs women continue to gain ground in the hotel sector, despite still being underrepresented in senior positions, five female moguls share their experiences of the past and projections for the future
-
Must-visit cinemas with award-worthy designThere’s more magic to the movies at these design-led cinemas, from Busan Cinema Centre’s ‘flying’ roof to The Gem Cinema Jaipur’s art deco allure
-
The best Milan bars for a fashionable aperitivoMilan’s after-dark renaissance is evident in a new wave of design-led cocktail bars, setting the right mood for enticing aperitivos and nightcaps; Milan editor Laura May Todd recommends the best
-
How Four Seasons Hotels became The White Lotus’ unofficial starAs The White Lotus season three whisks us to Thailand, Marc Speichert, chief commercial officer of Four Seasons Hotels, discusses the luxury group’s perfect synergy with the hit HBO series – and where you can live the experience
-
Night at the museum: the best art hotels to book nowSleep amid surrealists at London’s Broadwick Soho, or wake up to contemporary favourites at New Hotel in Athens – indulge in an immersive art hotel experience
