Exchange with Andrea Mastropietro, gardener at Piazza Duomo***, Alba.

Inviting the gardener, not just the chef

Recently in Belgium, we welcomed Andrea Mastropietro, the gardener from Piazza Duomo, 3 Michelin Stars in Alba for more than 20 years.

Not to talk about yields.

Not to talk about menus.

But to talk about what really matters when you work with plants: the soil.

We brought Andrea together with Dries Delanote, and the conversation flowed naturally.

Two different paths, one shared starting point:

👉 the earth comes before the plate.

Andrea spoke about a garden that leads the kitchen, never the other way around.

Dries spoke about landscapes you don’t control, but learn to listen to.

No theory. Just practice, trial and error, and time.

Plant based restaurants are often are rooted in the same idea:

the gardener is not a supplier — they are a creative partner.

That meeting was about one simple thing:

putting the gardener back at the center.

Because plant-based cuisine doesn’t start in the kitchen,

it starts under our feet.