The only Inn with a hole in the sock ...
And that doesn't hide it!
An acoustic, no-frills, express, local product-based cuisine (with local producers)







The only Osteria with
a hole in its sock...
And that doesn't hide it!
Acoustic, no-frills, express cuisine made from local products (and producers).







the Mecenate
The Mecenate will turn 25 in 2021.
A quarter of a century like a quart of wine, an adventure that started in the countryside, in Gattaiola near Lucca, in October 1996 and landed in the city, in the so called Ditches area, in May 2012.
25 years of cooking and tasting, of ‘tordelli’(the local tortelli) and good wine, of uphill roads and downhill rolls, of love for the terroire and conviviality. A story made of people and souls, of poetry and songs, shepherds and market stalls, of friends who produce wine and farmers, of fishermen who cast their nets in a responsible way and then bring us their fish. A story we like to tell
The Mecenate will turn 25 in 2021.
A quarter of a century like a quart of wine, an adventure that started in the countryside, in Gattaiola near Lucca, in October 1996 and landed in the city, in the so called Ditches area, in May 2012.
25 years of cooking and tasting, of ‘tordelli’(the local tortelli) and good wine, of uphill roads and downhill rolls, of love for the terroire and conviviality. A story made of people and souls, of poetry and songs, shepherds and market stalls, of friends who produce wine and farmers, of fishermen who cast their nets in a responsible way and then bring us their fish. A story we like to tell
the Cook
Sole: “Call me cook…not chef” For 25 years she has been passionately directing the kitchen of the Mecenate, proposing an acoustic cuisine, made of natural and local sounds, simple, direct, a cuisine that makes hearts and palates vibrate. A cuisine where the many small producers of the area participate in creating the culinary experience, in a virtuous network of carefully selected and exellent food.
The dishes that come out of Sole’s kitchen are the perfect synthesis between her personality, the territory, the style and the story of Mecenate. A faithful transcription of the gastronomy of the territory, which does not however disregard the human factor, made of personal life, the experiences of a lifetime, the music listened to, friendship, the wines drunk and the unforgettable evenings passed at the Mecenate.
and the Innkeeper
Stefano, the Innkeeper. Like his grandfather Guido, who had a trattoria in Corso Garibaldi, and who, as a regular clientele, had the “happy little women” of the brothels of the nearby Via della Dogana and their customers.
Like his father Pietrino, who for a while, as a young man, worked as a cook in the trattoria … but when his wife, Etta, discovered the story of the “happy little women” he then had to change and began to work as a biscuit salesman. Perhaps Stefano’s job as a “innkeeper” is in his blood, or in his DNA and for this reason, every day, he starts again with joy … to be an innkeeper!
Stefano, the Innkeeper. Like his grandfather Guido, who had a trattoria in Corso Garibaldi, and who, as a regular clientele, had the “happy little women” of the brothels of the nearby Via della Dogana and their customers.
Like his father Pietrino, who for a while, as a young man, worked as a cook in the trattoria … but when his wife, Etta, discovered the story of the “happy little women” he then had to change and began to work as a biscuit salesman. Perhaps Stefano’s job as a “innkeeper” is in his blood, or in his DNA and for this reason, every day, he starts again with joy … to be an innkeeper!
The Mecenate's menù
Here is our Menu, made up of traditional and local dishes, our breads and pastas, to be enjoyed at the tables inside and in summer on the summer veranda on the beautiful St. Francis Square.
A Menu that varies with the seasons.
What never changes is our passion and acoustic cooking style.
Tortino di carciofi VEGETARIANO
Artichokes cake
CROSTONE di pane di castagne con cavolo nero e formaggio “MUFFITO” di Monica di Valgiano VEGETARIANO
CHESTNUTS bread canapes with leaf cabbage and local caw cheese VEGETARIAN
Baccalà mantecato su crostone di polenta di formenton ottofile
Meat ball with green sauce
Salumi artigianali con il nostro pane alle olive
€ 12,00
Mixed local cured meats with special bread
Prosciutto di “Pizzuga”
di Colle di Compito con crostini di fegatelli
€ 12,00
Local ham with chicken liver canapes
Focaccia calda e lardo
Flat salt bread with lard
Sfogliatina di porri con formaggio di mucca di Pierpaolo Piagneri – Filattiera VEGETARIANO
Leek puff pastries with local caw cheese VEGETARIAN
Il nostro manzo marinato
€ 12,00
Marinated beef
Antipasto misto del Mecenate
€ 14,00
Mix of local cured meat, cheese, vegetable pie
Pancotto di pesce (ali di razza, sugarello, triglie ecc. ecc. )
€ 16,00
FISH BREAD SOUP (RED MULLET , RAY, LOCAL FISH)
Tordelli casalinghi lucchesi
Home made Tordelli
Tacconi casalinghi ai carciofi (vegetariano)
Home made Tacconi with fresch artichokes (vegetarian)
La farinata lucchese (zuppa con il fagilo rosso di lucca, cavolo nero e farina di mais) (vegetariano)
FARINATA LUCCHESE (RED BEANS, LEAF CABBAGE AND CORN- MEAL SOUP) (vegetarian)
Pappardella casalinghe al cinghiale
home made pappardella with boar sauce
I veri Testaroli di Pontremoli (Presidio Slow Food) pecorino ed olio nuovo VEGETARIANI
Testaroli (typical from Pontremoli, Slow Food presidium) with pocorino cheese and local new oil VEGETARIAN
Riso (carnaroli biologico) al piccione
Organic rice with pigeon sauce
Spaghetti con le cicale
Spaghetti with magnosa
Pasta tordellata (trenette con ragù ricotta e spinaci)
€ 15,00
“PASTA TORDELLATA (pasta WITH RAGU’, RICOTTA CHEESE ,AND SPINACH)
Grilled Sirloin Steak
Frittata (uova bio della Tenuta di Forci) di carciofi
Artichokes omelettes with salad
Coniglio nostrale arrosto (Azienda agricola Il Castello) marinato alle erbe aromatiche, con il fagiolo cannellino di Lucca
Roast local rabbit with local beans
Piccione arrosto in letto di insalata
Roast pigeon with salad
Filetto di maiale in crosta con cipolline caramellate
PORK FILLET BAKED IN PASTRY WITH CARAMELIZED ONIONS
(per due persone)
(for 2 people)
La Trippa
Tripe
Polpo in galera con purea
Octupus braised with mashed
| Mashed potatoes |
Rapini saltati
Turnips
Roast mix vegetables
Tutti i dolci sono di nostra produzione / All dessert are made by us
Castagnaccio con ricotta
|
Piatto forte lucchese
Local Trifle (sponge cake soaked in liqueur with layers of custard)
Salame di cioccolata
Chocolate log
Gelato a scelta fra: Crema, Cioccolata, Fragola,
Pistacchio bronte (della GELATERIA VENETA – IN LUCCA)
Ice cream, Chocolate, Cream, Strawberry, Pistachio
Gelato alla crema con fragole biologiche del Pucci (della GELATERIA VENETA – IN LUCCA)
Ice cream, organic local Strawberries
Budino di pane (dolce lucchese del ‘700)
Bread pudding
Latte alla portoghese
Portuguese-style milk
Cannolo con ricotta della pastora, miele di spiaggia, polline di edera e polvere di buccellato
Cornet with ewe’s cheese (ricotta) and local organic beach honey, polen
Torta di arancia e cioccolata
Orange and chocolat cake
Panna cotta con salsa di uva fragola
Panna cotta with grapes sauce
Of wine we like everything. The smell, the colors, the flavors, the bottles and labels. The land, the vines and the vineyards, so different from each other. And then we like to drink it, accompanied by something to eat, in company with friends and end up laughing and singing. Or even drink it alone, which makes you think. Or drinking it by candlelight in two and ending the night in two with the candle out. And then we like the people who make it. Our Charter is made up of the men and women, the faces and hearts of wine.
Discover our Charter, consisting of about 300 labels, with wines that can only be tasted by us and the winemakers who have excited us, with very small territory realities, the great internationals and wines “for amateurs,” such as those from Georgia or Portugal.
Book an Acoustic Cooking Experience
Reserve your table at Ristorante Mecenate
Please note that your reservation is considered confirmed when you receive a reply e-mail from us or a phone call

