The Vongole Veteran

Gianna Russo

Gianna grew up on the Amalfi side of Salerno, where her father ran a tiny lunch-only trattoria three streets back from the fish market and her job, from age nine, was to scrub the grit out of the morning's clams. She cooked the line there for two decades before moving to Barcelona, where the Mediterranean tastes close enough to home that she finally stopped being homesick. She cooks the salty, sun-soaked South — clams, mussels, anchovies, capers, ripe tomatoes, torn mozzarella — and will tell you, kindly but firmly, that there is no grated cheese coming anywhere near her seafood.

Southern ItalianCoastal MediterraneanSeafood

Voice · salty, sun-warm, plainspoken, unfussy, affectionate

Signature Dishes

The essential curation of Gianna's favorites.

50 MIN

Chickpea Flour Fried Clams with Garlic Aioli

Crispy fried clams coated in a lightbreadcrumb crust, served with a bright garlic aioli. Gianna's way — no cheese, just pure briny clam flavor punctuated by garlicky acid and fresh parsley.

35 MIN

Smoky Pinto Bean Dip with Garlic and Lemon

A velvety pinto bean dip infused with smoky paprika, bloomed garlic, and brightened with a squeeze of fresh lemon. Silky, savory, and perfect with crusty bread or crunchy vegetables.

20 MIN

Scallop Crudo with Fennel, Capers and Mint

A bright, briny coastal crudo where silky fresh scallops meet crunchy shaved fennel, pucker-pop capers and cooling mint. Gianna keeps it raw and real — no heat, just sunshine on a plate.

25 MIN

White Bean and Tuna Bruschetta with Anchovy and Lemon

A sun-soaked coastal bruschetta where creamy white beans and flaked tuna meet salty anchovy, bright lemon, and a finishing drizzle of garlic-scented oil. Gianna's kind of no-nonsense seafood topping on crunchy bread — no cheese, just the sea and the garden.

45 MIN

Roasted Butternut Squash and Clams with Smoked Paprika

Golden roasted butternut squash cubes kissed with smoked paprika, served alongside plump briny clams steamed open with white wine and garlic — a warm, unfussy coastal embrace from Gianna's kitchen.

55 MIN

Buckwheat Lemon Honey Cake with Almonds and Mint

A rustic buckwheat cake with bright lemon zest, sweet honey, crunchy toasted almonds, and a fresh mint drizzle — earthy, bright, and finished in true Southern Italian spirit with no cheese in sight.

55 MIN

Strawberry Ricotta Tart with Olive Oil Crust and Basil

A sunny Southern Italian-style open tart with a tender, golden olive-oil crust, creamy honey-scented ricotta filling, and fresh strawberry slices finished with torn basil and a final honey drizzle.

65 MIN

Lemon Olive Oil Almond Cake with Honey and Mint

A tender, fragrant cake made with fragrant olive oil, bright lemon, and crunchy almonds, finished with a shimmering honey-mint drizzle. Simple ingredients, maximum sunshine.

30 MIN

Anchovy and Caper Spaghetti

A punchy, briny pasta where melt-away anchovies and punchy capers collide in a garlicky olive oil sauce, finished with a squeeze of lemon and torn parsley. No cheese anywhere near this one.

65 MIN

Mussel and Tomato Pasta Bake

A hearty Southern Italian-style baked pasta with briny mussels, sweet tomatoes, and a garlicky olive oil base. Gianna would never put cheese near her seafood, but a goldenbreadcrumb crust? That's another story.

45 MIN

Anchovy and Lemon Roasted Broccoli

Crispy roasted broccoli with a briny anchovy and bright lemon glaze — simple, salty, and sun-warmed, the way Gianna likes it.

80 MIN

Octopus and Potato Salad

A bright, briny Mediterranean salad with tender braised octopus, buttery boiled potatoes, and a garlicky lemon dressing. Gianna keeps it clean and sunny, no cheese anywhere near the seafood.

40 MIN

Clam Spaghetti with Tomato and Garlic

A sun-soaked Southern Italian classic: briny clams tuck into al dente spaghetti bathed in a garlicky tomato sauce, finished with torn basil and a bright squeeze of lemon. Gianna would never forgive me if I put cheese on this.

28 MIN

Baked Cod with Capers, Tomato and Basil

Tender cod fillets baked in a bright tomato and caper sauce, finished with fresh basil and a squeeze of lemon. Simple, briny, and sun-warmed — just how Gianna likes her seafood.

45 MIN

Shrimp and Zucchini Gratin

Golden, bubbling comfort from the South — tender zucchini meets sweet shrimp under a light mozzarella and breadcrumbs crust. A squeeze of lemon at the end, because Gianna would never let you forget it.

45 MIN

Sardine and Chickpea Stew

A briny, sun-soaked Mediterranean stew where sardines melt into a thick chickpea and tomato broth. Garlic and olive oil make everything sing, and a squeeze of lemon at the end brings it all alive. No cheese anywhere near this one.

45 MIN

Mussel and Fennel Soup

A briny, sun-soaked coastal soup where fresh mussels meet sweet fennel in a garlic-kissed broth. Gianna's way: no cream, just good olive oil, a squeeze of lemon, and plenty of fresh parsley.

45 MIN

Baked Clam Stuffed Tomatoes

Ripe tomatoes hollowed and filled with a briny, garlicky clam stuffing, breadcrumbs, and fresh herbs, then baked until tender. A sun-soaked coastal appetizer that Gianna would serve with a squeeze of lemon and torn parsley at the end.

50 MIN

Anchovy and Breadcrumb Baked Tomatoes

Ripe tomatoes hollowed out and stuffed with a savory mixture of smashed anchovies, toasted breadcrumbs, garlic and herbs, then baked until golden and bursting with Mediterranean flavor.

35 MIN

Mussels in Spicy Tomato Sauce with Capers

Gianna's mussels are steamed open in a garlicky, spiced tomato sauce loaded with briny capers — bright, briny, and finished with a squeeze of lemon and a fistful of parsley. No cheese, no cream, just the sea and the sun.

55 MIN

Spaghetti with Clams, Garlic, and Lemon

A bright, briny coastal pasta where tender clams meet silky garlic-infused olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. Gianna keeps it pure — no cream, no cheese, just the sea on a plate.

45 MIN

Mussel and Tomato Zuppa with Garlic Bread

A brothy mussel stew — garlicky, tomatoey, smelling of the harbour — ladled over white bread that soaks up everything underneath. The parsley scattered on top is the last bit of freshness before you eat, and you will eat this fast, dragging bread through the bottom of the bowl until there's nothing left. That's the point.

30 MIN

Garlic Shrimp Scampi over Spaghetti

Shrimp cooked fast in a lot of good olive oil with enough garlic to smell it from another room — that's the formula, and it hasn't needed changing. The spaghetti goes in while there's still liquid in the pan so it can drink up the garlicky, lemony juices, and parsley over the top keeps everything bright. Ten minutes start to finish, and it tastes like you meant it.

15 MIN

White Bean and Tuna Salad with Lemon

Creamy white beans, good tuna broken into chunks, and enough lemon and red wine vinegar to make it sing — this is the kind of salad that earns the name. Parsley through the whole thing keeps it from feeling heavy, and the whole assembly takes about five minutes if you're slow about it. Lunch you can be proud of, no heat required.

35 MIN

Mussels in White Wine, Tomato and Basil

The mussels open in a fragrant bath of tomato, garlic, and olive oil — what looks like barely anything in the pot becomes deeply flavored broth the moment they release their liquor. Basil goes in at the very end, torn, not stirred, so the scent lifts off the bowl when it reaches the table. Crusty bread is not optional.

45 MIN

White Bean and Clam Stew with Tomato

Clams braised with white beans and tomato in good olive oil — the beans turn creamy and take on the brine from the clams, and the tomato mellows into something sweet and almost silky. Garlic is in there from the beginning, which is the only way to do it. A stew that feels coastal even when you're nowhere near the water.

60 MIN

Mozzarella and Tomato Eggplant Bake

Eggplant layered with a proper tomato sauce — not the quick kind, but one that's had time to go sweet and deep — and enough torn mozzarella to bubble and brown at the edges. Basil goes on at the table, not in the oven, so it stays bright and fragrant. This is comfort you can feel good about, and it needs nothing else on the plate.

45 MIN

Spicy Mussel and Tomato Spaghetti

Mussels steamed open in a tomato-and-garlic base with enough cayenne to make you pay attention — that's the whole trick. The spaghetti goes in last and drinks up the broth so every strand tastes like the sea and the heat at once. No frills, no cream, no nonsense — just a bowl of pasta that reminds you why the coast got this right.

33 MIN

Roasted Cod, Oregano and Tomato

Cod laid over sliced tomatoes in a baking dish with garlic, olive oil, and a generous hand with dried oregano — the fish stays moist because the tomatoes steam it gently from below while the top goes a little golden. Oregano is the herb of the South and it belongs here, pungent and warm against the sweetness of the roasted tomato. One pan, nothing complicated, deeply satisfying.

95 MIN

Charred Octopus with Potato and Arugula

Tender octopus gets a hard char at the end — not burnt, just kissed by the heat until the edges go crisp and smoky. Soft potato underneath catches the juices, the arugula stays peppery and a little wilted where the warm octopus lands on it, and lemon cuts through everything. The kind of plate you'd get at a good beach terrace and think about for years.

From the Pantry

Signature staples

clammusselanchovycapersmozzarellatomato-saucegarlicolive-oilpasta-spaghettiparsley

Favorite tools

FryingPanStrainerChefKnifeWoodenSpoon

Reaches for

clammusselanchovymozzarellaripe tomatocapersgarlicolive-oilparsleybasil

Steers clear of

parmesanpecorinoheavy-creambutter-heavy rouxbarbecue-sauce

Flavor Profile

The Loves

brinygarlickybright acidsweet ripe tomatofresh herbal

The Defaults

garlic bloomed in good olive oila squeeze of lemon at the endtorn fresh basil or parsley

The Avoids

heavy cream saucesover-thickened graviesgrated hard cheese on seafoodmuddy sweetness