Antonio Romano

Where It Started The first recorded phase of Antonio Romano’s career sits inside a major Roman kitchen, where the work would have been defined by brigade discipline, pace, and daily repetition. That kind of room does not reward theatrics; it trains timing, order, and the ability to work cleanly under pressure. By 2020, Romano was Chef de Cuisine there. That title places him beyond section work and into broader control of service, where the day’s execution sits in one pair of hands more than one station. The Michelin star attached to the restaurant belongs to that same period, giving the role a fixed point in time and a clear place in the record.

Who Shaped Them The development reads through the houses themselves. Each kitchen adds responsibility as much as rank, and the progression is visible in the titles as much as in the addresses. In 2024, Romano served as Executive Chef at Nove. Read against the earlier steps — Chef de Partie, then Chef de Cuisine, then Executive Chef — the progression is straightforward. The work widens at each stage: more of the room, more of the tempo, more of the final decisions.

The Work Today

His current specialty is Yunnanese Dai ethnic home-style cooking. That description is precise, and it shifts the frame away from the Italian posts that precede it. The present work is identified not by broad fusion language, but by a specific culinary tradition and the people named in it. Romano’s profile is strongest where movement between kitchens becomes movement between foodways. The through-line is not a single style held static, but a practice that has moved from Roman brigade work into named leadership roles and now into a distinct culinary language.