i. Biography
Francesco Sodano’s cooking is described from an inherited base: a family of chefs, early work beside his father, and a practical apprenticeship that started before a formal kitchen. At Ristorante Famiglia Rana in Oppeano, Italy, where Sodano has been chef since 2024, that background matters as technique’s first context rather than as decoration. His own account is direct: “My father used to manage a restaurant, so I started really young to help him out.” Contemporary Italian cooking, in this case, is framed through creativity, avant-garde techniques, Italian traditions, and the territory around the kitchen. The tradition is not treated as fixed material. It is handled as working stock: something to test, extend, and bring into contact with other flavors and forms without cutting it loose from origin.
The Climb
Coastal restaurant work shaped an early public register at Faro at Capo d'Orso in Amalfi Coast, where Francesco Sodano worked as chef from 2022–2024. The role placed his cooking in a setting where place, restraint, and precision carried practical weight, and where the kitchen’s relationship to its landscape was part of the work rather than an afterthought. The move to Oppeano, Italy, brought the work into a different territory and a different institutional frame. Since 2024, Sodano has been chef of Ristorante Famiglia Rana, refining a cuisine that keeps Italian memory in view while opening the plate to outside references.
Today
Freedom inside a disciplined kitchen is the stated condition of the current work at Ristorante Famiglia Rana. Of the role, Francesco Sodano has said, “I received from him and the Rana family an extraordinary welcome and a unique freedom of expression. Together we will bring forward a new idea of cuisine in a special place.” The useful point for the trade is the pairing: expression is not positioned against rigor, but made possible by it. Fusion is the term Sodano uses for the present language: “I would say that the right word to describe my concept of cuisine, made purely of personal traits, is fusion.” Menu structure at Oppeano gives that idea named form. Ricomincio da tre is a tasting menu combining Asian and Mediterranean flavors with local ingredients. Contaminazioni follows the same meeting of Asian and Mediterranean flavors through local ingredients. Burro del Piastra is described as a signature item served in a double version at Famiglia Rana. The through-line is crossing: not a rejection of place, but a method for working it against other references.
Signature
The signature set—Ricomincio da tre, Contaminazioni, and Burro del Piastra—shows a cuisine organized around contact points: Asian and Mediterranean flavors, local ingredients, avant-garde techniques, Italian traditions, and a personal inheritance from a family of chefs. At Ristorante Famiglia Rana, Francesco Sodano uses those crossings as structure rather than garnish.
In Their Words “I received from him and the Rana family an extraordinary welcome and a unique freedom of expression. Together we will bring forward a new idea of cuisine in a special place.” “I begin to nourish my passion for food at a very early age. We are a family of chefs, so I want to believe that is a sort of family calling.”
Recognition
Recognition for the current kitchen includes the Second Michelin star awarded to Ristorante Famiglia Rana (2025). Francesco Sodano’s honors are tied to that award.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Francesco
What is Francesco Sodano's current role?
Francesco Sodano is Chef at Ristorante Famiglia Rana.
Where did Francesco Sodano work before?
Earlier in their career, Francesco Sodano worked at Faro at Capo d'Orso.
What recognition has Francesco Sodano received?
Second Michelin star awarded to Ristorante Famiglia Rana (2025).
