The 32-year-old chef of a restaurant serving sepia cappuccino and smoked pasta in butter has reached the Olympus of Italian cuisine, according to one of the country's top gourmet guides .
Massimiliano Alajmo, who has run the classy Le Calandre establishment near Padua since 1993, was still seen as a touch below the country's two most renowned chefs in the last edition of the Espresso guide .
This year Le Calandre joins the famed restaurants of heavyweight chefs Gianfranco Vissani and Fulvio Pierangelini with a rating of 19.5 out of 20 and the coveted three chefs hats .
Alajmo, whose family has been running restaurants for five generations, studied in Italy and, after absorbing his family's expertise in the restaurant business, went to work in some top kitchens in France .
Since returning to his native Padua in 1993, the young chef has impressed restaurant reviewers with his brand of "new Italian cuisine" .
One of his specialities is saffron risotto dusted with liquorice and another is a fried scampi roll with lettuce sauce. His crispy cannelloni stuffed with ricotta and buffalo mozzarella is also a prized dish .
According to the Espresso guide, Alajmo is at the forefront of a group of exciting young Italian chefs who experiment but still remain close to the roots of their regional cuisine .
Other key names it mentioned were Carlo Cracco, who draws on the traditions of his native Veneto and Ciccio Sultano, renowned for his Sicilian recipes .
Their approach "renews and enriches in a way which draws on tradition rather than breaking with it," the guide's editor, Enzo Vizzari, said .
In the 2007 edition of the guide, which goes on sale on Wednesday, Vizzari said the national restaurant scene remained lively and interesting despite an unfavourable period for the economy .
This was largely due to the presence of chefs like Alajmo who were ensuring restaurants were increasingly modern and open to the world, he said .
On a more mundane level, the guide complained that in big cities it was increasingly difficult to eat well, noting that often the best food - and best prices - were to be found in provincial towns .
Campania, the region around Naples, was highlighted as host to an "effervescent" restaurant scene, thanks to a new contingent of young chefs who were taking over at top eateries .
Vizzari also noted that, in general, traditional pasta and rice dishes appeared to be regaining popularity in fashionable restaurants after a period in which 'ethnic' influences and 'fusion' foods had taken the upper hand .
