Pausa – Your Italian Break

Starting in 2013, on the other side of the planet, among the crowded streets of Hong Kong. The passion for food from home was born. Marco Cattaneo, had entrepreneurship in his DNA when materializing his restaurant of only 25 square meters, Pausa. The unmistakable red sign, “Your Italian Break” was a promise and a challenge to spread its fast and simple innovative format, abroad. Bringing Italy around the world like a travel suitcase, although, in this case full of the best Belpaese flavors.

The turning point came in 2015, in conjunction with the participation of the entrepreneur and his start-up at Tutto Food of Expo. Beginning as a small temporary restaurant in the shadow of the majesty of urban skyscrapers, the brand has become a reality, concrete and well known. Since last November, Asia has also landed in Milan, bringing its vibrant colors to the center. The intent is to remain Mediterranean, but with a touch of modernity and imagination, necessary to amaze even the most unamused.

The new bar, bistrot, and emporium is nestled among the historic buildings of the area, winking at the few square meters of the first opening venue. The Milanese location is wide and well adorned iin what can be defined as an international look: characterized by a minimal, essential design, which frames a real gathering and co-working space to escape the chaos of the city, study or work (yes, there is wife and plugs for PCs and cell phones). Whether it’s breakfast, lunch, dinner or an aperitif after a busy day, the result is always the same: you are welcomed by a familiar and pleasant atmosphere that makes you feel as if you were at home.

The same simplicity of the rooms is reflected in the menu, filled of specialities of our local gastronomy. At Pausa, in fact, you can buy anything you like in the shop, dotted with Made in Italy products including wines, vinegar, extra virgin olive oil from the Frantoio Muraglia, while the view and the palate can be indulged without consequence from the delights of the counter. We should not be surprised, however, if the center of the restaurant is the timeless great classics of tradition to which, a dose of creativity has been added to differentiate the Italian dish from the foreign one. Thus, home made pasta, with different types to choose from, is seasoned with sauces, creams and pesto; pizza, with Roman dough, is “long” or stuffed; the ice cream becomes “espresso” because it is prepared in a few moments and coffee, unfailingly, also has a different twin named Chokkino (for those who do not like caffeine), made of only cocoa and water.

Served in a curious cardboard packaging with an “exotic” style, the food is to be enjoyed in every moment of the day, comfortably around a small table or ordered for takeaway. Here you are inevitably catapulted once again to Hong Kong, where it all began.