by Debby De Carlo
Galileo, the Italian astronomer whose observations gave birth to modern physics, was a pioneer when he first scanned the heavens with his telescope in the late 16th century. Today, his spirit lives on in a talented chef who has created something of a big bang in Washington, D.C. with a galaxy of award-winning restaurants.
In true pioneering fashion, Chef Roberto Donna has taken the popular concept of the Chef’s table a step further. His brand new Laboratorio del Galileo (above) is like a restaurant in a restaurant featuring seven tables, a gas-fired kitchen, its own team of waiters and kitchen staff and, of course, Donna himself.
  Roberto Donna was born in the Piedmont region of Italy. As a small boy, he convinced his mother to let him skip kindergarten in order to spend time in the kitchen of a restaurant near the small grocery store she ran in Torino. This was the beginning of Donna’s love affair with restaurants.

  Donna took to hanging around the restaurant after school the following year. Washing lettuce and peeling potatoes were among the duties he was allowed to perform. Having proven himself, he was given the task of stuffing the cannelloni and ravioli. Finally, at age nine, he was allowed to start cooking.

  At age 13, he went off to professional cooking school. When his schooling was completed five years later, his instructor recommended him for a job in Washington, D.C. And so, at the age of 18, Roberto Donna came to the United States to work as a sous chef at Romeo and Juliet. Eighteen months later he was promoted to head chef.

  Donna opened Galileo, his first restaurant, in 1984 only five short years after arriving in Washington, D.C. His emphasis on classical Italian cooking, an elegant ambiance and exquisite service has made Galileo one of Washington’s most popular luxury restaurants.

  And that was just the beginning. While Donna is always stressing the importance of simple Italian cooking, he is a genius who thrives on complexity. Together with partners, he has opened 12 restaurants in the D.C. area, from Galileo to a retail fish market and cafe, to a series of spaghetti houses. Each restaurant is an expression of his passion for the variety of Italian cuisine and his desire to share it. The Washington Post has called him a “national treasure.” One of his close friends lauded Donna’s pioneering spirit of entrepreneurship by saying, “He’s the first chef in Washington who’s done it, who’s stepped out of the box.”

  Some worried that Donna was spreading himself too thin with so many restaurants. That might be true if Donna were managing each restaurant by himself. Instead, he’s made use of partnerships and teams that are the hallmark of every successful restaurant. Indeed, many of his restaurants are as much a reflection and expression of individual chefs and partners as they are of Donna. At their best, his restaurants are an ongoing collaboration between Donna, his staff, his partners and his customers.
For Galileo’s recent renovation, Donna hired Rosenberg & Associates to design a dining room with a quiet, elegant ambiance, perfect for focusing on the food.
  Though he visits each of his restaurants regularly, Galileo is where he spends the bulk of his time. Located at 1110 21st Street, NW it has a large dining room with seating for 200, a terrace accommodating 75, and a gas-fired kitchen worthy of his talent.

  “Galileo will always be my showcase. It is very close to my heart,” said Donna.

  It is easy to understand why. With its soft white walls and colorful accent pieces, the main dining room is warm and inviting, a classic yet comfortable setting. Two wine cellars showcasing over 1,000 vintages of fine Italian, French and American wines are located off the main dining area and are set up for small gatherings. The outdoor terrace is ideal for al fresco dining in season. There is also the Chef’s table in the kitchen. This table, nestled in the corner, offers up to eight guests the opportunity to enjoy a wonderful meal while getting to watch the hurry and scurry pace of the kitchen.

  While Chef’s tables are growing in popularity, in true pioneering fashion, Roberto Donna has taken the concept to another dimension adding yet another star to his twinkling horizon. In addition to the traditional Chef’s table, Donna has built a brand new kitchen/dining room called the Laboratorio del Galileo.

  Kelly Gibson, Account Manager for Washington Gas Light was able to help Donna realize this dream. Providing energy solutions and facilitating financing are services that Gibson coordinates for restaurants in the D.C. metro area. With training to become a certified foodservice professional, Gibson understands the needs of a commercial kitchen and was able to meet those needs for Roberto Donna in his newest venture.

  Though originally scheduled to open in early spring, changes and construction delays led to a July opening for Laboratorio del Galileo. Donna takes responsibility for some of the delay. “Remember, I am Italian,” he says. “I have changed the design more than once and come up with new ideas every step of the way.” Diners have decided it was worth the wait.

  This latest addition at Galileo is different from its Chef’s table in the kitchen. “Laboratorio del Galileo is made up of my own special team of waiters and kitchen staff and myself in an elegant environment that is the jewel of all my restaurants,” says Donna.

  “It’s a restaurant inside a restaurant,” he explains. It has its own kitchen where diners can talk to me as I cook. It’s very elegant.” And very popular. Laboratorio, with seven tables, is open three or four days a week and booked every night. Plans call for a cooking class once or twice a week at Laboratorio as well as theme events and special programs.

  Donna personally greets Laboratorio’s guests who then converse with him as he prepares their eight to twelve course meal. The dancing gas flame used to create these scrumptious entrées reflects the magic and energy this chef puts into to all his cooking.

  “Gas has more power,” he explains. “You can get high temperatures and have instant control. I can’t imagine cooking without it.”

  Each of Donna’s kitchens relies on gas appliances to prepare signature menu items of consistent quality and eye appeal. Galileo and the Laboratorio are no exception.

  The menus at Galileo and Laboratorio change daily, reflecting the best of what’s in season, whether it be truffles, porcini mushrooms or bobwhite quail. Donna buys local organic produce when possible, game in season, and free range chickens. A recent menu included roasted marinated pepper rolls with tuna, eggs, capers, basil and balsamic vinegar; crispy fried soft shell crab with sweet corn sauce and braised spicy organic greens; roasted Cervena venison with rhubarb, local shiitake mushrooms and Port wine sauce; linguini with a rag`u of Maine lobster, spicy oven dried tomatoes and fresh basil.

  Main dishes such as grilled fish or rack of lamb come with polenta or potato puree and rich, flavorful house-made bread. Pastas are also house-made, as is some of the cheese. Dessert offerings include chocolate hazelnut cake with warm Glandula filling served with hazelnut ice cream.

  “I go to the local farmers’ markets each morning,” Donna explains of the menu for the Laboratorio. “I tailor the menu to smaller groups, using some of the superb ingredients I find at the farmers’ markets.”

  Using the freshest and finest ingredients is a principle to which Donna steadfastly adheres. Perhaps it comes from a childhood memory of summers spent with his grandparents, who grew vegetables for sale at market. He fondly recalls going with his grandparents to market and experiencing the sights and sounds and sampling the very freshest and best produce in the area.

  Again going back to his roots, Donna recently made a trip to Sicily to learn all he could about Sicilian fare. Sicilian style, he explains, has been influenced more by Turkey than Italy. “There are sweet and sour sardines. Cumin, marjoram and saffron are popular spices.”
Galileo’s new expanded bar area offers guests a relaxed setting in which to enjoy a cocktail before dinner or a brandy after the meal.
  Will Donna add a Sicilian flavor to Galileo? Of course, he replies. He is always innovating, finding food he loves and sharing it with the rest of us. The common thread that runs through all his cooking, no matter what part of Italy it comes from, is simplicity. “At its heart, Italian cooking is simple.”

  And what did Donna learn in Sicily? For one thing, on days when it was a hot 120 degrees, he enjoyed cooling off with watermelon drizzled with lemon juice. “It was so good and refreshing,” he says, as were the stuffed brioches with ice cream and the peach granita with whipped cream on top. “I was struck by the abundance of great ingredients, including sea urchin, octopus and squid, some available at stands along the roadside.”

  Is a Sicilian restaurant next? Probably not, but Donna emphasizes the importance of travel to the success of his family of restaurants.

  “You need to see what other people are doing,” says Donna. Visiting other restaurants and chefs gives him new ideas. New ideas that he can share with his own chefs. He contends that the more he learns and the better he becomes, the more he can teach and help others to grow and learn. “If you want to improve and become better in the cooking world, you have to travel.”

  Sharing is another key to Donna’s success. He is confident enough in his own abilities to share his knowledge. And he is humble enough to realize there is always something for him to learn.

  If his career has been meteoric, it has yet to reach its zenith. It is fueled by the synergy of his passion, genius, and the freedom America has given him to express that passion and talent. “America is more my style,” he explains. “In Italy, everyone follows the crowd. If you don’t, you’re considered crazy. There’s an arrogance there I hated. Here I can dress however I like and cook however I like. In Italy, no one believed anyone so young could do much. Here, people trusted me, believed in me.”

  Donna is so taken with America that he plans to become a United States citizen this year. It’s not that he doesn’t appreciate his Italian heritage. Donna thinks of his adopted country as another family, one that embraced him from the beginning, nurturing him and his professional life.

Galileo is open for lunch and dinner Monday through Friday; Saturday and Sunday for dinner only. Lunch ranges from $9.95 to $18.95; dinner entrees $16.95 to $29.95.

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