The Philosophy of Chef Hotta: A Cycle of "Now" and "Time" Spun by Wood-Fired Cooking at Villa Communico
Nestled at the foot of Mount Wakakusa, a place where the vestiges of history intersect with lush nature, stands the auberge "Villa Communico". Since its relocation in September 2024, Chef Daiki Hotta has been confronting the ultimate texture of materials woven by the blessings of the land and "wood fire".
The primary reason Chef Hotta utilizes a wood fire is to confine and condense the pure, powerful umami and flavor hidden within the ingredients to their absolute limit. In contrast to common techniques that prioritize imparting a smoky scent, the chef takes a delicate approach of precisely controlling the moisture of the ingredients. For example, in a dish of grunt (kihata), he demonstrates a masterful technique that balances contrasting elements: keeping the meat moist and succulent while roasting the skin until it is crisp and fragrant. Similarly, for the aged beef arriving from "Sakaeya" in Shiga Prefecture, the passionate heat of the wood fire creates a vivid contrast between the fragrant surface and the succulent juices overflowing from within.
Another major feature of the cuisine is the "magic of fermentation" that carves a "time axis" into the plate. The chef elegantly transforms short-lived ingredients that boast the brilliance of their season, or those abundant due to a bountiful harvest, into house-made fermented foods such as miso, soy sauce, and vinegar, and then combines them with the same ingredients months later or the following year. Through this visionary technique, a dish that deeply embodies the depth of the land of Nara—where the past, present, and future overlap—is completed.
A point worth noting is the origin of Chef Hotta’s philosophy, rooted in his experience learning culinary arts in Italy. He realized that the locals were not simply trying to "make Italian cuisine"; rather, the local climate and ingredients were inscribed in their DNA, and the cuisine was the natural result. The chef embodies this same spirit in Nara. By selecting ingredients readily available in the region and layering them with his own knowledge and sensibility, the work becomes an act of translating "the land of Nara itself" into the language of cuisine. Rooted in this soil and following its inherent principles, the dishes created transcend the boundaries of local cuisine; they can be called "inevitable flavors" reconstructed through the filter of Chef Hotta, reflecting the soil and history of Nara.
The cuisine of "Villa Communico" is also a story of deep trust and respect for producers. The "Kotoka" strawberries from the "Hagiwara Strawberry Farm," where the chef grew up together with the owner since childhood, is a variety Nara boasts, and one that the chef has deeply fallen in love with for its fragrant aroma and has continued to use for many years. The chef treasures the humble sensation of being "shared" ingredients that have been painstakingly cultivated, such as specialized herbs and vegetables.
The name "Villa Communico" is derived from the Latin term for "to share" or "to hold in common". By sublimating techniques learned while traveling the world through Italy, France, and Spain with the ingredients of Nara—his own roots—and transforming the passion of producers into cuisine to share with guests, a beautiful cycle is formed, which is the unwavering core of Villa Communico. In this place, where the inherent character of the Nara landscape is sublimated into a one-of-a-kind experience through the chef’s sensibility, one can deeply savor the story behind every dish.