Tribute

Nadia Santini, chef of three-star Dal Pescatore, has died

2 November 2026 · Written up 12 November 2026 · The Starred Bill

Nadia Santini, the chef of Dal Pescatore at Runate, near Canneto sull’Oglio in the province of Mantua, died on Monday 2 November 2026, surrounded by her family. In 1996 she became the first Italian woman chef to win three MICHELIN stars, and the restaurant has held them every year since.

A family trattoria by the Oglio

Dal Pescatore began in 1926 as Vino e Pesce, an osteria on the banks of the river Oglio opened by Antonio Santini and Teresa Mazzi. Nadia married into the family in 1974, when she wed Antonio Santini, and learned to cook in its kitchen beside her mother-in-law, Bruna, and Antonio’s grandmother Teresa.

Over the next two decades the kitchen won its first MICHELIN star in 1982, its second in 1988 and its third in 1996; no restaurant in Italy has held three stars for longer. In 2013 she was named the World’s Best Female Chef by The World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Through all of it Dal Pescatore stayed a family house: Antonio in the dining room, and in time their sons, Giovanni in the kitchen and Alberto in the dining room and cellar.

The family’s words

In a short notice on the restaurant’s website, her family wrote that she had left a deep mark on their lives, and thanked her for teaching them moral rigour, the value of work and simplicity. It ends: “Thank you Nadia, thank you Mum.”

Dal Pescatore today

Ten days after her death, on 12 November, the MICHELIN Guide Italy 2027 was presented at the Teatro Municipale in Piacenza. The evening opened with a tribute to her and a standing ovation, and Dal Pescatore kept its three stars, received on stage by Giovanni Santini. The restaurant remains open and in the family’s hands, with Giovanni leading the kitchen, and is taking bookings into the new year. Our page for Dal Pescatore has its menu and how to book.