Chef Brian Tesolin Celebrates Italian Roots with Pasta Program

Hand-made in The Courtney Room kitchen with love

The Courtney Room’s delicious lunch and dinner menus feature a dedicated pasta section with multiple options, highlighting local makers, farm fresh produce and traditional techniques, crafted in-house and driven by the restaurant’s Executive Chef Brian Tesolin.

Growing up in southern Ontario with grandparents hailing from Northern Friuli and Southern Sicily, pasta was a big part of family life for Tesolin, with two unique styles and dishes reflecting the different regions that his grandparents were from. “We would have multi-layered lasagna with fresh ricotta to start every Sunday family lunch at my Nonna’s house, and massive family feasts were a frequent at my Nanni’s home, featuring gnocchi, risotto and culurgiones (or potato stuffed dumplings).”

Tesolin honed his passion and talent for pasta-making during the early days of the pandemic, when he had a kitchen full of local, fresh produce that he felt compelled to preserve and share. “In mid-March 2020, we’d just received our regular deliveries of fresh produce from local vegetable farms when the wide-sweeping restaurant closures meant that we had no-one to cook for,” says Tesolin. “I taught myself how to make pasta completely by hand, from perfecting the dough, to rolling it out with a Mattarello (traditional Italian rolling pin), to hand-crafting the finished shapes.”

“I set out to extend my knowledge of handmade, hand-rolled pasta during those eerily quiet days, determined not to waste anything that was in the kitchen.” The resulting pasta was shared among the staff and Tesolin’s passion was ignited.

Several years later, after spending thousands of hours perfecting his technique and recipes, pasta is a mainstay on The Courtney Room’s dinner menu with a dedicated section, as well as regular features for lunch too. Current dinner menu pasta options include: Mushroom Casarecce, green garlic pesto, chili, wild mushroom, nutritional yeast crumble and olive oil ($26, vegan); Linguine and Clams, white wine, garlic, butter, chili, fine herbs ($28); Warba Potato and Ricotta Ravioli, Dungeness crab, roasted garlic saffron emulsion ($32); and Morel Mushroom Risotto, summer truffle, burnt lemon, brown butter, chili ($28, gluten free).

The Courtney Room’s pasta presentations are inspired by the freshest, seasonal ingredients from Vancouver Island farmers such as Square Root Farm and Littlest Acres Organics that are delivered almost daily to the restaurant.

To learn more about The Courtney Room’s menus, or to make a reservation, visit www.thecourtneyroom.com.

About The Courtney Room

Old world meets new at The Courtney Room in Victoria, B.C., named one of Canada’s Best New Restaurant (2018 #10), included in Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants (2019 #94), YAM Magazine Restaurant of the Year (2024) and a Platinum tier wine program recognized at the Vancouver Wine Festival Wine Program Excellence Awards (2024) – the first restaurant on Vancouver Island to achieve the distinction. Born of the desire to showcase the best of the region, The Courtney Room is a modern dining space focused on genuine and thoughtful hospitality. Savour Pacific Northwest cuisine with bright flavours from both land and sea. Menus showcase local seasonal ingredients, with an emphasis on Vancouver Island sourcing and partnerships. Elevate the every day with quality ingredients, thoughtful service and impeccably prepared, seasonal fine dining. www.thecourtneyroom.com

Media release and images provided by Marisa Cuglietta, Hawksworth Communications