Owners of The Plumed Horse—Saratoga’s historic, Michelin-starred restaurant, announced the formation of the Plumed Horse Collection, with new retail and restaurant additions including fine-casual Italian restaurant Pasta Armellino and Plumed Horse Chocolaterie. Pasta Armellino, a fine casual restaurant, is located steps from Plumed Horse Chocolaterie and The Plumed Horse. Pasta Armellino was born out of Chef Peter Armellino’s desire to have some fun. After 10 years of maintaining a Michelin Star for Saratoga’s destination restaurant Plumed Horse, the call to open a more casual outlet offered Chef Armellino the opportunity to cook delicious, ingredient driven dishes in a casual setting.
Pasta Armellino offers high quality, affordable pasta dishes. The restaurant caters to customers who want a customized culinary experience from a top-level chef without the time and expense associated with fine dining. The industry’s move toward fine casual in recent years initially sparked Peter’s interest in bringing a more casual appeal to fine dining in Saratoga, and the opportunity to work with pasta offered a new type of challenge to the technique-driven chef.
“I cook with the seasons, so this will be a great way to showcase our local and regional partnerships while bumping up flavors at a moment’s notice. I am looking forward to the simplicity that pasta provides while maintaining my focus on artisan ingredients,” says Chef Armellino.
The beverage program is being run by Plumed Horse Sommelier Jeffrey Perisho and will feature a variety of wines from Italy and the United States including the newly released Plumed Horse Collection wines. The beer selection will vary, and a unique non-alcoholic beverage list will also be offered.
A successful full renovation of the historic 2,500 square foot space in its evolution to Pasta Armellino involved saving and repurposing the original back barn, where the kitchen is now located. Original artwork from famed San Francisco-based graffiti artist Chris Kondo is also showcased.
Plumed Horse Chocolaterie, which opened in December, was created to produce the finest chocolates in the world and support the award-winning dessert offerings at Plumed Horse. Each jewel-inspired creation is concepted and handmade by Angelica, a classically trained Chocolatier. She was inspired by the work of former Plumed Horse in-house French Chocolatier, Mark Dumas, who created beautiful chocolates for the restaurant. Earlier this year, Angelica was tapped to open and operate their latest venture located directly across the street from Plumed Horse. Since its opening, the shop has sold out of its exclusive, hand-made 200-piece assortment of chocolates each day.
Plumed Horse Collection has been working with several winemakers to introduce an exclusive line of wines including the 2016 Plumed Horse Cuvee Chardonnay “Brooks Friedeman Edition”, produced in partnership with famed winemaker Brooks Friedeman. The 2015 Testarossa “Doctor’s Vineyard” Pinot Noir from the Santa Lucia Highlands is also being unveiled. Winemaker Bill Brosseau worked with directly with Chef Armellino on the blending and clonal selection. Additionally, Chef Armellino is in his second year of personally harvesting sturgeon caviar in partnership with California Caviar. Plumed Horse Reserve Caviar is sourced from the Snake River in Idaho and the California Delta four times a year and is now available at Plumed Horse.
