Café Sapore, 4 Harper Parade, Hartburn, Stockton (From Darlington and Stockton Times)

Café Sapore, 4 Harper Parade, Hartburn, Stockton

11:59am Friday 11th December 2009

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Little Italy in the heart of Stockton.

I DOUBT that a Michelin star-trained chef who has worked in two of the world’s top restaurants envisaged that his first solo venture would be in a leafy shopping parade in the suburbs of Stockton.

Nestled between a bakery and a newsagents sits Café Sapore where Massimo Cocorullo is serving up his kind of food – Mediterranean cuisine using the best local ingredients he can find.

Massimo has cooking in his blood: he was born in Sorrento, Italy’s gourmet capital, and soon decided to follow his passion for high-class cuisine.

He developed his style teaching in the area’s many cordon bleu cookery schools, popular with tourists who flock to the stunning stretch of Amalfi coastline.

From there he progressed to the world-renowned Don Alfonso 1890, which boasts two Michelin stars.

One of the Italian chef’s mentors in his bid to perfect his cooking techniques was wellknown experimental cook Heston Blumenthal.

Massimo worked at Blumenthal’s celebrated Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire where snail porridge and nitro-scrambled egg and bacon ice cream are dished up.

When deciding the time was right to set up on his own, Massimo had his heart set on Stokesley but a lack of suitable premises prompted him to settle on Hartburn in Stockton, the home town of his girlfriend and business partner, Louise How.

With its modern yet relaxed décor Café Sapore tries to appeal to the coffee morning mothers as well as the couple splashing out on a special occasion.

Homemade cakes and pastries are served from 10am followed by a lunchtime choice with specials and takeaway baguettes followed by an ample dinner menu all prepared in an open plan kitchen.

Imported delicacies line one wall giving everyone the chance to go home with a little piece of Italy in their pocket and adding to its authenticity.

On the Tuesday night we visited, Massimo was hosting the first of several wine tasting evenings with a set menu.

Louise’s attentive service was warm and friendly – well matched by the other members of the front of house team.

Along with a glass of Prosecco we were served a traditional Corsican appitiser, a mini deep-fried pizza with a topping of tomatoes and anchovies.

It was delicious and very “moreish” after a busy day at work I was famished and could happily have wolfed down the portions set aside for the other 20 diners.

This was followed by Salmon Escabeche with watercress and pink peppercorns which, as a fan of smoked salmon, I thought was absolutely divine.

The beautifully presented cold slithers of pickled pink fish melted in the mouth and was complemented by the glass of blush Pinot Grigio.

Matthew thought the starter was slightly acidic but light and tasty – as seen by his clean plate.

The salmon, from Ian Sharp fishmongers at Bolam’s in Sedgefield was just one of the local producers used in the meal.

The main course sourced vegetables from Fox’s market garden on the outskirts of Hartburn and meat from Dropswell Farm near Trimdon Village in County Durham.

As a lover of hearty meat dishes my husband’s eyes lit up as his assiette of pork, black pudding, potato veloute, petit pois and pork jus arrived.

He said the pork was cooked to perfection yet, surprisingly, the star of the show was the black pudding which was without doubt the best he had ever tasted.

The food was delicious but I couldn’t help, but wish more vegetables had been offered to balance the strong flavours of the different meats.

Once again, a glass of wine was poured – this time a bold red – accompanied by a fiveminute talk by Andrea D’Ercole from ItalyAbroad.com about how to appreciate a good drop.

The meal was rounded off with a dessert wine and chocolate profiteroles with creme patisserie and crushed pistachios.

I expected each of the three choux balls to have a different filling and was slightly disappointed to find them all the same but they were extremely tasty and happily ate the lot.

Matthew said he was not usually a fan of Italian desserts as they tend to be too rich and sickly but, he said, this was light and delicate and the portion size was just right.

At £35 per head for three courses, four glasses of wine and coffee the meal was reasonable value.

If Café Sapore was three miles away in Yarm I think Massimo would have trendy socialites clamouring for a reservation, based on his career path alone.

Yet tucked away in residential Hartburn it has taken time to build up his reputation with diners who are more used to popping out for good pub grub than high-end cuisine.

But as they say, Rome wasn’t built in a day.

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