Le Sei Conche: this is the name of the ancient complex on three levels opened to hospitality by the Dell’Accantera family in the heart of the village of Gemini, a hamlet of Ugento in Salento, where you can breathe the atmosphere of an era in which people lived without haste and without anxiety, with the keys left in the lock and inserted in the dashboard of parked cars.
Relax and good food between land and sea
The origin of the name was revealed to us by Matteo Dell’Accantera who, in addition to taking care of his office of Chartered Accountants, takes care of this little jewel set in a nineteenth-century residence with star vaults, underground warehouses and cistern, a courtyard and a garden. Le Sei Conche owes its name to the six concavities in the wall of the basement dug into the rock in which the “capase”, terracotta amphorae where food was stored, were placed. These rooms, with blonde tuff walls full of fossil insertions which testify that the sea once reached here, house the breakfast room used in the less hot season.
Taking advantage of the still summer warmth, we instead sipped our cappuccino accompanied by fragrant croissants, the omnipresent pasticciotto, artisanal yoghurt and a fresh bowl of fruit, in the external area which houses the garden and the swimming pool, once parts of the adjacent archbishop’s palace to the church of San Francesco d’Assisi.
The same spaces, in addition to the terrace overlooking the courtyard, are used for dinner prepared with skill by chef Eugenio Pindinello based on purely local ingredients and served with grace by Matteo who does not skimp on advice on matching wines. The internal restaurant is created in the rooms that were once used as a warehouse for foodstuffs, especially grain and wine, stored in the hypogeum of the cellar of the archbishop’s palace. It’s called Farnari Unconventional Locanda: the farnari are the sieves with which farmers separated wheat, olives and other agricultural products from waste. In the inn they are on display in the niches found following the renovation. The same niches are highlighted thanks to the illuminations of the Parisi brothers from Taurisano.
The furnishings chosen for the common areas, the five rooms and the three suites, are simple and respect the tradition of the place with a mix of history, craftsmanship and design: we have tried to recover as much as possible of the ancient buildings, from the original vaulted star on the doors, from the window frames to the early 20th century furniture up to the entrance door.
Our suite, called Alloro, recently added to the original nucleus of Le Sei Conche, is spacious, with a comfortable bathroom and gives serenity thanks to the atmosphere defined by soft colors and sober and functional furnishings.
A perfect room to welcome rest after a beautiful day spent at the seaside at the Lido Pineta, managed by the family and just five kilometers from Gemini, in the Fontanelle area on the Ionian coast of Torre San Giovanni: an eco-friendly paradise within the Park Natural Regional Coast of Ugento among centuries-old pine forest, Mediterranean scrub, dunes covered with sea lilies and turquoise water.
The beach establishment is perfect for those who love the sea but also and above all nature, without forgetting the needs of the whole family: under the trees there are picnic tables, a children’s playground, beach volleyball court and ping pong, restaurant à la carte and bar-cafeteria, where you can taste Salento specialities, which can be ordered via a QR code even while lounging under the African cane umbrella in the relaxation area. We tasted the fried fish and the tasty grilled vegetables served directly on a tray placed on the table taken to the seaside: what could be better? Being lulled by the lapping of the waves, waiting for the sunset which here is fabulous with the sun coloring the sky red. For those who prefer exercise, Lido Pineta offers every Thursday afternoon, from the beginning of June to the end of August, free excursions on the sand, along the canals, around the basins, on the rocky steps of the Ugento greenhouses with the professional environmental guides Emanuela Rossi and Totò Inguscio of Avanguardie.
After the sea and a walk through the alleys of Gemini, the garden welcomed us with the beautiful swimming pool set between the high lime walls and the fragrant aromatic plants. At the table, together with the chef’s dishes, the protagonist was the surprise of tasting elaborate but balanced preparations, in which each ingredient is respected and enhanced by the combinations. Starting from the amuse bouche with which our palate was tickled based on a cream of ricotta and olives with Mediterranean tapenade of dried tomatoes, capers, Taggiasca olives, peppers and sprouts enclosed in a crunchy savory pastry.
As appetizers we chose the gazpacho with purple prawns and basil oil, on the menu, and the off-menu based on semi-marinated tuna with yogurt sauce, salted orange marmalade, caramelized onions in vermouth and mixed salad. Both introduced us in a decisive but at the same time discreet way to the first course with character, also off the menu: tubettini rigati with marinara-style chickpea cream with catch of the day, salicornia, sea urchin pulp and bread scented with herbs and lemon.
For the second course, our choice fell on the roasted octopus “Luciana style” served on stewed curly salad, a perfect and tasty marriage between land and sea.
We ended on a sweet note with a decomposed pavlova with berries and a fresh fruit tart.
The dishes at the Farnari Unconventional Locanda pleasantly won us over and by tasting them we better understood the oxymoron present in the name which combines that of inn, which refers to a traditional trattoria, with the adjective unconventional which describes the creativity of chef Pendinello.
What did we miss? Time to enjoy a nice wellness treatment in the private SPA in the underground spaces with swimming pool with hydromassage stations in the old cistern, bio sauna, emotional shower and massage area. So the aim is to return to Le Sei Conche before the seasonal closure scheduled for October and dedicate ourselves to a relaxation program preparatory to the gourmet dinner. The only effort will be to choose between the six-course Unconventional tasting menu or let the chef accompany us Mano nella mano through the flavors of the world without forgetting the local tradition. We’ll let you know!
Le Sei Conche Relais & SPA
Via Chiesa, 12 – Gemini – Ugento (Le),
Info: +39 393 8190987 – +39 0833 608802
www.leseiconche.it – info@leseiconche.it
Cover photo from the website leseiconche.it
