You can love or hate it, but what it knows how to do is an objective fact. Sphere Ebbasta, one of the first trappers on the country's music scene, today at the peak of success for his participation as a judge at XFactor, has hit on another one: open a restaurant with his friend Andrea Petagna, another young talent but in the world of football, a striker who grew up in Milan and today in Serie A with Spal.
The place is called Healthy Color and is located in Milan, in via della Moscova. No hot dogs or chips, no reference to the idea of ​​"stopgap" food for the stomach in the nights of excesses of the Milanese nightlife. Concept and menu speak instead of health, balanced nutrition and respect for oneself and the environment. And they do it with the mood that very young people like.
The fruit of a friendship
Of course, thinking about a pure marketing operation is a snap.
"In reality the idea was born from the desire to create something different, that is a healthy fast food", says Andrea Petagna. «The friendship between me and Sfera started a few years ago. I was a fan of his, I liked his music. One day I posted a story on Instagram with one of his songs and Sfera wrote to me in private. Soon we decided to meet in person and a beautiful friendship was born. We are two guys "who came out of nowhere": we made ourselves, with the affection and drive of those close to us, but above all with that insatiable hunger that never makes us feel “arrived” in our work.
Then at a certain point we said to ourselves: let's do something together. It was our dream. We wanted to find an idea that united us, the meeting point between our two worlds. And we found it in the kitchen who, with music and sport, has in common the passion, which is essential to succeed in these three fields. Dedication, desire to always improve, attention to detail: in my opinion these are the same ingredients of a good song, a well played match and a good dish ».
Choose well to live better
In particular, the idea that Andrea and Sfera want to spread through this project is to take care of what you eat.
"We are public figures who can convey messages more easily than other people: with this place we take the responsibility and pleasure of communicating the right one, that is, that knowing how to eat well is the key to living better. Our days, our energy, our concentration in the workplace depend to a great extent on nutrition ».
After all, as a footballer Petagna can only follow a balanced and healthy diet.
«Our body is like a machine, our food is petrol. Everything must always be very balanced ». Whims aside. «Yes, I give myself some whim too. One of the worst offenses I share with Sfera: last year, almost every Monday evening, we had dinner together. Our menu? Sushi and an avalanche of ice cream ».
Surprisingly, however, there is no sushi on the Healthy Color menu. "There is certainly a touch of the Orient in the philosophy behind our cuisine, but not so much on the choice of dishes as on the care and selection of raw materials », explains chef Davide Melani, many years of experience in the best sushi restaurants in Rome.
"There are the poke, a typical dish of the tradition of the Hawaiian Islands, the truffle soup or truffle miso and typically Japanese edamame. But also the fassona and tuna tartare that bring us back to the tradition of the country, and then move on to the United States of America with the smoothie bowl and pancakes ».
Attention also to the environment
To make the concept of healthy also attractive, the restaurant also focuses on strong and hypnotic colors, both in the settings and in the dishes. There is for example l’Orange Poke, with marinated salmon, mint, avocado, mango, edamame, bean sprouts, blueberries and orange rice base. Or again la Poke Yellow, with a base of yellow rice, chicken curry in the center and other colorful vegetables all around. Proteins, rice and vegetables, with strictly light sauces and dressings, are the winning formula. With an eye to sustainability.
“For example, the salmon comes from Scottish farms that are currently closer to the concept of eco-sustainability,” explains the chef. «But in this key we have above all selected packaging, opting for an eco-friendly choice of biodegradable and recyclable materials such as corn plastic ».
No alcohol
The one in via della Moscova is intended to be the first of a long series of Healthy Color. The dream of Sfera and Andrea is in fact to spread the brand throughout the country and then around the world. The interior design is the work of the duo of street artists Motorefisico.
Among the curiosities of the menu: the modular salad (a base of iceberg, radicchio, songino and rocket to be completed with other colorful ingredients), stuffed avocados and Japanese seaweed flavored with orange.
More, a choice of alcohol-free drinks such as Be Positive (carrot juice, apple juice and mango pulp) and Be Active (cucumber, apple and spinach extract).

