Pane e Latte Now Open
Pirata Group`s seaside Italian panetteria and gelateria now welcoming guests on the Stanley coast
Pirata Group, Hong Kong`s curator of extraordinary, memorable experiences, announces the opening of its latest concept, an Italian seaside panetteria and gelateria – Pane e Latte.
`This is our first, immersive bakery concept and we`re moved by guests` enthusiasm and feedback so far.` Pirata Group Co-founder and CEO, Manuel Palacio shares.
Concept
Pane e Latte is Italian for bread and milk : homey items that recall comfort and familiarity. Pane e Latte responds to Hongkongers` growing penchant for high quality items from the oven, baked fresh daily.
The experience is of a traditional Italian bakery juxtaposed against global cafe culture via a long, marble countertop from which guests may browse and take their pick from the daily offering on display.
All day long, from breakfast to Aperitivo, guests can expect to sample in a forever evolving counter artisanal breads, pastries, cakes, pizza al taglio, and focaccia sandwiches. Italian coffee, wines and cocktails are among the beverages on offer.
As the first iteration of Pane e Latte brand, the Stanley location takes full advantage of its seaside locale to evoke the colourful, cliffside homes in Positano, on the Amalfi coast. Striped beach parasols find new life as domed window awnings and pillow covers, in soft, gelato colours.
With this latest venture, Pirata Group strengthens its time tested competency for building simple, straightforward Italian concepts people love. Since opening its rooftop flagship namesake, Pirata, on 239 Hennessy Road, the Group has since introduced popular pasta bar Pici, and delicious pizzas at a fair price via The Pizza Project, both now with multiple brick-and-mortar locations as well as ghost kitchens.
Product
With a mission to Bake the World a Better Place, Pane e Latte uses nine different types of Italian flours to create traditional, authentic baked goods guests can enjoy all day long.
Bomboloni is an Italian doughnut made with soft yeast dough and filled with crema pasticcera. There are several kinds to satisfy every craving including vanilla, chocolate, hazelnut gianduja, salty caramel, pistachio & raspberry, lemon, and the locally-inspired milk tea bomboloni.
Pane e Latte`s Executive Chef Stephane Vieux shares, `We take no shortcuts. We buy raw ingredients only and make everything fresh every day. We put the effort in because we believe guests can taste the difference.`
Croissant Bomboloni is an intriguing Pane e Latte invention. Its exterior is made up of layers upon layers of flaky pastry, concealing a soft, pillowy centre filled with delicate, orange blossom crema.
Breads include the signature Focaccia Pugliese, different types of sourdough, ciabatta, baguette, rye bread, crispy brioche and more.
Fans of Danishes and viennoiserie will also find plenty to delight in, with selections such as pain au chocolat, croissants with various flavours and panettone-style brioche among others.
On the Cakes counter, guests will find signatures including double mascarpone cheesecake, charlotte raspberry, a light tiramisu papillote and other confections.
There is also a simple all-day breakfast menu available from opening til close with salads, focaccia sandwiches and plated dishes perfect for brunch, including truffle croissant, steak & eggs and avocado toast.
Downstairs, a gelato experience awaits in a secret speakeasy, coming in August. Pane e Latte gives its own spin to the beloved Italian frozen dessert by stacking it with creamy soft serve and a multitude of toppings including cotton candy, and dark and white chocolate shards, a true gelato experience.
Design
Located on a prominent junction, Pane e Latte is envisioned as a new Stanley village landmark while still being a warm, welcoming and unpretentious place to gather.
To harness natural light on its prime, seafront location, Pirata Group Head Designer Archie Haig framed the expansive space with floor-to-ceiling windows, pink columns and soaring drapes. The ceiling, itself, is covered in sheets of woven reed to evoke wheat fields. The floor is tiled with genuine Italian terracotta from Florence.
The walls and counters are festooned with antiques from Milan, including jars, paintings and real family photographs from Italian beachside holidays. Even the crockery is sourced from markets in Milan and Torino. A mixture of chairs, couches and banquettes create cozy social microcosms that invite guests to really settle in and linger a little longer without feeling the need to leave.
Downstairs, the bakery and food lab is ensconced in glass to showcase a functional bakery and how artisanal breads and pastries are handmade individually. This `panetteria theatre` then flows into the gelateria, with a similar industrial, yet no less tactile aesthetic. The delightful, Italian frozen treat is prepared on a sleek, amorphous, stainless steel counter. Overhead, the ceiling is a heavenly, painted canopy with clouds against a blue sky.
`We wanted to bring the Amalfi coast and la dolce vita to Hong Kong`s southside, through this project.` Haig reveals. `It`s not just a restaurant. It`s also an all-day cafe with grab-and-go and gelateria: a full spectrum ideation of the Pane e Latte brand. This was a fun project on which to flex creativity and let imagination fly.`
Pane e Latte | G/F, U-c Court, 25 Stanley Market Road, Stanley, Hong Kong | 08:00 – 21:00 Paneelatte.hk | @paneelattehk
