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The book Oltre il Menù by Luca Lotterio and Matteo Telaro resting on the work surface of a professional kitchen, with copper pans hanging and cutting boards in the background
Book

Oltre il Menù

The book that tells what really happens behind the work in dining rooms and kitchens, and why the restaurant of tomorrow starts from people.

Publisher
Topic Edizioni
Year
2026
Foreword
Ferran Adrià
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Synopsis

A book born from the floor

Behind every service there's a complex structure rarely studied with the same depth as a recipe. Oltre il Menù tackles exactly that dimension: how a team in hospitality is built and sustained, from hiring to exit, through onboarding, motivation, growth and recognition.

The book at a glance

  • 224pages
  • 6operational chapters
Foreword
Ferran Adrià
Publisher
Topic, ed. Marco Bolasco

What you'll find inside

Six chapters, from hire to exit

Practical tools for every stage of a hospitality team member's lifecycle.

  • 1

    pp. 34–69

    Recruiting

    Finding the right person, the right way

    Where to look, what to write in a job ad, how to spot who really wants the craft and who's just passing by.

    → How do you attract the people you actually want next to you?

  • 2

    pp. 70–111

    Onboarding

    The first step makes the difference

    The first hours, the first days, the first week. What to prepare, who to pair them with, how to give them a sense of place.

    → How much does a great onboarding actually pay back?

  • 3

    pp. 112–143

    Motivate and retain

    Caring for the person, not only for the professional

    Recognition, listening, feedback, team rituals. The levers that hold a team together beyond pay.

    → What makes a venue a place worth staying at?

  • 4

    pp. 144–167

    Career paths

    Growth tools beyond the vertical climb

    Lateral career paths, multi-skill, progressive responsibility. Growing without having to become "the boss".

    → Can people grow without climbing the org chart?

  • 5

    pp. 168–195

    Pay and benefits

    The many shapes of compensation

    Fixed pay, variable, welfare, flexible benefits, second-level bargaining. The compensation package that works today.

    → How do you build a pay package that actually attracts?

  • 6

    pp. 196–217

    Offboarding

    The craft of saying goodbye well

    How to handle an exit, why it shapes your venue's reputation, and how to turn a former teammate into an ambassador.

    → Do you finish a relationship the way you started it?

Culture defines who you are as a project; process determines how that identity is made sustainable day by day. Without culture, processes become empty bureaucracy. Without process, culture remains an inspiring speech that doesn't survive the pressure of service.
– Ferran Adrià, from the foreword

Authors

Who wrote Oltre il Menù

  • LL

    Luca Lotterio

    CEO and co-founder of Restworld

    Former waiter across Europe, work psychologist by training, today CEO of Restworld.

  • MT

    Matteo Telaro

    Hospitality entrepreneur, board member of Restworld

    Forty years of experience between hospitality and selling to hospitality.

Topic Edizioni

The publisher

Published by Topic, under Marco Bolasco's editorial direction

Topic is the Italian publishing house for non-fiction and technical books, founded by Marco Bolasco, former editorial director of Slow Food Editore and head of illustrated trade books at Giunti Editore. A line of publications dedicated to gastronomy treated with method and depth, not as entertainment.

Oltre il Menù

Get the book

Available on Amazon and at all major online bookstores.

Buy on Amazon