The City Council Hall was packed, and copies of the book “Il ristorante Passetto, un’icona nella storia di Ancona (1949–2010)” by Maria Grazia Camilletti sold out during its lively presentation.

The audience followed with great attention the projection of historical photographs, revisiting a chapter of Ancona’s collective memory. Among those present was Marta Paraventi, the city’s newly appointed Councillor for Culture. The event also featured speeches by Mayor Daniele Silvetti, Silvana Amati (President of the Gramsci Institute of the Marche), Marco Giovagnoli (Professor of Economic and Territorial Sociology at UNICAM), and Alessandra Burattini Spadavecchia, a direct descendant of the Piermattei family.
Valentina Conti from Affinità Elettive, who oversaw the book’s editing, had to rush out mid-event to fetch additional copies to meet the demand.

The author, Maria Grazia Camilletti, historian and scholar of women’s studies, captivated the audience as she retraced the key moments in the restaurant’s long history — from Aldo Piermattei’s dream of building a round restaurant overlooking the sea, to the design by engineer Gino Costanzi (whose daughter Costanza attended the event), and finally the inauguration in 1949, when at the Passetto there stood only the Monument to the Fallen and a few nearby houses, including the Piermattei family’s villa, home to the first restaurant.

Among the many personalities who made this restaurant a true institution were Renata Tebaldi, cousin of the famous soprano Maria Tebaldi and wife of Aldo Piermattei, who often shared tales from her opera tours; Alceo Moretti, renowned journalist; Aldo Roscioni; Master Sommelier Gualberto Compagnucci; and many other notable guests — Presidents of the Republic, Prime Ministers, actors, singers, designers, and entrepreneurs.