Relais Villa Prato #20
Heritage Villa in the heart of Monferrato
A family of notaries, lawyers and traders, who lived in Mombaruzzo from 1222, built Villa Prato on the plot of land that looks directly at the church of Sant’Antonio Abate. Over the years they made it more and more beautiful, enriching it with frescoes and fabrics, adding the octagonal tower that still rises above it, bringing it to life with their stories and passions. The lives of the Prato family became intertwined with those of the community of Mombaruzzo and with history, for seven hundred years, until 1933, when the last descendant of the family died. Several decades later, the Villa was sold to a Swiss couple. And so began its second, short life: the Villa was converted into a holiday home, but after a few years it was put up for sale again.
The story of two families, the Prato family and the Berta family
In 2007, when the Bertas, a family of distillers, saw Villa Prato for the first time, with its panoramic terraces, from which you can see the Alps on sunny days, it immediately seemed to be the place that would make their dream come true. Their dream was that everyone around the world would feel the same love for their land as they did. In 2016, almost ten years after they fell in love with it at first sight, they opened Villa Prato.
The place of dreams
The fourteen suites, the eight hundred meters of SPA and the two restaurants have finally found their vocation: to fulfill the dreams of those who experience them.
- Le Distillerie Berta – Enrico Simonetta Annacarla Giulia continues the work of Paolo and Gianfranco in order to produce a quality grappa as a distillate that can be drunk on the most special occasions;
- Wellness & SPA – 1,000 square meters of niches, vaults and tunnels wind their way under the ground. They are a secret oasis of calm nestled deep in the heart of the Mombaruzzo hills. Tra piscine, bagni di vapore, sAmong pools, steam baths, relaxation rooms and treatments inspired by age-old wisdom, a new dimension of peace is just a whisper away.
- Restaurants – Head chef at Villa Prato, Andrea Cavallo is influenced strongly by the heritage of his Piedmont: the Piedmont of the land, of ingredients, of harvesting cycles. It was in a Piedmontese kitchen, among the scents and sounds of work, that he met Francesco Paschina and Simone Magnetti, colleagues, friends, and now teammates at Villa Prato. The Officina – Under the frescoed ceilings, here food and wine play with scents and textures. From the hills of Mombaruzzo to the sea of Mazara del Vallo, from raw to cooked, from hot to cold, every dish travels along the very fine line of balance. The tables of the Taverna of Villa Prato are surrounded by bottles: its cuisine offers a taste of Piedmontese tradition, simple recipes executed to perfection, to be eaten slowly, enjoying the rustic elegance of the exposed bricks.
- The cellars – A treasure rests in the caskets of the three cellars of Villa Prato. More than 1,000 wines from Spain, Argentina, France, Austria and Germany. But the heart of the selection is in Italy. The cellars preserve and maintain the bottles to perfection, tangible reminders of extraordinary moments.
