Lina Stores: a true taste of Italy in London

‘My parents used to live in Milan, but they hated the pollution, so they decided to change their lives,’ she explains. ‘They wanted to be able to grow their own vegetables and raise animals and live in the country, not just have a villa for the weekend and have a gardener that does everything for you!’ Masha’s parents roamed the country in search of their new home, and eventually came across a beautiful farm in Umbertide – a small town on the east bank of the Tiber, sitting in between Umbria and Tuscany. ‘When they moved there, they had no idea what they were doing!’ she laughs.

Masha and her sister were born shortly after, and the young family set about restoring the place, eventually opening it to the public as an agriturismo – a farm with guest rooms and restaurant – in 1985. ‘La Chiusa’ grew slowly but steadily, as did Masha, who grew up working on the farm. ‘We didn’t have any relatives there,’ she says. ‘No grandmothers and no-one to babysit, so I grew up in the kitchen with my mum. Whatever she was doing, I did too.’ Aside from a year in London in 1999 – during which time Masha befriended the owners of Lina Stores – she spent her whole life working at La Chiusa.

By the time she took over the business from her parents in 2004, the agriturismo stretched over seven hectares of land. Masha was growing organic fruit, vegetables and herbs, producing wine from her own vineyards and olive oil from her own olive groves. She planted a wheat field and milled flour to make her own bread and pasta. She kept poultry as well as rabbits and pigs, with the latter going towards her own salumi, which she would make and cure on-site. And all the while, she was cooking for twenty-five people in the restaurant every night. ‘When you get your products from a supplier, you don’t know the history of them,’ Masha explains. ‘I knew every single thing on that farm – not only do you value all of it, but you learn how to cook with everything. For example, courgettes – people use the courgette and the flowers, but no-one knows you can use the leaves too. It connects you with nature.’

Idyllic as it may sound, running La Chiusa became a constant, year-round job for Masha, and last year she made the tough decision to sell it. ‘When I took over the business I was with my husband,’ she explains. ‘Two people can manage the agriturismo, but after we divorced, I managed the last eight years on my own. It was a really sad time – the agriturismo was like a son or a daughter to me. I put all of myself, all of my energy into it, but it was too much.’ More than a little heartbroken, Masha called her friends at Lina Stores to tell them the news, unaware that they were cooking up their own plan for a restaurant. ‘We had kept in touch ever since I lived in London,’ says Masha. ‘My sister lived here for eight years too, so I’d often come to London and we’d all go out together. They said, ‘maybe it’s a good time to come and do something with us?’ Slowly but surely, it all started to come together.’

After around fifteen tasting sessions and countless flights to and from London, Masha finally moved to England for good in March 2018, and strapped on her Lina Stores apron. The menu at the restaurant is very much a picture of her – the emphasis is on the quality of the produce and the respect shown to it by the kitchen. ‘Italian food is simple,’ says Masha. ‘If you start with recipes that are too complicated, with too many ingredients, it’s like you’re trying to cover something up. One day, a lady passed in front of the restaurant and looked at the menu. She said, ‘this is such a simple menu, there isn’t anything special on here,’ but the simplicity is what makes it special.’