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Identitá Golose 2011 - Part 2: Sat Bains and Paolo Lopriore

The British chef, Sat Bains from his eponymous restaurant in Nottingham, UK followed the charismatic Scabin, speaking of his difficult upbringing and how cooking gave him a life when his parents kicked him out of the house at age 18. Bains' goal at his restaurant to bring something familiar, to do it in a modern way, but without having "lost its soul." The most important thing for him is the ability to still taste the original ingredients of a dish.  He says, "The most important word in my gastronomy is flavor and I will sacrifice presentation to get flavor." Bains figures that in his kitchen, he doesn't try to "reinvent" things Rather, his effort is to "re-introduce." Bains talked about sustainability and demonstrated a dish built around mackerel, a "a very under-rated" fish  found "in abundance" in the British Isles and a "perfect antidote" to the problems of overfishing as it is a "a beautiful fish with great flavor." Crafting a vibrantly colorful dish, as an homage to Italy, Bains first removed the skin from the fish by brushing it with vinegar. This caused the skin to come off easily after about 15 seconds. He then sears the base of the skin leaving the top raw.He then uses acid from a beet ketchup to counterbalance the oily fat of the mackerel. He covered the mackeral with Lardo di Colonnata. The beet ketchup is layered on the bottom of the plate and topped with several slices of salt-baked beet and fresh, wild horseradish mixed with parsley oil and the lardo topped mackerel. To "add a little bit of luxury" he added some caviar and some croutons "for texture." The idea is to get "some soft, salt, fat, earth and acidity from the whole dish."  His second dish was one that he considered to be pure Nottingham, though some of its essential components are also seen in other cultures. For this dish, he "nurtured" beef cheeks by marinating them in Guiness to break down the fibers to make it tender. he paired the cheeks with oysters, reworking a traditional dish for a modern palate. The beef is served with an oyster emulsion, like a raw oyster mayonnaise to get a real flavor of the sea. He took this further by serving it with seaweed from the Kent coast. The dish is meant to be eaten by dragging the beef through the oyster puree combining freshness of vinegar from pickled onions with bitterness of beer. Bains invited a member of the audience up to sample the dish. His final dish showcased the strongly flavored mutton. He braised a salted  aged shoulder of mutton in a pressure cooker. He used capers to provide acidity, a combination that has been used in the UK since the 17th century. Playing around with leftover fat, bains made candles from pure mutton fat and lights them while serving the mutton dish so that the diner gets a sense of roasting mutton even before tasting the dish and then they pour the drippings from the candle into the sauce (made with capers and brown butter) to augment the flavor of the dish. The dish is finished with deep-fried capers, shallots and an onion powder, which adds depth and flavor to the dish.

Paolo Lopriore, chef of Il Canto in the Hotel Certosa di Maggiano just outside of Siena, took the Congress theme of "The Luxury of Simplicity" to heart. e preparec two dishes, both based upon few ingredients and presented very simply. The first was a torn piece of freshly made, crusty bread with a bit of butter and an immaculate raspberry while the second dish was a version of shabu shabu using raw saddle of goat and a broth made with tea roses. The presentation was simple but effective and well received by the audience.

Identitá Golose 2011 - Part 1: From Alajmo to Scabin

From pizza to pasta and risotto to radicchio, the latest edition of Identitá Golose in Milan covered the latest in the Italian food scene and then some. Laden with top Italian toques such as Massimo Bottura, Davide Scabin, Gennaro Esposito, the Brothers Alajmo, Corrado Assenza, Paolo Lopriore and International stars like Paul Liebrandt, Inaki Aizpitarte, Mauro Colagreco, Yoshihiro Narisawa, Nuno Mendes, Sat Bains, Mehmet Guhrs, Josean Martinez Alja and Magnus Nilsson amongst others, there was plenty for Italophiles as well as those just interested in good food. I will present the main stage presentations from the first two days of the Congress in several parts over the next couple of weeks. By virtue of English being my principle language, the discussions from the presenters who spoke in English will be a bit more detailed than those who did not. While I speak some Spanish, Italian and French (in that order), my abilities are not sufficient to provide the same level of detail. As such, I hope to provide a reasonably accurate gist of those presentations. My apologies if I missed nuance.

 

The Congress opened with Raffaele and Massimiliano Alajmo. Massimiliano, who at age 28 was the youngest chef ever to receive three Michelin stars at his restaurant Le Calandre, followed the theme of "the luxury of simplicity" to demonstrate a single dish, a black squid risotto. The squid,cooked sous vide at low temperature is paired with a rice cooked with a vegetable broth and in the "Venetian way" with very little cheese. Of course, the squid's ink is used for color and the flavors are accented with soy, sugar cane and star anise (none typically Italian). However, in a more Italian vein, the dish is finished with oil, some Parmesan and lemon for a touch of acidity. In what was a portent of upcoming presentations, the Alajmos showed a video entitled "EachCook - Il Diletto Imperfetto (the Imperfect Crime), which, I believe, was a call to removing the superfluous and the baroque from cooking and returning to simplicity. The Alajmos were also the first to send out samples of their cooking to the audience. No, they didn't send out the risotto, but they did send out a delectable olive oil cake with saffron and licorice oil.

Brodo - Villa Gaidello 11/11/2003

Having just returned from Italy and a quick visit to Modena, I was reminded of an earlier visit there with my son Andrew, then 12 years old, back in November of 2003. We stayed at the lovely agriturismo Villa Gaidello just outside the city. Like now, there was a chill in the air. This simmering brodo eventually made its way into our bowls and our stomachs along with some wonderful tortellini. I could go for some of this right now.

The Best Chef of the Year 2011

According to the prestigious International Academy of Gastronomy the Best Chef of the Year for 2011 is Massimo Bottura of Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy. Chef Bottura learned of his selection during the second day of the recent Identitá Golose in Milan. It has yet to be formally announced though.

I happened to have dinner at the Osteria Francescana the night following his notification of the award.  I am thrilled for Chef Bottura, a desrving soul, if ever their was one. His work is truly amazing and he couldn't be a nicer person. Congratulations to an outstanding chef and artist! Watch for my report on this outstanding dinner. For those in the United States who wish to get a sense of what Chef Bottura is all about, he will be presenting at the next Starchefs International Chefs Congress in NYC in October.

Carlo Petrini at Eataly

For the second time in three days, I drove back and forth, about 4 hours each way, from my home in upstate New York to Manhattan to see and spend time with a person whom I admire. The first time was to see Chef Rene Redzepi at Williams-Sonoma, buy the new Noma book and have him sign it for me. I had told him in Copenhagen that I would make it if I could. Happily, I did. That time was after I got out of work. This time, Saturday morning, I left my home first thing to make it down to see Carlo Petrini, the founder and leader of the International Slow Food movement.

 

I had met him before, in Naples, Italy during the 3rd International Slow Food Congress in 2003. The Congress happened to coincide with a trip I was taking to the area with my then twelve year old son, Andrew. I had become acquainted with Slow Food only a year earlier when I had taken my eldest son, L.J., then 12, on a culinary trip to my paternal homeland of Sicily. The leader of that trip, Peggy Markel, introduced us t the concept of Slow Food. When I discovered the overlap of our itineraries in Naples it seemed only natural to become a part of it. Meeting people like Pamela Sheldon Johns, Alice Waters, Corby Kummer, Jose Iturriaga de la Fuente, Winona laDuke, Myrtle and Darina Allen and Carlo Petrini amongst many others and hearing their stories was quite inspirational. When we got home, we kept Slow Food as part of a lifestyle and became members, though there was no chapter local to us. When L.J. was a junior in High School , he undertook the significant legwork necessary to start a local chapter. Since he was a minor, an adult was necessary to co-sign the papers with him, so I stepped in. The two of us along with Rocco Verrigni, Pat Sheldon and Kim Feeney as founding members, were then able to get our Slow Food Saratoga Region chapter off the ground.

Earlier this week, I received an email from Ed Yowell, Slow Food USA's Regional Governor for the northeast, saying that Carlo Petrini would be in town and would like to meet with members at Eataly. Attendance would be limited to 25 and complimentary tickets were available on Brown paper Tickets. My timing was good and I managed to pick a couple up. I knew Carlo and Eataly would make a very interesting combination.

We met at 1PM in the back of the store in the kitchen classroom. Petrini was accompanied by Marion Nestle and a translator.The group took seats around the classroom and the meeting started with Petrini asking us to say something about ourselves. As might be expected, the group was full of interesting people, including Nestle, Cesare Casella and others.

Once Petrini heard our stories, he started talking about why he was there, explaining that "America is constantly undergoing great change." Continuing with a quote from Edgar Moran, Petrini stated that 

“Every thing needs to start again, but it has all already started.” 

Saying that this was absolutely true in the USA, he noted that the movement is continuing to grow and transform. Transformation, according to Petrini, "comes from the grass roots and is much more important than revolution." Change from transformation may be as radical as revolution, but "transformation respects life, tradition & memory"… a kind of metamorphosis as in nature similar to when an ugly chrysalis becomes a lovely butterfly. "I feel this growing energy whenever I come back to the USA."

"As a movement," he continued in an animated fashion speaking of the value of Slow Food's Terra Madre gatherings, "we have to reconcile science with traditional knowledge… and to establish a dialogue between the two… because the level of knowledge in science is high and that of traditional knowledge is low… so there is no dialogue… dialogue must be between equals." According to Petrini, this realization borne from Terra Madre changed Slow Food, so that it was no longer just an association of gourmets, an elitist movement. "Terra Madre has brought everything back to earth." Petrini noted that Terra Madre is everywhere, 163 countries, rich & poor countries alike. According to Petrini, "all those who attended Terra Madre are back in their home countries working". As an example, he cited the story of a cook from Rio De Janeiro who went home from Terra Madre and built a school for the children of the favelas (slums) to teach them how to cook manioc root. To date, over 17000 children have gone through that school and now have some sense as to how to cook a staple meal. He asked, "So what is the impact?" and answered, "Self esteem is the best thing people can get from Terra Madre." This "can really push people… a simple African farmer can come to Terra Madre and realize that he is not alone, he can realize that there are much bigger things… now with renewed self-esteem goes back & works even harder – the realpolitik…not that from professional politicians, but that from the grass-roots. Like a snail that goes on and on and keeps growing."

 

Continuing to discuss Terra Madre, but switching gears to describe the approach to the upcoming summit, Petrini, stated, "We deal with agriculture and food, but not in a specialist way, because food is life." The first Terra Madre was designed only for farmers, the 2^nd also included chefs and then the third added musicians and youth. The upcoming Terra madre will be focusing on indigenous peoples and the over 2000 languages that are at risk of disappearing, a significant part of culture. To safeguard biodiversity, Petrini opined with great conviction, "we must safeguard all biodiversity including cultures and languages." For example, the tools used to describe traditional farming practices all over the world are described in indigenous, local languages. If the languages are lost, so will be much of the knowledge held within them. This year at Terra Madre "there will be no politicians, only indigenous peoples speaking in their ancestral languages." He added, "The message must be clear… we will draw up a document to deliver to governments all over the world." He outlined this year’s goal to be "the construction of 1000 gardens in Africa in 1 year’s time with all the communities involved. . no missionaries…. The Africans will create the gardens." Petrini noted, "African Terra Madre communities will be in charge of the gardens," adding "we will just need to give them a hand." He described the plan as "A message of the real fraternity of Terra Madre…. Just a small thing, but many small things can actually bring change."

 

Petrini, moving on with the audience in rapt attention, listening to every word of this charismatic man,, stated, "Another important idea is to build a seed-bank of memories. All 1700 Slow Food chapters around the world shall fill the bank with memories and experiences of old farmers and artisans to create a common heritage for everyone to safeguard the memory of traditional knowledge…even farmers & old cooks are wise and intellectual… take the camera & film them… we need to gather this traditional knowledge all over the world… in different languages and contexts." With many heads nodding in agreement, Petrini smiled and continued to his next agenda item.

 

Surprising most, if not all of the people in the room, Petrini, announced his intention to hold the next International Slow Food Congress next year NYC, noting "We need a big hand to accomplish this. NYC is a very big city… our message must be conveyed in the cities as well as the countryside." It was clear that while the intent is there, this will be a tall order to fill in just over a year's time. Can it actually happen in that time frame? Exciting if it can. Petrini added, "The time has come to have Terra Madre ... now is the right time in the US to seize the opportunity… a message from the USA is a message to the whole world. Right now the Slow Food movement is very strong in the US and there is much interest at the world level at what happens here. NYC would be the right choice."

 

He apologized for not speaking English, blaming his old teacher, who he said, "didn’t do a good job."

 

Shifting gears yet again, Petrini, discussed what he feels to be the pillars of the Sloe Food Movement, stating, "The first of two strong bases of the movement is 'affective intelligence'." Claiming that the world is "overwhelmed by rational intelligence, but lacking the intelligence of the heart," Petrini said, "Slow Food's’s intelligence is the intelligence of the heart, affective intelligence," adding, "this can convince a lot of people to volunteer." For Petrini, "The second base is 'austere anarchy.'" He described this by saying, "Each chapter (of Slow Food) can do what it likes. (The organization) is not based on a hierarchy." This is true "all over the world," but is a difficult concept to explain to Americans." For Petrini, the word "austere" makes the difference and makes the concept palatable and workable. For him the chapters grow in their own communities and reap their own rewards.

 

Nicola Farinetti

Speaking of the day's hosts, Eataly NYC, Petrini provided some background and history behind the concept, which started in Italy as the brainchild of Oscar Farinetti, an Italian Industrialist and old friend of Petrini. Brought to the US by Mario Batali, and the mother son pair of Lidia and Joe Bastianich, Eataly NYC is managed by Farinetti's son, Nicola. According to Petrini, "The idea behind Eataly is food quality that is fair for everyone…pay producers and farmers, but keep prices reasonable for all, a very difficult thing to do." Whether they can successfully manage that for the long haul remains to be determined. Petrini was excited by the fact that the staff of Eataly is young. The staff(400) has an average age of 30.

 

With Petrini's meeting come to a close, the group was lead up stairs to a balcony overlooking the store, where we were treated to a lovely, simple meal of mozzarella, salad, pasta and pizza, a satisfying end to a fascinating afternoon. I'm glad I went.

 

Oven Dried Tomatoes

 

Sun-dried tomatoes have received a bad rap in recent years - perhaps because they were just about everywhere and in everything back in the '80's and early '90's or perhaps because most people have only tried commercial versions. That's too bad, because they really are a great product, especially when starting with good tomatoes. The best I can recall was when I was in Sicily back in 2002 at Anna Tasca Lanza's Tasca d'Almerita Regaleali Estate and Cooking School with Peggy Markel's Culinary Adventures. Of course they grew their own tomatoes and dried them in the glorious Sicilian sun, which I could swear I tasted in every bite. 

Unfortunately for tomato drying purposes, we don't have too much Sicilian style sunshine where I live, so actually drying tomatoes in the sun is not a very practical project. The good news is that drying them in an oven is very nearly as good.

 

My wife bought a bushel of Juliette plum tomatoes from Linda Gifford at the Glens Falls Farmers Market and dried her own. She washed them, cut them in half, scored the backs of each half tomato and placed them on cookie racks with a little salt sprinkled over the tomatoes. She then placed them in the convection oven to roast at the lowest setting of 170ºF with the door propped just ajar to allow the exit of moisture. The duration can be quite variable depending on the amount of moisture in the tomatoes as well as the ambient environment. The object is to get a texture between leathery and brittle. It took her about 4-5 hours to get a great result.

 

So forget about what you thought you knew or didn't like about sun-dried tomatoes, if you have never had freshly dried ones! So long as you have good plum tomatoes, it is pretty easy and they are oh, so good!

Stella Starr

With my friend Judith Klinger's words that she prefers to go to Pizzeria Stella in Philadelphia for pizza rather than stay in NYC , I had to taste for myself. I since suggested that another good friend try it when he was in Philadelphia and his raves seemed to match Judith's, amplifying my interest even further. To clarify, Judith is someone whose opinions about food, especially Italian food, I take seriously, very seriously. Judith and her husband Jeff live half their year in NYC and half their year in Montone, Italy, where they have successfully opened an Italian restaurant. Judith also keeps a blog, Aroma Cucina, in which she writes a lot and very well about Italian food. I have also dined with Judy and Jeff. They know their Italian food. I also value my other friend's opinion. Individually or together, their opinions spurred me to visit Pizzeria Stella.

On a recent weekend in Philadelphia, a get together with other food obsessed friends was a perfect way to try Pizzeria Stella, Philadelphia über-restaurateur Stephen Starr's foray into the world of Neapolitan style pizza. Stella, of course, means “star” in Italian, which means that Starr effectively named the restaurant after himself. I guess he was serious about making good pizze.

The restaurant, located in a corner building in a lovely part of old Philadelphia, is bright and expansive with plenty of windows opening out onto both streets. A new, adjacent bar makes the restaurant even bigger. The central pizza making station is spacious and centered around a classic domed Neapolitan wood-fired beehive oven with the name Stella tiled in on the oven's transom. The internal fire, off to one side of the oven, was raging when we arrived for an early dinner. A row of bar stools overlooking the workings of the oven and around it stood empty when we arrived.

Our focus was on the pizza, but we decided to warm up our appetites with a couple of orders of arancini, Sicilian fried stuffed rice balls named for their resemblance to “little oranges.” While not quite at the rapturous level of my beloved Ferdinando's Foccaceria or those made by Ana Tasca Lanza at The Regaleali Estate in Sicily, these were still quite good. The size of small meatballs, they were tightly packed with herbs and melted cheese in the center. They were smothered in a good marinara tomato sauce with shaved parmesan (pecorino or especially cacciocavallo would have been more Sicilian) strewn on top. The exteriors of the arancini were perfectly crisp and fried just right. These were compact balls that would not simply fall apart. The rice was al dente, perhaps a touch too much to my taste. The only real flaw of these fine morsels, though, was a relative lack of flavor compared to the virtuous examples cited above. I attribute that to a mildly flavored filling and the failure to use a saffron laced risotto milanese for the rice base. While these were in fact, very good and technically beautiful, I would have preferred a more inherently full-flavored rice ball with less sauce. Nevertheless, they provided a lovely start, as it is hard to find rice balls in this country as good as these outside of a Sicilian-American home kitchen.

We ordered 8 pizze. Unfortunately, I failed to request that they come out in waves. Instead. they arrived essentially simultaneously, one after another arriving at the table in short order. Since we ordered all the pies cut to share, this meant that not all the pies could be sampled fresh and hot by everyone without rushing through each slice.

As much as I would have liked to order every pie on the menu, there were simply too many to choose from, so we had to leave a few to try another time. Of course, we had to order the gold standard of Neapolitan pies, the Pizza Margherita, so-named after the former Queen of Italy. The pie, dressed in the red, green and white colors of the Italian flag, contained San Marzano tomato sauce, basil and fresh mozzarella di bufala blended on a crisply seared crust. The basil was justly applied just before serving preserving its aromatic strength. The buffalo milk mozzarella was soft and creamy and the sauce flavorful without overpowering the pizza. The crust was well charred with an adequate number of bubbles. While the center of the pie was a tad soft, it held up to eating by hand. While I would not say this was the best pizza napolitana I have had in the US (for one, I prefer that of Keste in NYC), it was damn good and would have been worth the visit even if it was the only pie we had.

Thankfully, we had other pies to sample too. Each was expertly prepared with only personal preference separating one from another. From a list of specials we selected a pizza with Squash Blossoms, ricotta, basil, San Marzano tomato sauce, mozzarella and a little chili oil, which gave it a fair kick. As was the case for all the rest of the pizze, the pizza was beautiful with a lot of flavor. Squash blossoms are a great vehicle, but don't generally provide a wallop of flavor, usually relying on an aromatic stuffing within. In the case of this pizza, the flavor came from the other ingredients with the blossoms providing just a subtle component.

The Sausage Pizza also had a kick, this time from the “long hot pesto”, which also added a splash of bright green color to the pie. The kick was balanced by tomato, basil and mozzarella. The Polpette pizza was amongst my favorites. In addition to the sliced meatballs, it contained ricotta, the same tomato sauce, basil and Sicilian oregano. The most aromatic of the pies, no surprise, was the Tartufo, which came with black truffle, fontina, an egg, which was spread out around the pie by the server and parmesan. It was yummy. I expected the Piccante with capicola, aged provolone, crushed red pepper and tomato to be devilishly spicy, but it was no more so than the sausage or squash blossom pizze. Delicious despite being over-charred on one side and the most novel combination, the Pistachio also had red onion (added after the oven), fontina and extra virgin olive oil. Surprisingly, my favorite pie was the Spinach, which came with oven roasted tomato, mozzarella and pine nuts. I shouldn't have been surprised as I generally love that combination and so I did here.

 

While I was not as enamored of Pizzeria Stella as my friend Judith, I did like it a lot. The quality and overall experience is such that it has to be considered one of the better artisanal pizza restaurants in the country, especially of those practicing Neapolitan style pizza. Though I consider it a notch below Keste, correctly timed Grimaldi's (in Brooklyn) and certainly Pepe's in New Haven ( the latter two are not strictly Neapolitan style pizzerias, at least not la vera pizza napolitana), it is most certainly worth a visit for any pizza afficionado when visiting the City of Brotherly Love.

Visiting Vetri

In 2005 in Bon Appetit magazine, Philadelphia area native, critic Alan Richman called Vetri “probably the best Italian restaurant in America.” Having secured a coveted 9PM Saturday evening reservation for four for The Chef's Grand Tasting Menu, which is only offered on Friday and Saturday evenings, I was finally able to form my own opinion.

The premise of The Chef's Grand Tasting Menu, considered by the restaurant to be the epitome of the Vetri experience, is to create “customized multi-course tasting menus for each table...a seamless succession of dishes and wines personalized to each individual's taste.” Each diner is presented a menu, hand-painted by Chef Marc Vetri, based on available seasonal ingredients for that particular evening's dinner. From this menu, with the consultation of the server and the wine staff, the table's meal would be constructed. At the end of the meal, the signed menu was ours to keep. Ours contained a total of 11 savory items and 4 desserts. Amongst the 4 of us, we were served 10 of the savory courses and all 4 desserts, with the specific placement of dishes determined in several instances by preferences cited at the beginning of the meal. The lone savory course omitted was “”red mullet with pepperonata and saffron mayonaisse,” the only fish on the menu.

Vetri, located in a town house in Central Philadelphia, is small, intimate and quite romantic. The dining room is warm and elegant, lending a feeling of being in a stately private home. The service is assured and efficient, friendly, but not overly familiar. With warm earth tones and low light predominating, the restaurant was pretty, but not particularly camera friendly, thus only photos of a few of the dishes came out well enough to present here.

For each course with the exception of dessert and the initial three pronged amuse, which we each received, two different preparations were presented with one served to one member of a couple and the other to the other member of a couple. It amounted to everyone receiving a 15 course meal as my wife and I tasted each other's savory courses and all four of us tasted each of the desserts. Serving the meal this way, saved on dinnerware, saved on plating, saved on wine and saved on time, but it scrimped on elegance, since it is never as elegant to eat from a plate that has already been sampled from. Of course, we didn't have to share plates, but that would have only been half the experience.

The amuse, separated on a long narrow plate into three sections was mostly forgettable, though I enjoyed the bit of pork belly more than the other components, one of which contained foie gras. We were served a glass of prosecco with the amuse.

Sliced Pork Butt with Horseradish and Radish Salad

The first platings from the menu followed a bit after. I received the “Sweet Onion Crepe” over white truffle fondue with Parmesan while my wife received house-brined “Sliced Pork Butt with Horseradish and Radish Salad.” My friend, David and I were the only ones indulging in the wine pairings, so his dishes tended to mirror my wife's, to enable the restaurant to present different wines to each of us. Of the first two dishes, the sweet onion crepe was the more elegant and the more delicious, a conclusion that would have surprised me, had I done the ordering for myself. The pork butt was truly nothing special. Had the pork packed more flavor or nuance, it may have justified its relatively inelegant presentation, but alas, it did not. I was served a glass of Domaine de La Patine, 2008 Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley to accompany the decidedly French feeling crepe.

Snails with Watercress Crema and Crème Fraiche

For the next progression I received “Eggplant Terrine with Salsa Rossa and Marcona Almonds”, while my wife received a Vetri signature, “Snails with Watercress Crema and Crème Fraiche.” Although it was highly processed, I could buy the association of the eggplant dish, which happened to be quite delicious, with Italy, however, not so on the snails, which once again felt more French than Italian. Of course, Italy is a large country with a varied cuisine, so there is plenty of leeway, but still.... Though considered one of Vetri's classics and a signature, I failed to find the magic in the dish outside of its pretty presentation. Flavor-wise, it was surprisingly drab. The Librandi Ciro Rosato 2008 from Calabria, Italy worked well with the eggplant as did the remainder of the pairings, even if none truly stood out as particularly memorable.

Spinach Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Shaved Ricotta Salata

Another signature was up next for me, Vetri's “Spinach Gnocchi with Brown Butter and Shaved Ricotta Salata.” Finally, here was a dish that clearly had Italian origins. To me, what separates the best gnocchi from lesser ones is their ethereal lightness. While delicious, these were anything but light. My wife was served “Cavatelli with Fava and Truffle Pecorino.” A subtle dish, it was lighter than the gnocchi, but unfortunately that additional lightness seemed to come at the expense of flavor.

The level of the food took a significant turn for the better with the next course. The “Porcini Ravioli with langoustines” was full flavored, delicious, Italian and original. I grudgingly gave up half the dish to my wife, but my hesitation soon turned to joy when I tasted the remains of her “Rosemary Pappardelle with Lamb Bolognese.” One of my two favorite dishes of the evening, I now started to get a glimpse of what all the fuss has been about with this restaurant. The pasta was ethereal and the bolognese sublime.

My other favorite dish came with the next and final savory course. A large double grilled veal chop was brought to the table for display before returning to the kitchen for plating and service. I was the beneficiary of Vetri's “Grilled Veal with Chantarelles,” while my wife, who is not crazy about veal received “Baby Goat with Soft Polenta.” I got to eat my entire plating of juicy, flavor-packed veal chop and lovely, earthy chantarelles and still taste the kid. The kid was tasty, but I definitely won with the veal. Vetri's charms were becoming clearer yet.

Unfortunately, my growing sense of appreciation was knocked back with a lackluster pre-dessert of strawberry sorbet with black raspberries. This wasn't bad, it just wasn't anything special. Wonderful things can be done with strawberries and raspberries, but this was far from wonderful.

I've noticed a trend with some finer restaurants when trying to show off their dessert capabilities during degustations. Rather than drawing out the dinner and serving each diner a taste of each dessert, they take the easy and lazy way out, by serving each diner a different dessert and having them share by passing the desserts around the table. That is not so bothersome when the dining partners are lovers or at the least very close friends, but what does one do if with casual acquaintances? Fortunately for us, we were all close friends, so hygiene was not a huge issue, but still it lacks elegance.

Usually, in these situations I wind up lusting after someone else's dessert, discovering one I liked better than my own during the pass around. On this occasion, however, that was not the case. Amongst the “Chocolate Polenta Souffle,” the “Cherries with Pistachio Zabaione,” the “Blackberry Zuppa Inglese” and the “Strawberry Zeppole,” my Cherries with Pistachio Zabaione was the clear winner. Out of the others, the only real competition came from the souffle. The zeppole was acceptable, but the Blackberry Zuppa Inglese was boring and totally forgettable.

Make no mistake, Vetri is a fine restaurant. It is warm, romantic and has fine food, lovely wine and good, professional service. They also emphasize some of the little things that help to make a dining experience special, such as the signed menu, take away muffins and detailed descriptions of the wines. With all due respect to Alan Richman, though, I do not agree that Vetri is “probably the best Italian restaurant in America.” Not even close. While our meal had some notable highs, it had some distinct lows and far too many simply good dishes to justify that sort of accolade or even its steep $135/person price tag (add $90pp for the wine pairing). Overall, I liked my meal, but I can't say that I loved it.

Serendipity

We were supposed to be home. The original plan was to get an early start, spend a portion of the day at Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, N.J., head into Manhattan for an early dinner at Pulino then home. The plan was initially derailed by an extended shopping trip to Fairway (we went for bagels and "a few things") and even more so by an estate sale across the street in Ridgewood, where my wife bought 4 beautiful concrete planters for $20 each.

Although we were getting a late start, we still planned on going to the Science Center and Pulino until I got a call from my sister, Elizabeth, to see if we were back from New Orleans yet. She herself had just returned from Cabo on Thursday. I didn't think she was returning until Saturday. She was in the process of making stuffed artichokes and "meat in the gravy" and since we were still in NJ invited us over. As much as I wanted to try Pulino, how could we refuse? I was amazed that she undertook that degree of cooking without any assurance of company. We spent a couple of hours at the Science Center before heading upriver to her apartment in Fort Lee.

Not wanting to arrive empty handed, we went searching for a pastry shop along the way and hit paydirt at Giorgio's on Washington Street in Hoboken, where I picked up some cannoli and sfogliatelle-like "lobster tails" that were stuffed with cream.

We finally made it to my sister's. Knowing that we were coming, she went out to supplement her meal with some fresh mozzarella from A&S in Wyckoff (smooth, creamy and delicious), Italian bread with sesame seeds, olives and her own fried red peppers. Paired with a little pinot grigio, this alone could have made a satisfying supper, but then came her stuffed artichokes. Elizabeth makes them similar to the way my mother did, but with her own little tweaks. Stuffed with bread crumbs, herbs, Parmesan and chunks of provolone, they were magnificent. So was her "gravy over maccheroni. She made meatballs and braciole and also included sweet Italian sausage, all marvelous and my definition of comfort food, especially with a little ricotta added to the pasta. The pasta was served with a home-made red wine given to her by a friend. It was surprisingly good.

The pastries also turned out to be very good and just the right ending component for this wonderfully spontaneous meal. Thanks, Sis!

A Slow Dinner at Cafe Lazio

 

It's not called “comfort food” for nothing. The most recent Slow Food Saratoga Region monthly restaurant dinner was held at what has become my favorite local restaurant (as regular readers of my blog most likely already know) – Cafe Lazio in Queensbury, N.Y., a marvelous location for great Italian and Italian-American comfort food. We filled the restaurant to capacity and were treated to family style service of Chef Adriano DiMario's marvelous cooking.

Chef Di Mario started us with his house-made foccaccia with tuna and arugula. Not a complicated dish, but so good and satisfying, this was an example of one of the best elements of Italian cookery – keeping it simple and letting good ingredients shine and paly well together. Sometimes simple isn't easy – at least not easy to do very well. DiMario's deft touch with ingredients and balance really helped this shine.

Two pastas came next, linguine with two different sauces. The first was a white clam sauce and the other a deceptively simple pomodoro with pancetta. White clam sauce is one of my favorites and DiMario makes it about as well as anyone, though this version was not his best, perhaps having suffered somewhat from being prepared in volume. Nevertheless, it was still quite good. The pomodoro, though, was just superb. The tomato sauce was bright and deep from the pancetta. I could have just eaten that and been happy. DiMario's freshly baked Italian bread made a great mop for left-over sauce.

The main course was a medley of porchetta, the best eggplant parm on the planet, wonderful roasted potatoes, broccoli rabe and cauliflower with a bagna cauda sauce, all delicious and satisfying with generous portions of each placed on the tables.

DiMario's tira misu suffered a technical mishap, but retained it's wonderful flavor. That DiMario could put out such wonderful food for so many at the same time in his small kitchen, essentially by himself is a small miracle and a testament to his skill. That he could do it for the special Slow Food Price of $35pp (for members) inclusive of tax and gratuity makes it that much more special.

Adriano DiMario's Seafood Fra Diavolo - A Video Presentation

I enjoyed the seafood fra diavolo at Cafe Lazio in Queensbury, N.Y., I asked Chef Adriano DiMario if he would mind if I filmed him preparing the dish. He graciously agreed and here is the result. This is my first video for this site. Though far from perfect, I believe it captures the essence of Chef DiMario's dish. I hope that you agree!

Saratoga Wine & Food Festival 2009

The weather once again wasn't ideal, but that didn't stop a lot of people from sampling a wide variety of wines and foods, both local and from afar. Sponsored by The Italian Trade Commission, this year's festival had a decidedly Mediterranean feel to it, with plenty of wines and foods directly from Italy, not to mention those incredible Ferraris.

I was there to man a booth to represent Slow Food Saratoga Region and Slow Food USA, but I still managed to taste a few delightful things. There was a bewildering assortment of wines from around the globe. Amongst many new to me, I found some old favorites like Avignonesi's Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (unfortunately, they did not bring any of their Vin Santo, one of the great nectars of the world) and the Vietti Castiglione Barolo. With so many wines to choose from, I opted to try some other spirits, notably Aperol, an amaro from Italy composed from "herbs and roots." This made quite a nice and bright cocktail when combined with either Prosecco or Spumante. The spumante, sweeter than the prosecco provided greater balance to the Aperol's underlying bitterness. The table next to ours housed New York's Tuthilltown Spirits and their full line of Hudson Whiskeys. Their rye will no doubt make an excellent Manhattan.

Aside from the Italian delights including wheels of Parmiggiano-Reggiano and Grana Padano, an ocean of olive oil and chunks of mortadella and prosciutto, there was plenty of prepared foods from area restaurants. I particularly enjoyed the samples from Church & Main in Canojaharie, Angelo's 677 Prime in Albany, The Sagamore in Bolton Landing and Hattie's in Saratoga, all of which demonstrated skill, imagination and taste.

The day appeared to be a success for Slow Food Saratoga Region as well. We were visited by many with a real interest in what we are doing. It was also great to run into a number of old friends as well as some friends from the internet, who I had never previously met in person. Though the sky was wet, the attendees spirits were not dampened.

La Festa di Ferrari

Who says that we are in tough economic times? One wouldn't know it based on the collection of vintage and new Ferraris on display at The Saratoga Performing Arts Center this past Saturday. A collection of vehicles brought together from around the country, this show, a product of the Saratoga Auto Museum, was part of the Saratoga Food and Wine Festival this year sponsored by the Italian Trade Commission and rivaled the collection of Ferraris on display at the Ferrari Museum in Maranello, Italy just outside of Modena.

Though I have never ridden in one, let alone drive one, I first became enamored of the artistry of the automobiles on a visit to the museum, when my son and I were staying in Modena several  years ago. They are simply beautiful creations, exquisitely built and a joy to look at. I can only imagine the thrill of driving one on the road.

The assemblage at SPAC included private touring vehicles as well as several that had won major international races. They also covered a variety of styles, and in addition to the well-known Ferrari red, an assortment of colors, including my favorite, the yellow. I am told by a friend and colleague who I worked with in the past and who now owns one of the Ferraris that was on display, that a few of the cars present are considered to be "priceless" given their individual histories. I have no doubt that he is correct.

There was plenty of food and wine under the tents, but just seeing these beautiful machines all together was food for the spirit. More to come on the Food and Wine event later. In the meantime, I hope that you enjoy this slide show of the Ferraris.

Ramblings in Italy - Looking Back

Ramblings in Italy

Looking Back

Ringraziarla a tutto

Thanks to Everyone 

by Rocco Verrigni

After a trip with so many highpoints, it’s difficult to begin to thank those who made it such a wonderful and productive trip. But try I must. Everywhere I went I was greeted with enthusiasm, put up in homes, taken out to dinner, and treated like family, literal or otherwise.

So let’s start at the beginning. For providing me with an initial home base that helped me to recover from the rigors of travel, I thank Daniela Balestra, who shared her home, nourished me with the food of summer, and spent endless hours conversing about food, culture and life. Your terrazzo is etched in my mind. To Renato who hosted me at his photo studio my first weekend in Italy and provided an opportunity to meet some locals and simply spend a Sunday afternoon relaxing, talking and of course eating.   

My next stopping point was Parma. Here, my host was a friend and business associate, Giacomo Berselli, who is a life-long resident of Parma and the quintessential spokesman      of Parma, its bucolic surrounding countryside, world-famous products, and history. Giacomo is is the director and founder of Marco Polo Institute, whose mission is to promote Italian cultural education and tourism through study-abroad programs with the United States and other countries. Somehow within his busy daily schedule, he always found time to get together to eat, not just in the city but in the surrounding countryside. No matter what we were doing, there were always two elements involved, food and culture or history. Giacomo’s seemingly endless of knowledge about the history, food and customs of the area always excited me and made me thankful for being the recipient of his passionate exchange of information.

Heading south from Parma, I traveled down the Adriatic coast to Roseto degli Abruzzi in the region of Abruzzo. Up until now, my experiences were with acquaintances and associates previously made. This stop would be very different in that I would meet and make new acquaintances. With slight apprehension, I arrived at Verrigni Pastificio. For the next four days, I was in the hands of the Verrigni family for what turned out to be a very gratifying experience. My stay here was punctuated by two meals a day and long conversations with Luigi and Grazie Verrigni, my new-found relatives. For taking a perfect stranger into their home and treating them like family, ringrazio miei nuovi cugini trovati, I thank my new-found cousins.  

Continuing my southerly route, I made my way to Orsara di Puglia, region of Puglia where I met an incredible chef and personality of the area, Peppe Zullo. From our first meeting that day which started with the traditional kiss on each cheek greeting, to our goodbyes a week later, I felt like a brother, friend and colleague. I have written at length about my stay with Peppe and what remains is a huge thank you for opening your home, workplace and heart to me. I know I have made a friend and colleague for life.  

Thanks also go out to Livio Colapinto and Kathrin Tehervary of Cefalicchio Country House in Canosa di Puglia, who graciously invited me to the country house to attend the National Conference of Slow Food Governors of Italy where I met several slow food regional presidents, Roberto Burdese, the President of Slow Food Italy, and several other Italian Slow Food consorts. The night was filled with discussions with producers of some of the Puglia’s greatest products, including burrata, a fresh Italian cheese, made from mozzarella and cream, totally decadent, and of course samplings of many of the area’s wines, breads and cheeses. Although a bit nervous and uncomfortable about conversing in my limited Italian with some of Italy’s most influential people in the slow food movement, I was helped along by my newly-made “best friend”, Peppe Zullo who met me there. The traditional multi-course (7 or 8, I think) started right on time at 8:30 -9:00PM and continued until midnight or so. I’m not quite sure because I left before dessert.  

Although there are many others to whom I am thankful, they are too numerous to mention here. There is however one more person or should I say personality to thank. For without him I would not have had a forum in which to share my Ramblings in Italy. That person is John Sconzo a.k.a. Docsconz. By the very nature of your reading my postings on John’s blog he needs no introduction. I simply couldn’t pass up the opportunity to thank John in his own arena. Rest assured I will also do so in other arenas. My association with John is relatively short but has developed into one as rich as burrata, as pleasurable as a well-planned and prepared meal, which he is known for, and as varied as the seasonal offerings at the farmer’s markets of the area. Thank you, John for sharing your forum with me and allowing me to tell la storia delle mie escursioni in Italia, the story of my “Ramblings in Italy”.                    Cent’anni.

 

Editor's Note: Thank you, Rocco, for such a lovely, thoughtful, poetic and entertaining travelogue. It has been a pleasure hosting it!

Ramblings in Italy – Region of Parma

Ramblings in Italy – Region of Parma

June 15, 2009

Visit to Antica Corte Pallavicina and Dinner at Al Cavallino Bianco

 by Rocco Verrigni

 
Culatelli

On the banks of the Po River in the region of Parma, in Polesine Parmense, lies Antica Corte Pallavicina Relais, a restored 14^th century estate with historical connections to Maestro Guiseppe Verdi and his family. Also on located on the grounds is Al Cavallino Bianco Ristorante. 

With friends from the area, I toured the cellars and grounds of the estate. Our tour guide was Massimo Spigaroli who along with others has restored the estate. He is also the force behind the production of one the region’s celebrated products, Culatello di Zibello, a cured ham made from the black pigs “Nera Parmigiana” of the area. Walking among the thousands of culatelli hanging in the cellars was mildly intoxicating and full of the smell of aging. We also toured the cellars were hundreds of wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano lie, as they go through their 2 year aging process.  

Alora (then) it was up to the restaurant where we tasted the fruits of some one else’s hard labor. We started our meal with a degustione of the local cured meats and cheeses. Of course there was Culatello di Zibello (DOP), a distinctive pear-shaped ham entwined in reams of string that form a broadknit net with meat that is uniformly red and speckled with pieces of white fat between the muscle fibres, a scent that is intense and distinctive, and a taste that is sweet and delicate. The selection also included strohlghino, a salume made with the trimmings of culatello, coppa, a muscle of the pork right behind the back of the head, at the top of the shoulder, pancetta, other local salumi, and lardo. All of this went well with a local red sparkling wine, Fortana, similar to the regions most celebrated, lambrusco. I then had a Parmigiano specialty, Tortelli di Erbette, the ethereal pasta of the area, stuffed with greens, in a light butter sauce and of course, parmigiano reggiano cheese. I finished with a pistachio semi-freddo, café and nocino, the Emilia-Romagna digestivo made made from unripe green walnuts steeped in spirits.

A perfect day and evening in the region of Parma with friends. Thank you, Giacomo.

Ramblings in Italy – Puglia - A Day with Peppe

June 22, 2009
A Day with Peppe
What Could be Better?
by Rocco Verrigni

It’s not often one gets the chance to spent an entire day with a celebrated chef, teacher, entrepreneur, and newly-made friend and colleague. I had that chance today. The day was filled with walks around his property, stories about the history of Puglia, of the  restoration of Villa Jamele, where his school, gardens and banquet facilities are located, cooking for unexpected guests, exchanging life stories and of course  eating, always eating. As much as we did, nothing was rushed, and all was tranquile, as the Italians say. I can’t remember when I have spent such a pleasurable day with a colleague. We were both teachers and students for the day.

Peppe is a creator and as we talked throughout the day, he often said that it is his life’s work to keep inventing and creating this or that. As we strolled around Villa Jamele, he gave me the entire history of the place before and after he purchased it. There are still several workmen on the property finishing some project or starting a new one. I was most impressed with what he has done to sustain and improve the natural character of the property. We walked around an area that he has created from an overgrown and recently unkempt woodland. He put in an old stone walkway where school children can go to view the land in its natural state. He has planted hundreds of fruit and nut trees around the area along with preserving the native wild habitation. There are dozens of wild lettuces, greens and flowers. He pointed out each one of them and what they were good for.  He demonstrated without flaunting a vast knowledge of the local flora. As we walked around he would stop and pick this green or that flower which we would use to cook lunch with later. He called it his natural super market. The property  abounds with grape vines and olive trees, from which he produces wine and olive oil for use in his restaurants, markets to the public.

Once back at the restaurant, it was time to make pasta. While doing this, a couple of friends from a newly opened restaurant several villages away showed up and now we had someone besides ourselves to cook for. The next 3 hours were spent creating, cooking, talking, drinking, and eating. Two more friends made in Puglia. The pasta was made with a rare flour of Puglia, farina arsa, so named because it is made with burnt wheat kernels, the origin of which dates back hundreds of years and is another tale of the cucina di povera of the Pugliese people. In keeping with waste not want not, at the end of a harvesting season the remaining wheat was burned and its remains milled into flour. What originated as cucina di povera (cooking of the poor) translates to cucina di sapori (flavorful cooking), today. At any rate the finished pasta has a delicate smoky flavor,  very distinctive, unique, and not to be forgotten.  We made cavatelli, fusilli, and the famous pasta of Puglia, orrecchiette. Once cooked we made three quick sauces, two with the greens that we picked earlier and a third with greens and pomodori. After each cooking we would eat, talk a little more and then went on to making the next pasta. We ended our afternoon assagio with two home-made digestifs that our guests brought for Peppe which is in keeping with tradition. Whenever you visit someone in Italy, you bring something. This I remember from my grandmother many years ago. One digestif was made from a bitter, wild cherry and the other was made from finocchio (wild fennel). After café we parted, full, content and happy for spending the day together. Ah, for the simple life. More food cooked more food eaten, more friends made. What could be better than a day with Peppe?

Ramblings in Italy - Alla Caseificio and Salumificio in Puglia

June 23, 2009
Alla Caseificio and Salumificio
by Rocco Verrigni

I arose early and was picked up by Baggio, a employee of Peppe’s, who drove me a few kilometers away to spend the morning at Cooperativa Agricola Caseificio and Salumificio Allevatori Orsara, a local cooperative making and selling cheese and salumi. I was here to see the cheese making process of a few cheeses including caccio ricotta and mozzarella. I also got a hand or two into the process before it was all over. My teachers were Luisa, Pasquale and Rocchina who make these cheeses and more several days a week. Some of the cheeses are made with latti di mucchi (cow’s milk), some are made with latti di capra ( goat’s milk), and some are made with a combination of both. Along the entire process, I was informed what was being done and for the most part I either understood the verbal exchange or it was just obvious by observation. As often as possible, I would ask questions in order to fully understand the process as well as to practice my Italian. I have found since I have been in Italy that it is easier to warm up to and be warmed up to if an effort is made to communicate in their language. At first they weren’t sure what to make of me, but things got better when we had a short coffee break and by the end of the morning we were all laughing and understanding more. I had a extensive talk with Pasquale who knew some English and he was as happy to practice his English as I was to practice my Italian. I left the caseificio with a bag with each one of the cheeses that was made.

 

While at the caseificio, Vincenzo, a food inspector, talked to me for a short time. Shortly after that he called the caseificio and asked to talk to me. He wanted to know if I wanted to visit a small salumi producer. Of course I said yes. We agreed on a time and pick up spot. This whole trip has seemed to unfold this way. One thing just leads to another. The more people I meet the more experiences I have which leads to meeting more people and so on.  At the prescribed time, Vincenzo picked me up and off we went. Like Pasquale, Vincenzo spoke a little English and so the English and Italian exchange lessons continued. Our destination was a small farm 10 minutes from the centrer of Orsara. Along the way I got a narrative of the land, farmers, and  the newly formed coop of 10 or so small farms that produce cheese and salumi. We were met by Michellina who showed me around and explained the operation. They make cured culatello, prosciutto, soppresata, salsiccia, a number of other dried salumi, and salsiccia fresca. We ended the tour with a tasting of a number of salumi. Of course I left with a bagful of a variety of salumi just in case I got hungry on my 10 minute ride back. The hospitality and generosity of the people is never-ending.

Ramblings in Italy – Abruzzo - The Last Supper

June 18, 2009
Last Supper and Arrivaderci to Luigi and Grazia
by Rocco Verrigni

My day of just walking around Roseto and sitting at the beach for awhile was punctuated with lunch and dinner with my adopted family. There was the standard pasta, salad, frutta courses, followed by café. A light and yet satisfying repast that would sustain me until dinner at 8:30. What will remain in my mind is the image of Luigi standing at the stove with an apron around his waist, diligently attending to his brodetto that he had prepared for dinner. It was Friday and although no longer an edict from the church to abstain from meat, habits become tradition and tonight I was part of the Verrigni family’s Friday night tradition of fish for dinner. It was simply prepared as much of the regional and provincial food that I have eaten has been. There was calamari, scampi, coda di rospo (monkfish), triglie, and the a few other varieties, all native to the Adriatic waters.  It was perfectly accompanied by a local white wine, pecorino, which takes it name from pecora, which means sheep, since the clusters of grapes are said to resemble he head of a sheep. Although not much of a white wine drinker, this pairing was perfect. Very refreshing, with subtle hints of fennel. It was another meal eaten with my new found family or just friends that was accompanied by lively conversation about an array of topics. Amazing how the limitations of language can dissolve with food as a common denominator. The simple repast ended with frutti, gelato, and café. I made sure not to overstay my welcome and said my buono nottes fairly early, with a promise to stop by in the morning to say goodbye before I started the next leg of my Italian adventure. Once again I returned to the locanda where I was staying with a very warm feeling of closeness and admiration for people I didn’t know until two days ago.

The next morning, I made my last trip to the Verrigni household for café, one last conversation, heartfelt thank yous, arrivadercis and a promise to return.

Arrivaderci, Luigi and Grazia and grazie from the bottom of my heart.

Ramblings From Italy - Verrigni Pasta

June 17, 2009
A vicino  Roseto degli Abruzzi

Touching my Past
by Rocco Verrigni

After a trip that has taken me almost 5000 miles, and that had it’s conception almost 3 years ago, I sat in a gated parking lot looking at a large oval sign high above a warehouse, that read in red letters,     I was waiting for the return of someone who would bring me into the warehouse and introduce me to Luigi Verrigni, his son Gaetano and who knows who else.

A very strange feeling came over me while everywhere I looked, I saw my family name; it was on the big sign as I mentioned, it was on boxes that were on pallets waiting to be loaded onto a truck, it was on t-shirts worn by workers as they went about many tasks in front of me, it was on the windows on the front of the warehouse. Could I be related to the family who has worked this business since 1898? That’s what I’m here to find out. I was told that I was expected and that Luigi would arrive soon. I continued to see my surname on a display of packaged pasta, and as a logo that took up a wall.                                                

 

At once I was excited and nervous; excited for obvious reasons, nervous for not so obvious reasons; What  I think made me nervous was that I knew that I would have to communicate almost entirely in Italian about some fairly intricate things.

And then the smiling face of a septuagenarian appeared from nowhere and introduced himself as Luigi Verrigni. I felt better. We were brought to an office where I was told that we would talk and that I should try to do my best to communicate in Italian. Talk we did, for about 1 hour. I understood quite a bit and verbalized as well as I could. He spoke of his grandfather who started the company and of his father who he took over for. I asked several questions and simply tried to focus on every word and nuance. Not easy. From what he knew, he thought his father and my grandfather were first cousins. I asked about corroborating this but this is where it gets hard. He reiterated in person what he had written me in our e-mail communications over the last number of months.
And so……what now? As they say in Italian “non lo so”, I don’t know.

I could go to Atri, a town 13km away and try the churches and town offices to try to find written records and I will be in this area for a few more days and may find out some more from Luigi.

For right now, I am off to have dinner with Luigi Verrigni and if we only share a name, that is enough. “A famiglia, forse” ….to family perhaps.

Ramblings in Italy – Puglia - Via Paradiso

I Have Been to Paradise – At Peppe Zullo’s
Via Paridiso
by Rocco Verrigni

My first full day in Puglia continues the familiar theme set from the beginning of my trip; that is a day full of great food, conversation and conviviality. I continue to be made aware of the importance and goodness of great quality food, from the land, prepared simply and with heart. Interestingly enough, Peppe Zullo’s credo, business model and slogan is “From the Land to the Table”. Not just a marketing slogan, it is quite evident to me that he walks his talk. As he guided me around his compound, complete with a vineyard, a winery, meticulously-kept gardens, livestock, banquet facilities and restaurant, I knew I was with someone who has true passion for what he does and who epitomizes Slow Food. His place is located on via Paradiso. After my tour I felt like I was in paradise. This was only the beginning of my day and the first of several days that I will remain in “paradiso”.

Not only did I get to spend the whole day in the kitchen and observe preparation and service of the days meals,  in between all the action, I sat at a table straddling the open kitchen and a small dining room, and tasted each of the courses as they were served to the quests. I lost track somewhere around 8. Every once in a while Peppe would appear from nowhere to make sure I was not only observing everything in the kitchen but that I was trying every single course that went to the dining room. His energy and presence is infectious. I was not only treated like a valued guest but also as a colleague and friend.

Peppe’s model for his restaurants and to live by “dalla terra alla tavola”, from “the land to the table” is evident as one walks around his vast properties. It can be seen at his school, where there are banquet facilities, gardens, cultivated farmland, wooded areas that are full of wild herbs, and greens, as well as at his restaurant with vineyards, an extensive underground cantina, gardens and production  area for preserving fruit and vegetables for off-season use, and curing his pork products.