The Italian Food Diary

1. Milano
Touch down in Milan mid morning with an insane grin plastered across my face - THE SUN IS OUT AND THE WEATHER IS WARM!!!!! As Big Kev would have said, "I'm excited" - (although I think Big Kev had a little too much excitement with the heart attack and all.)

(Above: Milan's "Duomo")


(Above: Galleria Vittorio Emanuele where all the exy designer stores are located.)

One of our first stops is to a bread store to buy some crusty Italian bread (and my impulse purchase of chocolate pear tart which was incidentally devine....). A. declared that "Italians are the best bread markers in the world". Verdict? Slightly biased at least - (A. is Italian after all,) and it really depends on whether you like your bread to have that thick, heavy, chewy crust, with the inside being soft and chewy and yeasty in flavour. Our bread becomes our breakfast for tomorrow, accompanied with peppers stuffed with tuna. The pepper were preserved in this really yummy olive oil, chili and vinegar mixture. I have my first gelati for the trip - double scoop of rich chocolate and raspberry sorbet. (Yum!)

Milan is known for it's risotto and in particular, it's risotto Milanese which is made out of arborio rice cooked in chicken broth, white wine, saffron and Parmagianno-Reggiano cheese. I order this while dining at il Salotto (Via Baracchini, 9 Tel: 02 860357 / 02 8051583) and was presented with creamy buttercup-yellow rice that melted in my mouth..... Delish!

Italian Cuisine Fact No 1: Bread is always provided complimentary when dining out at any Italian restaurant, and is usually baked onsite. The word "complimentary" is open to interpretation as there's always a cover charge to eat at any cafe/restaurant. (Tipping is not the normal practice.)

2. Largo di Como

Drove to Largo di Como to have lunch by the lake at Crotto dei Platani (Via Regina, 73 - Brienno, Lago di Como Tel: 031 814038). Feasted on canape style antipasti which consisted of bread with an olive paste and champagne, followed by my main of fresh ravioli tossed in a mixture of pesto and crayfish.

Italian Cuisine Fact No. 2: Pasta is typically not served with any meat as the emphasis is on the texture and taste of the pasta and sauce. The same goes with pizza - the toppings are very much secondary to the pizza base.

(Above: Me & S at lunch!)

3. Cinque Terra
The gorgeous Cinque Terra (or "Five Villages") is located on the north west (Liguria coastal) region of Italy. We stayed in Levanto at a cute little B&B with a patio over looking the hills and the sea.

(Above from left to right: View from the inside of the B&B, one of Levanto's many narrow streets)

This region is somewhat less commericalised in the sense that the tourists who visit are generally Italian. I spy many of what I can only describe as a "trike ute" driving along the narrow streets (as anything larger wouldn't have managed to fit through!).

The Cinque Terra region is known for its pesto, hazelnut pasta sauce and trofie (which is a short, white, twisted looking pasta). I order trofie tossed in the hazelnut sauce while lunching in Riomaggiore (the most southern village in the Cinque Terra). The hazelnut sauce has an interesting subtle flavour - perhaps my taste buds weren't refine enough to truly appreciate it, but I wasn't particularly bowled over by the flavours. The pesto made up for this, which was incidentally absolutely delectable when served with freshly made ravioli for dinner one night.

(Above: the village of Riomaggiore)

We try to attempt to compensate for our over-indulgent behaviour by going on one of the walking trails called the Via Dell'Amore (which translates to mean "Lovers' Road"). I immediately "poo poo-ed" the name until I saw the view.

(Above: Via Dell'Amore)

While in Levanto, I whine like a 6 year old kid every evening until I get my way and make the obligatory detour to buy gelati from one of the many gelati stores dotted around the village centre. We find this really great place that makes really nice gelati made out of fresh, regional red grapes..... Mmmmm......

(Above: Alexander got married to Alexandra. I think Peter also got married to Peterina.)

Italian Cuisine Fact no. 3
An Italian meal usually consists of no less than 3 or 4 courses, eaten in the following order:
1) Antipasti (hot or cold appetizer)
2) Primo ("first course") consisting of your pasta, gnocchi, soup or polenta (all without meat usually)
3) Secondo - second course/main dish which is either meat or fish which is order with a contorno (side dish) - otherwise you just end up eating meat (and only meat).
4) Formaggio and frutta - cheese and fruits, the first dessert usually served together.
5) Dolce - your sweet desserts such as gelti or tiramisu
6) Caffe (coffee)
7) Digestivo (a liqueur)

4. Pisa

We drive to Pisa with me feeling queasy. I think it's the combined overload of refined carbs, cheese, and the continental breakfast of yoghurt, cereal and crackers with a camembert cheese spread that's getting to me. (And maybe also all that gelati I've been having.) I manage to stomach some lasagna and stupidly order a cold Italian hot chocolate which turns out to be pure melted chocolate in a tall glass of cold milk. I manage to last until the trip to Prada before I have to make a dash to the toilet.

5. Firenze (Florence)

*Sigh* David is as anatomically beautiful as what people tell me.... Other statues pale in comparison. We have a constant feast at A's family friend's restaurant, dining on spaghetti tossed in a fresh tomato and chili sauce followed by Floretine beef (grilled Porterhouse steak seasoned slightly with salt and pepper, a pat of butter and lemon wedges on the side).

The flavours are very mild - I like my beef to have more seasoning myself. We get served home made profiteroles filled with (ARGH!!!!) cream. A's family friend (ie: the restaurant owner) sits there frowning at me, so I manage to choke one down for his benefit. (My body screams abuse at me for subjecting it to more lactose, and not to mention the one extremely large icecream I had earlier in the day - Kinder Surprise flavour :D). I sit there wanting to puke my guts out while everybody converses in Italian (talking about Italian politics). The night ends with a digestivo (limoncello) made from lemon rind, alcohol, water and sugar, and by then, I really want to puke.

I feel so sick that I actually stay in my hotel room on my last night in Florence and sup on a few dry crackers for dinner. (Yes, I'm really not that hungry.) I am officially a food addict. But how do you say no when the gelati looks like this?

Italian Cuisine Fact no. 4
You can find all sorts of flavoured pasta including strawberry flavour as well as chocolate pasta. And yes, these types of pasta are still supposed to be served with a savoury pasta sauce. While I I am adventurous with my food, I was too chicken to to try this, as I cannot fathom how chocolate pasta can taste good with spaghetti bolognese sauce and parmesan cheeese. (I decide it would be better to buy a packet of chili fettuccini to take home instead.)

6. Pompei

Naples is considered the home of pizza and ironically, we fail to have any when we were in Pompei. Nonetheless, we were directed by our hotel staff to a little gem of a restaurant tucked away in a narrow washing bedecked street behind the piazza del Plebiscito called Da Peppino (18 via Solitara, Tel: 081-7644449). We ate what was officially the best food I've (personally) ever had in Italy.

We almost did not make it to the restaurant as S. thought the street leading to Da Peppino looked dangerous. Good thing we did, as we feasted on the best arancinis I have ever tasted in my life. (Arancinis, a Sicilian speciality, are rice balls filled with ragu (a meat sauce) or mozzarella, breadcrumbed on the outside and fried until crispy.) We had these followed by freshly sliced tomatoes topped with buffalo mozzarella, and I opted for the special of the day - seafood marinara, as you can see from the photo below.

The marinara had homemade egg pasta and came with what must have been the biggest stuffed squid I have ever seen on a dinner plate! (Check out the size of the head!) Would anybody else have been game enough to try it? :p Woke up the next morning because of a stomach ache - I just couldn't say no to another scoop of Bacio flavoured gelati the day before. The hotel serves fresh figs for breakfast which helps to settle my stomach a bit.

7. The Almafi Coast

We drive through the Amalfi coast on the way to Rome. The view is supposed to be spectacular but the humidity and mist (?pollution) hides most of the view of the coastline that day.

We were supposed to eat at a restaurant on top of one of the cliffs - made accessible by a thousand step climb. We manage about 200 steps at the very most before deciding to give up. I was finding it hard breathe because of the humidity!

I order an unforgettable breaded veal at one of the touristy restaurants lining the cliffside. A multitude of tour coaches zoom past us along the windy road which puts a damper on eating alfresco. The restaurant owner asks us whether we're from Chicago. (ftw?!)

Italian Cuisine Fact No. 5
According to A., you can never have bad Italian food in Italy. According to Closetblonde, you can.

7. Roma

I am officially sick of eating pizza and pasta for every single meal. I don't think my stomach can take any more refined carbs or lactose. I start eating not what I want, and instead order things without cheese (and basically avoid anything that may look as though it may have any form of lactose.)

Except for gelati. (I still cannot say no. Ode to the Bacio, O how I can't say no.....)
I even order spaghetti bolognese for one meal. (I know, how sad am I.)

(Above: Vatican City)

As Rome is a buzzing city filled with tourists, the food is extremely touristy and loses some of its authenticity and flavour as a result. I reside to eating mediocre food including pizza with burnt bases. Rome is known for it's spaghetti carbonara which is very "yolky" (to the point where the pasta is glazed in runny yolk) - very different to what we uncultured, non-Italians are use to. I'm not a big fan of the sulphur taste in egg yolk so I decide to give the carbonara a miss.

We have coffee and freshly made lemonade (costing €12 a glass) at one of the famous (and touristy) piazzas and were provided with free entertainment from the African vendors who packed up their fake gear in top speed and ran off in (opposite directions to another) after being chased by the police. Watches and sunglasses seriously went flying everywhere. (The vendors must go to some backstreet training school where they have to pass the test of packing their merchandise in under 3 seconds before they graduate and are allowed out on the street.)

So what's the deal with throwing coins into the Trevi fountain?

One coin means you're going to return to Rome to visit;
Two coins means you'll find love.
Throw three coins in, you'll end up marrying an Italian.

I threw one coin in - but apparently threw it incorrectly; (you're supposed to throw it over your shoulder with your back facing to the fountain,) so I guess that means I won't be visiting Rome again.

Most Random Thing Seen on Holiday:

Geese!! Not sure why they were stuck on the pavement, as I didn't see anybody hanging around selling them, but as Rome is full of people trying to con you one way or another, perhaps it was some kind of trap to lure pple to have a closer look......