Saturday afternoon we headed for the hills of Piemonte looking for infamous tartufo bianco d'Alba and a bit of antiquing. We stayed at Chris and Nicola Norton's beautiful hotel, La Villa, which is always a lovely experience. In their ever gracious hospitality, they made a dinner reservation for us at a one star rated Michelin restaurant, San Marco, in nearby Canelli. Being high season, back to the tartufo bianco (white truffle), this booking was made a week in advance. Off we went with our appetites only to walk into the restaurant and find that it was booked for a private party!!!! A bit a confusion ensued and phone calls back to the hotel to make sure we were at the right place. Next thing I knew Sam was being led back into the dining room and up some stairs to the owner's living room! There they were setting up dinner for us and in a flash we were all upstairs sitting down for the most memorable meal of my life, which also included updates from the Roma versus Juventus soccer match from the nonno as he passed by from time to time to check up on us. Upon returning to the hotel we learned that when Nicola phoned to make the reservation, she spoke to the senile old nonna (grandmother) who is not living in our reality! The owner of San Marco must have had this happen to him before and handled the situation with grace and humility and we enjoyed a meal that none of us will ever forget. My dad can go home to NY and tell everyone he has eaten dinner in a real Italian's home! I on the other hand received a written thank you from the owners for our cooperation and understanding! Imagine that! Go on over to my home page and you can see some of the plates that we were served and our happy faces!
Sunday morning we were off to the Antique Market in Nizza Monferatto for a little shopping and to visit with our friends, Oddile and Rosanna, who we buy many of our antiques from. The girls stayed back at the hotel and played with the Norton's daughters, Kelley and Gemma. We strolled the market, bought a few items then met up with Oddile and Rosanna. What was the first thing they asked us? Where were we going for Sunday lunch? Out were the cell phones and next thing we knew we were on our way to another restaurant for a outstanding meal. Sarah and Anna were no sooner dropped off at the market we were in the car and heading for another feast. This time we found ourselves eating at Il Quartino, which is family owned and specializes in the famous Piemontese dish, Bolitto Misto! Yet again we were stuffed to the gills and rolled out of the dining room screaming uncle! We must of been served at the minimum 9 different plates of various typical dishes from the region under the watchful eyes of the truffle hunters and their faithful dogs in the paintings covering the dining room walls!
If you haven't noticed the focus on the food, you haven't really read this post. After living in Italy for as long as I have now, I have come to realize that Sunday afternoon lunch is the most important meal of the week! It borders on a religion for some Italians. It is not uncommon to sit around a table from about 1 p.m. till 4 eating till you cannot anymore. What is wonderful about this tradition? It gives the suffering housewife a break from cooking and it also gathers family and friends together in a warm and inviting setting. Is there anything better in this world than good food, a good bottle of wine, and sharing it with the people closest to you? I think not.
Last thought, we were ever so lucky in the weather, it was clear skies and not too cold. Normally this time of the year the skies in Piemonte are gray and the air cold and wet. And, we started to make inquires about real estate for sale in the area.....
A tardi!
Krista
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