Restaurants of Italy

One of my favorite meals in Italy was at this place - it's on the Chiantigiana road (S222) near Panzano..

http://www.montagliari.it/ristorante_uk.html

the vineyards -
http://www.montagliari.it/fattoria_uk.html

The room we ate in one afternoon in March had a woodburning fireplace roaring away, fantastic food, and, naturally, delicious wine. (I've gone on about their torta di mele here on a2k before.)

(You know me, I'll be back with more restaurants..)

Osso, I was expecting you!

from a website called Divina Cucina -



Torta di Mele Montagliari

Each area in Italy has some sort of apple cake, but this one is my favorite. Golden Delicious apples, sliced paper thin, baked in almost a crepe batter until caramelized! It's heaven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top and some of Giovanni Cappelli's Salsa di Mosto. (The traditional balsamic vinegar from Modena is a rich, sweet concentrate made without vinegar, as is Cappelli's Salsa di Mosto. Don't use the inexpensive grocery store versions which are okay for a salad, but not ice cream!)

5 Golden Delicious apples, peeled and sliced paper thin
2 eggs, extra large
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
7 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
Powdered sugar for decoration

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter and lightly flour two round pizza pans or a 9x13 lasagne pan.

Beat the eggs and sugar together and add the flour, baking powder, milk, butter and vanilla. Mix well. Add the apple slices and pour into the prepared pan. Place the pan on the bottom of the oven for 10 minutes, then place in the center of the oven to cook until golden, about 1 hour. Torta di Mele is a very thin, rich cake that will bake down to about one-half inch. It will cut easier if you let it cool before serving. But you can reheat it in the oven before serving.


Montagliari has cooking instruction too...
sigh.

I ate here each afternoon in Lucca - (look at the different rooms and patio). It looks expensive, but I didn't pig out and it was always very pleasant.

http://www.locandadellangelo.it/pagina.asp?LG=IT&PG=2

In Viterbo, Le Torre wine bar and restaurant. Can't find much about it online, but that was where I first ran into the Slow Food movement (they had a little table with brochures.) I remember the meal was great, but I most remember that they didn't charge me for a whole bottle of Brunello (my extravagance of the trip, which was 29 days on your basic shoestring)... but for the two glasses I did have.

Our first restaurant in Rome, not selected from any guide book but because it was the first place we ran across when we were hungry. We'd just come from the American Embassy on via Veneto, fixing my passport stuff. Anyway, it was a charming place and turns out to be a well respected restaurant. We were still in high-jet-lag, and our meal was restorative. I gather reservations are important...

Da Tullio, near piazza Barberini -

http://www.tullioristorante.it/chi_siamo.html#



The place in Rome where I got the amazing fried artichoke, like a toasted flower.. one day I'll post a photo:
Da Settimio all'Arancio near Via Corso and Piazza San Lorenzo on Via dell' Arancio 50. ...
(not much online info)

Wow, this looks lovely!

I get hooked on ristoranti/trattorie wherever I am over there. Many places out of tourist zones are terrific and when you go back a second time, they remember you... (hopefully not for the cloddy clothes).
Lucca has several good restaurants, at least by reviews I've read. And now I know about your place...
I tend to have my "meal" in the afternoon, and in the evening go to an alimentaria and get olives and cheese, etc. Aaack, time for a trip.


I've got more to add, but don't want to be a restaurant posting hog.

There's no one else here posting! And in using "near Lucca", I was being a little optimistic.

WEll, I've been to so many restaurants in Italy - really good ones,
but I don't remember any of the names at all.

i'll see if i can get some places from my sister...

My favorite is "Fontana Candida" at Monteporzio Catone, just a little south Rome

Fabulous for both fish and meat.

And "O Masto 2" in Rocca Priora, for the best pizza around Rome...

And "I Torquati", Via Manlio Torquato 3, Rome... Traditional Roman food

Memorizing Raphillon's restaurants....

Saturday I went to Alberto Ciarla, in trastevere, via manara. Fabulous seafood, quite expensive, but worth your money :wink:

I'm going to google those restaurants/locations for fun..

- a map that shows Monte porzio catone -
http://en.comuni-italiani.it/058/064/mappa.html


You can find Rocca priora by looking arount the map with various arrows (to the southeast), and find Lago Albano to the southwest.


O Masto 2


dei Torquati (near the Via Appia Nuova)


Back in a bit with Trastevere map

Alberto Ciarla



Piazza di S. Cosimato/via Manara are right to the left of the T in Trastevere...

I looked up this chef after a mention of him in a NYTimes article about another chef....

and found a restaurant I'd love to go to if I ever find myself in Milan.

This link also has some terrific recipes (click on photos at the bottom of the page).

Gualtiero Marchesi