andiamotrips - campania, italy with karen phillips

Franco Pepe, Gabriele Bonci, Stefano Pepe When I first heard the news that pizza makers Franco Pepe and Gabriele Bonci would be getting together at one of my favorite stomping grounds, Pepe in Grani  in Caiazzo (Ce), I couldn't help but take notice. But when I heard that this little get together would actually be a pizza marathon , I knew I was in. I've never been in a marathon :-)  but this one looked like the one for me.  It was held on Sunday, October 13th  From noon to midnight.  Twelves hours ish of pizza non  stop .  A pizza improv ...a pizza jam ...whatever you wanted to call it, it was definitely a hot ticket.  A ticket which included twelve slices of pizza, a wide selection of cheeses, wine, beer and water. A seat on Pepe's terrace next to the live jazz band.  A seat that wasn't too far from the kitchen so that you could see when the pizzas arrived at the buffet table. Twelve didn't sound like much, but this was my firs...

Though Spain has been on my bucket list for almost ever, I don't see me taking a trip there in the near future. But what about Spanish food?   Hmmm... Naples is not known for a wide variety of ethnic food so my desire for all things tapas would have to wait.  Or so I thought.  My opinion changed back in October when I attended a dinner at Hotel Grand Angiolieri in Vico Equense, not far from Sorrento.  It was there that I met Spanish chef Carlos Peña   for the first time.   Peña , who after nearly 18 months in Italy was about to open up his own restaurant in Naples.  And not just any restaurant...one featuring Spanish cuisine, particularly tapas and paella. Ole'! September 28, after a lot of sacrifice and Neapolitan red tape Milagros Paella Gastrobar opened its doors for the first time.  About 10 days later, I decided to pay a visit and see what it was all about. I was greeted by a smiling Marina Delle Monache , part owner/graphic design...

Wikipedia :   Serendipity  means   a "happy accident" or "pleasant surprise"; specifically, the accident of finding something good or useful without looking for it.   The wine list at Relais Blu is flowing with Campania whites, particularly Fiano di Avellino.  So I was just a little surprised when sommelier Alessandro Scrivo brought over a bottle of Fiano produced by a winery that I know very well...for their reds.   Azienda Salavatore Molettiere . The name Molettiere alone instantly brings back memories to a visit to I made a few years ago to their vineyard Cinque Querce in the hills of Montemarano.  The blog has proudly been displaying a glass of Taurasi with a view of their vineyard in the background since I started back in 2010. Over the years I've tasted the winery's reds dozens of times.  But their Fiano?  New to me. So there was a little curious anticipation as Scrivo poured me a glass. A glass of Fiano from Lapio in Av...

I don't make many announcements on my blog, but here is one that I'm more than happy to pass along.  A new web site, Cortese Way - Personal Food Experience is being launched on the 19th of October.  Why is this interesting to me?  First of all, it is the brainchild of Maurizio Cortese , an amico whose way I have been following for quite some time now.  Maurizio is a food lover, food writer, traveler, and all around good guy who often shares his photos on the social network of the interesting places that he has been/interesting dishes that he has tried. International travelers who are interested in one of a kind gastronomic experiences in Naples and Campania can contact Cortese directly via his site and book one of a kind tours that will leave them, like me, in love with Campania - the Cortese Way .

It was maybe a week after my visit to Taverna del Capitano in Marina del Cantone that I realized it.  I realized that I had spent a fantastic day on the beach followed by an even more spectacular lunch with Chef Alfonso Caputo that I had missed something very important.  Something big. I didn't try a simple dish that, from what I had been told by several amici , Caputo had one of the best.  His spaghetti with zucchini alla Nerano. So I had to go back.  A couple of weeks ago I showed up at his doorstep with a grande curiosity and an even larger appetite. I watched closely in the kitchen as the chef prepared this piatto semplice for me and a dining room full of diners like me who wanted a little of Caputo's spaghetti madness. Chef Alfonso Caputo Fried zucchini were tossed with previously cooked spaghetti (al dente, thank you).  Over the next few minutes, Caputo explained the dish to me as he casually added water to the pasta and zucchini...hot w...

I don't have a lot of traditions. I strongly believe it is never to late to start a new one. So as the end of September approached, I made sure that I had one end of summer appointment penciled in on my calendar.  Lunch at Ristorante Il Bikini in Vico.  I wanted my summer to end as it had last year .  At table overlooking the beach, an excellent bottle of wine, and a meal prepared by Chef Domenico De Simone and his staff. There was quite a bit of wind that afternoon, but I was fine on my side of the patio...to the right...where the sun hit just perfectly.  My menu choice?  The Mimmo fai tu. ..  dishes hand picked by the chef himself.  My only request was mare, mare, mare and the vino giusto  - a young, fresh Vigna Cicogna Greco di Tufo 2012 by Azienda Agricola Benito Ferrara.   So we began with a wonderful colorful melody of flavors : red mullet with tomato gelle and basil tuna with star anise, yellow peaches and Tropea red on...

One quick visit to Relais Blu for an aperitif in August demanded a follow up visit before the end of the summer season.  A visit for lunch, a trip around the wine list, and a conversation with the giovane Chef Roberto Allocca . On this visit, I was determined to take it easy, take it slow, and enjoy my  journey into the blu. The perfect way to begin any visit to this spectacular establishment is with a glass of spumante.  I was poured a glass of M archese Antinori Nature-Spumante Metedo Classico .  A spumante with a never ending perlage.   Perfect.  Perfect because I wanted to take my time.  Sip slowly as I    spoke with the owner of Relais Blu, Antonio Acampora .  He shared with me how his family has been in the hotel business for quite some time, with property in nearby Sorrento.  Seven years ago, they decided to purchase this paradise with its  spectacular  view of Naples and Capri.  How clients come fr...