Spaghetti Summer - Chef Alfonso Caputo, Taverna del Capitano, Marina del Cantone (Na)

Nearly two summer seasons had past since my last visit to Taverna del Capitano.  Or was it three.  Anyway, as I drove the last few minutes or so downhill towards Piazza delle Sirene nestled on the marina, I couldn't help but wonder what Chef Alfonso Caputo would have in store for me that day.  

Chef Alfonso Caputo

Taverna del Capitano sits right on Marina del Cantone's small stony beach.  From the dining room's large windows you can hear the sounds of the crystal clear water blending in with the small talk of the sunbathers below.  You can also see the small dock where the chef often goes fishing during the off season as well as where the fishermen bring in their catch of the day.  

And that is why a visit to this Michelin starred restaurant is so exciting.  It's a an opportunity to not only try some of Caputo's classics, but a chance to see what has inspired him at the moment.   Beginning with an amazing appetizer - his capellini pasta with a tomato and redfish sauce,

Capellini is a pasta format very similar to spaghetti, just very very thin.  The pasta arrived cold in a small pot, while the sauce showed up in a separate colorful ceramic bowl.  

Instructions?  Add the pasta to the sauce, stir it up, and enjoy!

Another enticing summer spaghetti dish was Caputo's new entry for the 2019 season.

The spaghetti was cooked along with black cabbage and octopus.  Then a light addition of sea urchin and lemon is poured on top.




The acidity from the lemon lightly changes the color of the pasta without disturbing the delicate sea flavors.

Two pasta dishes that celebrate the sea.  And if you listen closely enough  you can hear the sounds of the crystal clear water blending in with the small talk of the sunbathers below. 

Travel Diary - Indian Summer Tour 2016, Part 2...Amazing Appetizers - Chef Alfonso Caputo, Taverna Del Capitano (Na)

Chef Alfonso Caputo

1 October, 2016 - Indian Summer Travel Diary

The last fifteen minutes or so of my eighty-minute drive to Marina Del Cantone is probably my favorite.  An immersion of century old olive trees blends into spectacular views of the sea.  It is at this point that I usually turn my car radio off and enjoy the rest of my drive towards Taverna del Capitano, the Michelin starred restaurant/hotel run by the Caputo family.

1:00- pm ish

The kitchen, a traditional first stop whenever I visit Taverna del Capitano.  The kitchen is small, cozy, and calm.  A calm before the storm, so to speak.  A chance to chat with Chef Alfonso Caputo and maybe, just maybe get a sneak peek of hat he has in mind for his simple savory appetizers.  No such luck! I make my way to my favorite table with a perfect view of the beach.

1: 25 pm ish

Maître Sommelier Mariella Caputo pours me a glass of Nudo Erioco Falanghina Spumante Extra Dry.  She knows me ell, including my passion for Campania wines, particularly Falanghina del Sannio.  This would prove to be the perfect pairing for whatever appetizer that the chef had in mind for me that Indian summer afternoon.

1: 30 pm ish

Il Benvenuto

Fried onion/fish ring with black rice…

1: 37 pm ish

Caputo’s take on onion ravioli...but in this case, the ravioli is made of onions!  Inside?  Fresh ricotta cheese then topped with a bit of the sea – octopus, of course!

1:53 pm ish

Another colorful and flavorful example of the chef’s love for the sea outside his window in complete harmony with the bounty of the territory around him.  Shrimp, white seabream, capers, melon, and zucchini…

2:08 pm ish

This dish came out with a smile and a bit of advice from Claudio Di Mauro.  Di Mauro, suggested that instead of using a teaspoon for the chef’s last but not least appetizer of sea urchin and arugula ice cream, I should use a little piece of their homemade bread to scoop out the flavors.  The sweetness of the pane combined with the savory flavor of the sea urchin alongside the bitterness of the arugula as a combination that I do not believe I have ever tasted.

Thanks, Claudio.

Thanks, Mariella.

Thanks, Chef Alfonso!

Travel Diary - Indian Summer Tour 2016 Part 1

It seems like summer in Campania never ends!  That is what I’ve noticed in the 20 plus years that I’ve made this part of Italia home.  So, while vacationers flood the beaches and restaurants in August, others in September, I like to wait just a bit longer. 

October.  The weather usually agrees with me and gift wraps an amazing Indian summer. This year was a little unpredictable, but I lucked out with the four restaurants I chose for my 2016 adventure.

Here’s a look –

First stop – Taverna del Capitano, Marina del Cantone (Na).   Home to Michelin starred Chef Alfonso Caputo.  This was my second visit this season; I had visited back in May.  So why go back?  Tradition, maybe.  The location is peaceful off-season, paired with amazing food and wine…details soon.

Chef Alfonso Caputo

Second stop – Dani Maison, Ischia (Na).  A second look at 2 Michelin starred Chef Nino Di Costanzo’s restaurant that he opened in June 2016 in his childhood home.  My first visit was a Saturday lunch.  My second?  I was able to snag a reservation on a Friday evening just a couple of days before he closed for the 2016 season.  Lucky, because the chef’s home only has 20 seats.  Innovative and intimate.  I’ll share why.

Chef Nino Di Costanzo

Third stop – Taverna Estia, Brusciano (Na).  A long overdue visit to the youngest 2 Starred Michelin Chef in Europe, Francesco Sposito.  Over a year had passed since my last visit, so I was eager to try some of his classic dishes for the first time as well as a few surprises that Sposito tossed in. Coming up!

Chef Francesco Sposito

Fourth stop- Agriturismo Il Contandino, Caianello (Ce).  Sunday lunch has always been important to me.  I chose to end my tour on a Sunday in famiglia at one of the most sought after Sunday spots in Campania.  In the company of Berardino Lombardo, his team, and some down home country cookin’…Can’t wait to share!

Chef Beardino Lombardo 

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be posting here about my bellissima aventura…

A presto!

Travel Itinerary here!

An Octopus Goes to Sea, Chef Alfonso Caputo, Taverna Del Capitano, Marina Del Cantone (Na)

I arrived a little early for lunch, like I usually do, to try to get a sneak peek at what Chef Alfonso Caputo might send my way.  But Caputo, Taverna del Capitano, is always full of surprises.  Like this dish - An Octopus Goes to Sea.
A boiled octopus gingerly wrapped in the chef's own homemade dried pasta, then tenderly fried.
A zuppa starring a blend of squid ink and octopus juices given off during the cooking process.
And...
And if you look closely enough, I'm sure you can see tiny tiny pieces of octopus splashing around in the sea.
No?
Look closer...
Or better yet, pay the chef a visit.

2 Fantastic Firsts, Chef Alfonso Caputo, Taverna del Capitano, Marina del Cantone (Na)

My love affair  with pasta lunga is not a secret.  I confessed it years ago.  So that is why my heart skipped a beat or two when I got a chance to try these two dishes recently at Taverna del Capitano.  Chef Alfonso Caputo sent out this dish first -

an assaggino/ taste of spaghetti with zucchini and fresh shrimp.

Then a surprise.  A dry pasta that the chef made himself using coffee!

He placed it gingerly on top of a flavorful tomato sauce with black olives and capers.  A swirl of ricotta cheese on top...

Fantastic.

Amazing Appetizers, Chef Alfonso Caputo, Taverna del Capitano (Na)

The dining room of Taverna del Capitano in Marina del Cantone (Na) has become one of my favorite places to pass a Saturday afternoon.  A view of  the marina and the soft background sounds of the waves splashing on the rocks blend perfectly with sand soft jazz/neapolitan classics on the stereo.  I try to arrive a little early to visit the kitchen, say hello to Chef Alfonso Caputo and his brigade, and maybe...just maybe get a sneak peek on what surprises will come my way.  On this particular Saturday I arrived in time to watch the chef cleaning a few fresh European spider crabs.  Did I say watch? I was soon handed an apron and a nutcracker and invited to help out.

Later I had a chance to enjoy that crab, in Italian known as granseola, served simply in its shell with a drizzle of olive oil.

Chef Caputo loves to mix terra e mare, land and sea, in his dishes.  He did so with this zuppa di fagioli - his bean soup featuring canary beans (from Gragnano), Caputo's dried pasta with aromatic herbs, and mussels.

Amazing...

Snapshot of the Day - Red Mullet on a Hot Rock, Chef Alfonso Caputo, Taverna del Capitano, Marina del Cantone (Na)

Sure, the breeze coming through the window of Taverna del Capitano's dining room was cool and comfortable last Tuesday evening.  Much cooler than the heat I felt as I walked into the kitchen to see what Michelin star chef Alfonso Caputo was preparing next as part of his Chef's Surprise menu.
It is always extremely warm in a restaurant kitchen particularly during the summer months, but the thermometer bumped up several notches as Caputo warmed up several sea stones for the next dish.
The stones are heated up directly on the stove top, then carefully placed on leaves and part of an olive tree trunk.  The chef then added a couple of strips of raw red mullet to the stone and we both watched as it cooked in front of us.  Tomatoes from the Vesuvius area, black olives and a light drizzle of olive oil.
There you have it.
Red mullet on a hot rock...
Does it get any hotter than this?

A Taste of Spring Times Three - Taverna del Capitano, Marina del Cantone (Na)

Taverna del Capitano's spring menu is packed with not only new and colorful dishes, but the  creativity and the passion of Michelin star Chef Alfonso Caputo as well. Here's a look at the appetizers that I tried last weekend.

A taste of spring - times three.

Antipasto number one - Fresh red shrimp served with seabream eggs and a splash of 25 year old balsamic vinegar.  A shot glass full of the flavors of the sea.

Here's a plate where the chef enjoyed himself not only in the preparation, but in the presentation as well.  A tasty fried mozzarella disguised as an unidentified sea creature on a bed of creamy potatoes, asparagus, and red bell peppers.

And since good things come in threes, I received the honor of being one of the first to taste Caputo's latest creation.  Something, he told me later, that has been knocking around in his head for quite sometime.  Totano squid served with dark chocolate.

A dish that made me walk back into the kitchen, not to take photographs.
But to say thanks...not once, but three times.