Campi Flegrei and Then Some-Riccio Restaurant - Baia Port (Na)

 

A pleasant stroll on a windy summer day on the port of Baia...and then I arrived.  My reservation was for 1 pm, and I believe that I was quite punctual, if I must say so myself.  As I was getting my bearings, I saw her from a distance.  Her- Roberta Di Meo- who greeted with a warm handshake and even warmer smile welcoming me to her restaurant-Riccio Restaurant.

This was my first time to Riccio, so Di Meo kindly filled me in on the small ristorante's background story.  It was then that I learned that she opened the restaurant back in 2016 with her father, Salvatore.  Their intention was to share their passion for Campi Flegrei- not just in the cuisine, but in the local wines as well. So slowly over time- and the addition of Chef Agostino Alboretto the restaurant grew and is a favorite spot in the area.

Di Meo handed me the wine list- which features local wines as well as national/international offerings.  I chose a Falanghina from Contrada Salandra - a wine which would pair perfectly with the chef's fish based menu.

Let's talk about the chef's menu.  Alboretto is all about no waste, sustainability, seasonality, and of course full on flavor.  And not because it is in style- it is part of this young chef's DNA.  So that is why I decided to put myself in his hands.  The chef did not disappoint.  We decided to focus on amazing appetizers and first courses.  

Take a look...

Amazing appetizers included a raw seafood platter with tartufi di mare/sea truffles, razor clams, shrimp, and oyster.

Then ...

Tuna tartare and guacamole

 with citrus sauce

Shrimp and lemon foam

cuttlefish with oil, lemon and cuttlefish ink salt

carpaccio of mahi mahi and basil crumble

Alboretto thought, that for the next set of appetizers, a trip to the dry ageing refrigerator was necessary.  There he was able to pull out some of his seafood salamis that fit in perfectly with Riccio's no waste philosophy...

The cured fish : tuna speck, swordfish bresaola and amberjack belly

Riccio's  dry ageing refrigerator - with plans to expand

Time to warm things up-still in the appetizer area-

grilled octopus with mushrooms

Cod grenadine and Phlegraean broccoli

Skipjack burger

lampuga- known as a 'pesce azzuro magro' a light blue fish. this is one of the fish that you'll find in the markets this season, an consequently, on the table in restaurants such as Riccio Restaurant - Baia Porto. chef Agostino Alboretto served me a fillet with escarole and black olives...on the side

razor clams au gratin

Let's go back to the topic of no waste- here is Alboretto's seafood tripe featuring the 'fifth quarter' of amberjack and grouper, a squid ink crumble, potato cream and parsley chlorophyll 

Time for a first course or two-  the fall season called and Ricco Restaurant answered-  with

 a pumpkin risotto with cuttlefish and porcini miushrooms....

Spaghetti with razor clams...

Second course- I had to pass.  (I'll return)...but I did go for a dessert.  Babà with a glass of La Sibilla's Passio 2013 dessert wine made with Falanghina...

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A peerfect dessert to top off a perfect afternoon in Baia...Definitely a not to miss spot-not only for the food, location, but also for the spirit of Roberta, Agostino, and Salvatore...

Scusa, but I had to take a selfie!!!  A presto!

from left to right, me, Salvatore Di Meo, Roberta Di Meo and Agostino Alboretto

 

Amazing Appetizer, Chef Domenico Iavarone, Josè Restaurant, Torre Del Greco (Na)

 

What makes a dish memorable?  Well, one that you remember a long time after you have tasted it.  One that, just by looking at a photograph, brings back the aromas, the textures, and the flavors of a dish fantasticaaa.  

That is the case for this particular appetizer that I had nearly 1 month ago at Josè Restaurant in Torre del Greco.  It was not my first time at this Michelin starred restaurant, but it was the first time for my son, David.  In fact, I often watched his reaction too the whole 'Iavarone experience'.  Like when Chef Domenico Iavarone's codfish appetizer arrived.  

David and I paused a bit before digging in.

One...two...three bites of baccalà.  Three bites of cod, charred spring onion, candied lemon and olives.

Three bites of goodness...that maybe ended too soon.  But then, what is an appetizer?  An appetizer is a small serving of food — just a few bites — meant to be eaten before an entree, and often shared by several people. You can also call an appetizer an hors d'oeuvre. An appetizer is meant to stimulate your appetite, making you extra hungry for your meal. 

Mission accomplished...

Amazing Appetizers - Chef Ciro Sicignano, Lorelei Ristorante, Sorrento (Na)

An appetizer can be defined not only as something to tie you over before the main dish arrives, but as Oxford Dictionary puts it as something that arouses or increases anticipation for what is to follow. That is just what Chef Ciro Sicignano's dishes did.  Last Saturday's lunch at Lorelei Ristorante in Sorrento included his aperitif and four appetizers to arouse and increase anticipation for what was to follow.  Let's take a look.

Maitre Sommelier Sascha Fausto began by serving me a glass of Franciacorta DOCG Brut Doppio Erre Di - Derbusco Cives

Then the aperitifs - here which included a wide array of specialties such as a taco with bonito tartare, a panzerotti filled with smoked mozzerella cheese,  and  a mini fried pizza,

  As well as a flatbread filled with the famous nero Casertano suckling pig.

Then the appetizers- first up, Sicignano's millefogie with raw shrimp and broccoli.

On top, a creamy sauce made with sea urchins.

 Sicignano loves to serve up seafood platters, and here is one that reflects the freshness of the sea.

Raw roasted prawns served alongside braided cuttlefish. 

Sicignano's tuna appetizer is coated in a crumble made with vegetable charcoal.

He then adds artichokes served three ways, stewed, fried and grilled.

The last appetizer was pigeon and included a potato gnocchi...

and even a slice of banana bread!

Amazing, giusto?

Amazing Appetizers, Terrazza Gallia, Milan (Mi)

I walked out of the Milan train station a little disoriented - a fish out of water.  A little unsure of which direction I needed to go, and to be honest, a little. hungry.  I walked over to a nearby newstand and asked for directions to Excelsior Hotel Gallia.  Right over there, he said, as he pointed across the street.

A few minutes later, Chef Antonio Lebano met me in the hotel's lobby.  After a quick tour of one of Milan's most exclusive hotels, we hopped in the elevator and headed towards the 7th floor - Terrazza Gallia.  My destination for a long leisurely light lunch and an opportunity to get to know how Antonio and his older brother Vincenzo have brought a bit of southern hospitality to Milano. 

Chef Antonio Lebano

 Let's start with a look at two appetizers that caught my eye and palatte.

Lebano' carrot dish.  I never really like carrots as a child.  They were either served to me raw on a salad bar or maybe in a soup.  So what was it about this dish that made me learn to appreciate this underrated root veggie? Maybe the time, care and variety of flavors added to the dish.  Flavors such as hazelnuts, black truffles, and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese by Paolo Gennari.

Next, Lebano served me a soft warm hug - a comfortevole comfort food featuring creamed codfish.

Time for a closer look - Lebano uses three powders; burnt lemon (from Sorrento of course). tomato, and mint. These are sprinkled on top of a creamy codfish base, with smashed potatoes, extra virgin olive oil, fermented lemon cubes, salt cod tripe and finferli mushrooms.  Lebano teamed up a fish from the north with flavors form the south...

Amazing - and we were just getting started.

Amazing Appetizer , Chef Domenico Candela, George Restaurant, Naples (Na)

La Venere di Botticelli

I decided to treat myself to a night out.  Get dressed up and go out to an elegant restaurant in Naples.  You know, enjoy the city by night.  I chose George Restaurant , who less than a week earlier received a prestigious Michelin Star.  Quite an accomplishment for a restaurant that has been open for less than 2 years.  This was my fourth visit to George, and I was familiar with several of Chef Domenico Candela's signature dishes - but not none that were on his Spasso Sensoriale tasting menu rich with new specialties for the fall/winter season.   Spasso Sensoriale which could be translated as a sensory/ sensual stroll.  Dishes pleasing to the eye and palate like this appetizer that Candela entitled La Venere di Boticelli - after the painting The Birth of Venus painted during the Italian Rennaissance by artist  Sandro Botticelli. 

The theme comes from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, a very important oeuvre of the Latin literature. Venus is portrayed naked on a shell on the seashore; on her left the winds blow gently caressing her hair with a shower of roses, on her right a handmaid (Ora) waits for the goddess to go closer to dress her shy body. The meadow is sprinkled with violets, symbol of modesty but often used for love potions.   ( visituffizzi.org)

Candela's Venus is a scallop carpaccio caressed by a cauliflower puree, bergamot, lychee sauce and Siberian caviar.  

Botticelli's Birth of Venus can be found in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.  Candela's?  Much much closer - in the splendida sala of George Restaurant.

Start Me Up - Casa A Tre Pizzi, Naples (Na)

As the temperature drops just a tad and the sun sets around 7 pm ish you can tell that fall has officially fallen on Campania.  Another sure sign?    Fall menus ready for the harvest. Ready to express the colors and flavors of the new season.  I decided to head out to Casa a Tre Pizzi in Naples last week to see what Chef Gianluca Farina would be serving this autumn.

Chef Gianluca Farina

Casa a Tre Pizzi's fall menu is the fruit of the collaboration between Farina- Pizzi's Head chef and Francesco Sodano - who serves as Executive chef and consultant.  Here's a look at what they served to start me up...

Starting up with something to satisfy my thirst.  Mirko Notaro brought out - no, not a sparkling wine - but a cocktail.  His latest, and I would a have the opportunity to be one of the first to try it.  

Wild Turkey 101 Rye Bourbon, Cointreau, cinnamon extract, and green apple centrifugal juice.  Notaro later told me that he named it the KP drink - after me!

I enjoyed this cocktail as part of my aperitivo. 

A bao bun steamed then lightly fried.  Farina filled it with  barbequed guinea fowl and yuzu.

Wonton filled with smomed eggplant and eel.

Taco with marinated vegetables, rice vinegar, lime coriander.

Andrea Notaro brought over the next dish - an amazing sushi appetizer.  

Creamed codfish sushi with horseradish, salmon roe, marinated onion and coriander powder.

For the next start me up Notaro pored me a glass of Morellino di Scansano 2018 from Fattorie Le Pupille.

A glass to pair with a plate of beef tartare.

Beef tartare with a goat cheese, a hazelnut emulsion and chickory.  Fantasticaaa!

So, to recap - my start me up serata in cluded a new cocktail - grazie, Mirko!!! , an aperitif featuring a fantatsic bao bun sandwich, a crazy creamed codfish sushi, and a bombastic beef tartare.

Benvenuto autunno!