21905 Tue Nov 05 00:05:34 -0800 2002 19 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 80042 Has anyone seen those delicious gems yet this fall and if so what are your favorite places to buy them - Farmer's Market, Wholefoods, Andronico's, Berkeley Bowl, online (I wish !) ? Thank you ! Tue Nov 05 00:05:34 -0800 2002 0 Heike 1 80055 Try the Truffle Market (link Below). Black truffles for $30 for 25g. At this time of year you can get black truffle dishes at Jackson Fillmore Trattoria for very reasonable prices. Link: http://www.trufflemarket.com/store.pl?prodID=black Tue Nov 05 02:33:42 -0800 2002 80042 0 jaweino 1 80070 the true french black winter truffles are not yet in season. they should show up at the middle of next month, but they don't even get really good until mid january. I've seen recently some italian "mid-fall" truffles that are ok, but it's worth holding out for the real thing. For such a high price, it's worth it to wait and savor the true aroma and flavor. be patient Tue Nov 05 11:47:34 -0800 2002 80042 0 datv 1 80076 In New York, the hot places have truffle tasting menus and pasta dishes topped with grated fresh white truffles. Who in the Bay Area is doing the truffle thing? Tue Nov 05 12:16:09 -0800 2002 80042 0 Paul Homchick 2 80079 I saw an ad by some kind of the white truffles consortium in yesterday's (maybe Sunday's) Chronicle promoting tasting menus with white truffles at various Italian restaurants across the country. Locally, they listed about 10 Italian restaurants, not all of them expensive (for example Ristorante Milano and Palatino). Tue Nov 05 12:30:28 -0800 2002 80076 0 svl 3 80082 Millenium is having a "White Truffle Frestival Showcase Dinner" on November 18. Below is the text of the email I received regarding it: From: Millennium Restaurant [mailto:email@millenniumrestaurant.com] Sent: Sunday, November 03, 2002 1:51 PM To: Millennium Restaurant Subject: November at Millennium: White Truffle Festival & Thanksgiving! White Truffles have been prized by gourmets for centuries and were credited by the ancient Greeks & Romans with both therapeutic & aphrodisiac powers. Join us on Monday, November 18th as Millennium’s creative cooks get their chance to put these claims to the test! At their peak for only a short season, Piedmont’s perfumed prize export makes an exclusive appearance five times over in a Millennium debut dinner: a Five-course White Truffle Showcase. Held in conjunction with the White Truffle Festival in various cities throughout the country, this is your rare opportunity to have chef Eric Tucker, sous-chef Bruce Enloe, and pastry chef Amy Pearce tableside to shave this famous fungus onto a truffle infused menu created especially for this event. For the perfect complement to these tasty tubers, we’ve enlisted the help of our friends and fellow truffle enthusiasts at Fiume Wines, providing a taste of Piedmonte with a wine-pairing menu of their unique, high quality, all-organic, all-Italian Vintages. In addition, their most outspoken supporter, Santé Losio, will be on hand to talk about the organic wine industry in his native Italy and to charm us all with his sunny Mediterranean disposition. Also making a special appearance, the Festival Producer, John Edward Smith, will be here with personal and informative anecdotes, undoubtedly adding the crowning touch to this enjoyable evening. Join us for this rare culinary & cultural experience! ________________________________________________________________________ White Truffle Festival Showcase Dinner Monday, November 18th, 2002 6:30 p.m. seating only Five-Course White Truffle Menu and Italian Wine Pairing $175 per guest Reservations Required; seating is very limited. (415)487-9800 ext. 0 for reservations ________________________________________________________________________ A preview of our White Truffle menu will be posted on our website within a couple of days… http://www.millenniumrestaurant.com _______________________________________________________________________ For more information about the Festival: http://www.italmangia.com/truffle_festival_2002.html _______________________________________________________________________ MILLENNIUM RESTAURANT 415-487-9800 ext. 0 246 McAllister Street, between Hyde & Larkin San Francisco, California 94102 http://www.millenniumrestaurant.com Dinner: 7 days a week, 5-9:30pm _____________________________________________________________ Tue Nov 05 14:05:55 -0800 2002 80079 0 jen maiser 4 80109 Here's a link to the 2002 White Truffle Festival. It lists all the events in San Francisco as well as events in other cities. Link: http://www.italmangia.com/truffle_festival_2002.html Tue Nov 05 17:34:44 -0800 2002 80082 0 Nancy Berry 2 80089 Apparently the French Laundry is doing a truffle tasting towards the end of December. Alternating courses of white and black truffles. This was noted in last Friday's Wall Street Journal along with other restaurants (outside of the Bay Area) doing similar menus. I did have an excellent white truffle risotto there a couple of weeks ago and I've enjoyed the truffled custard they serve, so I can only imagine that the truffle tasting must be out of this world. -Peter Tue Nov 05 15:08:15 -0800 2002 80076 0 Peter Yee 2 80094 just by luck we happened to wander into delfina last friday and had enough time to wait for a table. good thing we did because when, at the table, we looked at the menu, it was a white truffle dinner--most dishes could be served with or without fresh shaved white truffles on top, for a supplement ($40/dish). apparently, they do this sporadicallly through the season as they can get a good supply of fresh truffles. i don't know when the next one will be. i don't think they have a schedule or anything. Tue Nov 05 15:49:28 -0800 2002 80076 0 curious cook 3 80127 Thanks for the mention. Just to clarify, though, our truffle charge at Delfina is $20 per plate, not $40. Wed Nov 06 10:39:49 -0800 2002 80094 0 craig stoll 4 80129 Hi Craig! Nice to see you posting here--just wanted to hello from Bologna, and hope all is well with you. Is Da Delfina, outside of Prato, the place you worked in Italy? It sounds wonderful--we're hoping to go there sometime soon. Best wishes to Annie and Lucy... Wed Nov 06 11:11:42 -0800 2002 80127 0 Stephanie Rosenbaum 4 80305 Craig, How long is Delfina featuring truffles on menu? Please let us know. Can't wait to get in to try! Thu Nov 07 17:00:36 -0800 2002 80127 0 christinet 2 80104 Oliveto (Berkeley) is having truffle dinners November 12-15. Although not all that popular on this board, Oliveto is (arguably) the only authentic Italian restuarant in the Bay Area. Tue Nov 05 16:44:39 -0800 2002 80076 0 Malvolio Hotchickenpaste 3 80120 That's a strong statement. What's your definition of "authentic Italian?" And is that for all of Italy or a specific region? Tue Nov 05 23:00:32 -0800 2002 80104 0 svl 4 80143 I really meant Northern Italian food with some Tuscan influences--pastas and grilled or roasted meats for the most part, vegies not included. I think that Paul Bertolli makes an effort at duplicating a very good trattoria somewhere in mid Italy--good selection of antipasti, simple pastas, etc. The disappointments at Oliveto are the limited wine list (too young) and the service, which sometimes can be a bit huffy. My feeling is that it's not as popular as it might be because most customers prefer the Olive Garden large portion, no taste experience. Wed Nov 06 13:19:00 -0800 2002 80120 0 Malvolio Hotchickenpaste 5 80156 First of all, Oliveto isn't trying to be a mass market "popular" restaurant. I'm sure it's as "popular" as any restaurant in its price category. As for the opinions of people on this board, I think you're hit it on the head when you mentioned the service. Why should you pay the kind of money you pay at Oliveto and have to put up with the attitudinal service (for that matter, why should you have to put up with it anywhere)? Wed Nov 06 14:10:41 -0800 2002 80143 0 Ruth Lafler 6 80171 I actually said it because others have said it; service has always been fine when I am there. Perhaps because we go 6x a year they know us, though (but I agree that's never an excuse). That said, I'll take Oliveto any day over Da Delfina (not the original, in Arminio, but in SF), Acquerello, etc. Down here on the Peninsula even some 'upscale' Italian restuarants feel compelled to serve pasta sides along with the main course, thus my Olive Garden comparison. Wed Nov 06 17:09:05 -0800 2002 80156 0 Malvolio Hotchickenpaste 1 80093 White truffles d'Alba are out at local restaurants now. November is white truffle month, and yesterday Palio in downtown SF had a private lunch featuring the tasty morsels. Palio's a good place to feast on the little gems, they take it seriously. Tue Nov 05 15:47:51 -0800 2002 80042 0 truffleman 2 80098 Palio == Palio D'Asti? Tue Nov 05 16:03:48 -0800 2002 80093 0 Paul Homchick 1 80464 Haven't checked yet this season, but one good source for italian truffles (alba from piemonte, black from umbria) is The Pasta Shop in Oakland. You can ask to be put on the telephone alert list for when each shipment arrives. Fri Nov 08 21:00:26 -0800 2002 80042 0 Melanie Wong