Eating in ER region - help needed!
My partner and I will be spending a week in Bologna in about 2 weeks time. I have done a lot of research on this board re good places to eat and it seems that the general consensus is that the best food is to be had OUTSIDE of Bologna itself. So.....I have been trying to plan some meals 'out' but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed and wanted some advice on whether I was on the right track or not.
We have put aside 3 days for touring the country around Bologna - we will have a hire car. One of those days we are doing an all day foodie tour around Parma, so that's not a problem.
On the other two days - a Wednesday and Thursday - we were planning to have lunch at Da Amerigo on the Wednesday, and on the Thursday we have three possible choices:
- Da Ivan
- La Buca
- Locanda Mariella
Our hotel has just informed us that Da Amerigo is not open for lunch. I am not sure if it would be too much of an ask to do a heavy dinner with wine and then drive back on unfamiliar roads?
If you had two days to explore the region (north, east, west) around Bologna within say a 50k radius, what would you do?
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT
Da Ivan
via Villa 73, Roccabianca di Fontanelle, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT
Locanda Mariella
localita Fragnolo,Strada Provinciale 61, Calestano, Emilia-Romagna 43030, IT
-
jen kalb
Apr 9, 2011 08:34 PM
ditto Allende in staying over toward Parma when you are spending your days touring in the Emilian countryside. Just doesnt make sense to keep heading back into Bologna at the end of the zone - traffic can be bad - Reggio could be good also Rubiera, with Arnaldo's (a nice hotel AND restaurant) - many of the good country eating places have rooms too, and thats about as civilized as it gets in my book. Allende, doesnt Da Ivan have some rooms too?
-----
Da Amerigo (Amerigo dal 1934)
Via Marconi, 16, Savigno, Emilia-Romagna 40060, IT›43 Replies-
re: jen kalb
Jen,
Da Ivan has rooms. Very nice ones. Look at the last sentence of the Da Ivan para where I mentioned it :). We've stayed there many times and, of course, it's great. Just get up from the table and walk upstairs.
Thought for Pixie. The rooms at La Buca and Da Ivan are very inexpensive (but done well). It will cost you money for gas and tolls (and a lot of time) going back and forth to Bologna. Just stay at both places for one night each, go to Mariella for lunch on one of those days and it will be a de minimis extra cost.
The countryside around La Buca and Da Ivan is spectacular... you're right by the Po (and you can rent bikes about 100 yards from La Buca and ride on the "bank rise" along the river. .. all flat. This is the real Emilia Romagna).
There is lots to do among which is Mantova if you want a wonderful city for a day; Verde's birthplace and everything else associated with him.
Splurge for the two nights (we're talking 100 euros a night) and I'm confident you'll find it worthwhile.
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, ITDa Ivan
via Villa 73, Roccabianca di Fontanelle, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT-
re: allende
Allende, I think you have been channelling my thoughts! I have just inquired into rooms at Da Amerigo but the distance of La Buca from Bologna (130kms according to Google maps) probably means that it would make more sense to stay there? and then maybe lunch at Da Ivan or Mariella coming back? Two extra nights is probably outside of our budget when we have booked and paid for all our accommodation in Bologna, but we could definitely go to one.
Are rooms at La Buca hard to get? I noted that Da Amerigo (for instance) only have a very small number of rooms available. I love the idea of eating a gorgeous meal and then just having a short walk to your room...bliss. Much better than a drive back through unfamiliar country.
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, ITDa Ivan
via Villa 73, Roccabianca di Fontanelle, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT-
re: PixieM
The rooms at Da Amerigo are just "okay." That's why I didn't mention them. I wouldn't stay. Go back to Bologna where you've paid for your room.
So... here is what I would do for one night. I would go to La Buca for lunch.Then make the (very ) short trip to Da Ivan, have dinner and stay there. The next day I would take a long walk near Da Ivan (great walking on country roads, all flat) and then have lunch at Mariella which is about an hour plus away. Then go back to Bologna.
Just a thought. Hope it helps.
In answer to your question about rooms at La Buca (not that it matters with my above suggestion), at this time of year, very few people are staying at La Buca (or Da Ivan). Of course, on any given day...
One other thing in general, for those that are thinking of going to the Emilia Romagna area. The food at these four places is infinitely better IF you want a certain type of food preparation. If you want preparations where the chef has used tweezers to make sure everything is exacting on the plate and uses many ingredients that have nothing to do with the region or even Italy (because they are imported from elsewhere), do not go to any of these places. You will be very disappointed.
The food that is served at these four places is, for the most part, what today we think of as cucina povera (the food of the poor or the food that the peasants eat). Actually, that is not quite true. it is the food of the Italian middle class of 100 years ago. Almost all locally sourced ingredients, nothing fancy, with pasta that is perhaps a little too thick compared to Bolgonese restaurants (but that's the way they do their pasta here... it's not that they don't know how to make thinner pasta), but has a sauce or filling that is to die for because of the intense flavors (and which your cardiologist would not recommend that you have ) and cuts of meat that Bolognese restaurants have to get from just this area. It is a cuisine that is different from "city" cuisine. We have yet to find, over a long, long period of time, any restaurants in Bologna, Modena and Parma that come close to these, if you want a certain type of food. As I've mentioned before on another blog topic, surprisingly you can find it in Mantova (Lombardian food), but in these three cities, we haven't found it.
To put it in perspective for PBSF who is active on the French board, this is Mere Blanc, right after World War ll. Or, to put it another way: a number of years ago we asked our friends who owned (and some still own) great and famous restaurants at the time (and one who still is the best known restaurateur in Italy) where we could treat them for a meal on Monday evening when their restaurants were closed. Unanimously, they wanted to go to Miriam's. Why? Because it was the type of food they most enjoyed. So... one very foggy Monday night...
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, ITDa Ivan
via Villa 73, Roccabianca di Fontanelle, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT-
re: allende
The food you have described is exactly the type of food that we are looking for - and probably more precisely, the cultural experience that we are looking for. It is our first trip to Italy and some people think we are mad for 'only' staying in the ER region - with a day trip to Florence and Venice - and when I say, "it's because of the food" they roll their eyes....
I am not sure - being a little Pixie - if I could do a big lunch and dinner in one day and whether that would then do justice to the dinner meal....and then back up for another big lunch the next day. Thanks for the tip about Da Amerigo. I am waiting to hear back from La Buca and will take it if there is a room and table available and probably do one lunch on the way back to Bologna.
Once again, thank you for your incredibly generous and valuable insight into the region, I am only mad with myself that I didn't come on CH before I booked accommodation:(
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT-
re: PixieM
May I ask only one thing? Please, when you return, take a little while and report your experience. I don't have all the answers (actually I have very few of them) and what my wife and I enjoy, may not be for everyone. It is good to have other opinions even if they are different from our own, so that others can get the benefit of another's experience. Many thanks and have lots of fun if you go.
-
re: allende
Yes I am definitely going to report back - going out tomorrow to buy a lovely little notebook just for that purpose. CH for both Italy and France has been so helpful that I would really like to give something back, even if not everyone agrees with my opinion....as you say, diversity of opinion can only be a good thing...except of course when you are tossing up about the (generic) restaurant that evenly divides people into love/hate!
-
re: PixieM
One last thing. Print out the Google maps (but do not necessarily use their directions; use common sense), if you are not going to get The Touring Club Italiano maps.
And leave plenty of extra time to get to these places. They are not difficult to find in daylight, but the roads are typically one lane and if you get behind a truck or bus...
And the best way to get to La Buca is to get off the autostrada at Fidenza, follow the signs to Soragna and from there you will see signs to Zibello and then right after Zibello there is La Buca.-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT
-
-
-
re: PixieM
Villasampaguita
Apr 10, 2011 07:53 PM
Hi Pixie, we made a review of La Buca on CH a few weeks ago, although I notice it hasn't clicked on the restaurant review section: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/773063
They have tables outside as Allende says to eat in warm weather on the patio.
Also if you are in the Modena area the Osteria Scandiano in Scandiano, listed in Slow Food's guide and Gambero Rosso was very nice, next to the castle. And when I say very nice, that's high praise from a Piemontese!
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT-
-
-
-
-
-
-
re: allende
This is a belated (first) post on a week my wife and I spent in October touring through Emilia-Romagna.
Many thanks to Allende for his recommendations, which we followed closely and which turned out to be very much in tune with our own tastes.
We flew into Milan and drove to Zibello. I think we subconsciously braced ourselves a little for disappointment at first because La Buca is such a mecca for foodies, but needlessly so - the simplicity of the setting, the ambience in the dining room and the warm service were disarming and we just relaxed immediately and enjoyed the culatello, tortelli di zucca, Lambrusco, etc. Spent the night in the Blue Room, which I found perfectly comfortable in a spartan country way (no tv or complicated toiletry kits), perhaps even my favourite of all the places we stayed in.
Lunch next day at Da Ivan. Again, wonderfully warm service in a sunny corner of the room, a little like being attended by a doting aunt who speaks to you in a language you can't really understand but you know she is doing everything possible to make your brief stay as pleasant and memorable as possible.
More ethereal culatello, some prosciutto di Parma. I think I had a lasagna, which was good, but mostly remember the chef with her traditional apron and hat, beaming across the counter when we paid the bill and stretching out to shake my hand.
The next day we drove through some scenic hilly countryside from our b&b in Proporano to Locanda Mariella and very nearly missed the sign for the restaurant. It being Sunday, the dining room was crowded for the midday meal. The food was excellent here too and more than matched by a well-thought out winelist. When he saw we were interested, the patron brought out the real list - several binders detailing what's in the extensive cellar.
We'll have to go back to explore that a little more.
That evening, our b&b host booked us for dinner at Ai Due Platani, a slow food pick, I think, where we had an exceptional minestrone (piping hot, which pleased my chef wife no end) a tasty cotechino (my first one), a dollop of zuppa inglese and a bowl of gelato carved out from a mountain which they bring around on a cart to each table every evening, it seems, at around 10 or 11pm with much fanfare.
This restaurant was a bit of a pleasant surprise - well, to us, anyway; we didn't notice any other tourists that evening, just locals having a good time eating and drinking. The service seemed a little brusque and impersonal at first after La Buca, Da Ivan and Mariella, but we realized the servers were just trying to be efficient and prompt. They became a lot friendlier and relaxed after the first hour.
Next stop: Mantova, where we stayed at the Casa Poli. This is a nicely appointed small hotel, a good choice for the area. If I remember correctly, we had a decent maccheroni at Trattoria Due Cavallini, but the atmosphere was a little tired and the service somewhat perfunctory, so foodwise it was not that memorable.
The following night at Trattoria La Rosa got us back on track. Francesco in the front of the house was warm and attentive, his wife, Adriana, doing marvellous things in the kitchen. Tartufo was the centerpiece of the meal - very well executed, relaxed fine dining for a reasonable price. The rooms are quite new and modern.
In Bologna, we had a good taglietelle ai porcini at Caminetto d'Oro. The service, however, though correct, was not so personable.
That night we drove to Da Amerigo for dinner. Tthe owner, Alberto, came around to our table. We passed on regards from Francesco and Adriana at La Rosa, which prompted the following exchange:
Alberto: Ah. La Rosa. Did you order his truffle dishes?
Me: Yes! They were excellent.
Alberto: Why aren't you trying mine?
All in good humour, of course (we passed on the truffle menu because, alas, we were feeling the effects of overeating). The dishes at Da Amerigo were well-prepared, but what impressed us more was the service - casual, but quite precise. Everyone was on the same page and worked as a team. My wife had caught a cold, so our server gave her second bowl of brodo with more stock than pasta. We had different wines by the glass for each course, but she left the bottle on the table. When we went down to pay, our server was upstairs, but someone came out from the kitchen to assure us she would be with us shortly.
Small details, but they showed good communication between the front and the back of the house, initiative on the part of the staff and the ability to exercise good judgment, and a willingness to accomodate guests that starts from the top down.
That was pretty much it for the restaurants except for a fun lunch at Ermes the next day in Modena, which we would recommend to anyone who visits there.
All in all, Emilia-Romagna was as advertised - excellent ingredients (culatello, prosciutto di Parma, aceto Balsamico, pasta), honest kitchens respectful of tradition, personable and attentive service.
-
re: mingus
"In Bologna, we had a good taglietelle ai porcini at Caminetto d'Oro. The service, however, though correct, was not so personable."
That's certainly the experience I had there regarding the lunch hour service, which tends to be young and admirably well-drilled rather than confidently experienced. However, for those interested in sampling the restaurant's good tagliatelle dishes (including tagliatelle al porcini in autumn), several are served at Caminetto d'Oro's less formal "bistrot" right next door -- Twinside Trattoria -- and the ambience there is free-wheeling and friendly.
-
re: barberinibee
Yes, that place did look more inviting. We arrived at Caminetto d'Oro early - or so we thought since the door was locked - so we sat outside and watched people walking into the bistrot, wondering - as we were getting hungrier by the minute - whether we should abandon our plans and eat there.
As it turned out, Caminetto was open for business, but none of the staff, who came out to the sidewalk several times to move some boxes into the restaurant thought to ask in or tell us to press the buzzer by the door to gain entry, even though we must have peered through the window three or four times.
One more thing. When our server brought the taglietelle to the table, he didn't bring any Parmigiano Reggiano, so I assumed we were supposed to eat it without. Later, however, I saw him bring cheese to another table where they were having the same dish.
I asked the hostess (who spoke English) about this later when she brought us the bill. Her explanation was that some diners take it with cheese and some don't, so they don't bring it unless you specifically request it.
Maybe I'm missing something here, but if you're dealing with a couple of tourists, wouldn't it make sense to either (a) bring it and let the diner decide (if you're worried about a language problem), or (b) ask (if you're not)?
-
-
re: mingus
I don't know why Caminetto d'Oro has a locked door with a bell. Fortunately, I spotted it when I arrived and simply rang it and was let in.
I ate the tagliatelle ai porcini in Trattoria Twinside and I cannot remember if I was offered cheese or not. If I wasn't, I would have assumed like you that the chef did not intend this version of the dish to be eaten with cheese. If I was offered it, I most likely would have tasted the dish first before making a decision.
If I wasn't offered cheese and proceeded to eat the dish and realized I wanted cheese on it, I would have asked for it and expected a good restaurant to bring it without delay. (I once had a server in a very touristy restaurant in Norcia Umbria go through the entire last act of an opera when I requested cheese to make an otherwise fairly tasteless pasta dish get some sort of flavor.)
I think when it comes to anticipating toursts' desires, servers can be damned if they do and damned if they don't. I read plenty of complaints on Chowhound from visitors to Italy who felt they were being insulted when they were handed menus in English after they greeted the staff in Italian, or that they were assumed to want cheese with a dish they *know* an Italian wouldn't eat with cheese. Even I complain about that server who assumed, because I was a tourist, I didn't know enough not to put cheese on the pasta I had actually just tasted and decided would taste better with cheese.
Just as an aside, when I make dishes with porcini, I often prefer grana padano to parmigiano if the dish incorporates cheese.
-
re: barberinibee
ttoommyy
Jan 5, 2012 01:57 PM
We're actually in bologna right now as I post this. Went to da Gianni tonight and had a great meal. I ordered the zuppa fagioli and immediately knew I wanted parmigiano on it after having the first spoonful. I simply asked the waiter for it and he acted like I told him I wanted to bear his children. His demeanor lit up and he also brought me a bottle of extra virgin olive oil (which I was going to ask for). I think it's a game sometimes in italy; it's almost like you have to prove to them that you understand and respect their food before they warm up to you.
-
re: barberinibee
My tagliatelle was pretty good without the cheese, so I wasn't complaining, just curious. It might have been interesting to try some with and some without. I didn't feel offended by not having been offered the choice because we're used to the French way, where you assume the chef knows what she's doing and judge the dish by what comes out of the kitchen.
Well, maybe I did feel a bit shortchanged when the lady across the way added the cheese to her tagliatelle and attacked it with gusto - maybe it would have been even better with the cheese. Then again, I'm not a fan of the unfortunate custom here where servers bring a massive pepper grinder to the table right after you've been served your dish and ask if you want some. How am I supposed to know until I've tasted it? Does it need more pepper? If so, why didn't they add it in the kitchen?
So, yes, I can understand the complaints from both ends of the spectrum, one assuming that the chef knows what he's doing and other wanting some freedom to make that decision and render the dish more palatable if it is not to that person's taste.
A couple of days later in Reggio Emilia, the restaurant just served a chunk of parmigiano on the side and left it to us to decide whether and how to eat it - ie, by crumbling it on the brodo/pasta/salad or nibbling it on its own.
I only assumed the cheese at Caminetto d'Oro was parmigiano. It could well have been grana padano.
-
re: mingus
Am pleased that you went to La Buca, Da Ivan, Locanda Mariella and Da Amerigo and was glad to see that you enjoyed them. If only more Americans would only go a little off the beaten track (i.e. away from Bologna and Parma) for food, they, too, would find a different world from anything they've ever experienced.
Thanks for reporting back. When reading a reply such as yours, it makes the work of posting here all worthwhile.
-
re: allende
Allende, we're very grateful for the recommendations gleaned from this board - it made planning our stays and meals much easier. My apologies for taking so long to acknowledge them.
BTW, we're Canadian - perhaps more used to taking the roads less travelled by, but mostly in France, not Italy.
We also
-
re: allende
allende:
As food for thought: Perhaps many Americans get sold on the idea of Bologna because of its easy train connections. The point of going is to be freed of the necessity of a car rental. Are some of the places you recommend that have overnight lodgings reachable without a car?
-
-
re: allende
That's too bad. Still, it's quite popular for people to pick up a car in Venice and drive to Tuscany, or vice versa, so maybe more self-declared foodies can be persuaded to make an overnight at one of the restaurants you recommend that has guest rooms. It is a wonderful way to travel, and to enjoy a great Italian dinner with wine.
-
re: allende
You seem to know the area quite well. So, I need advice. My family and I are vegetarian, but we love cheese and freshly made pasta, vegetables, mushrooms...
We are planning a two night trip in or near Bologna and are considering da Amerigo and Arnaldo-Clinica. Do you think these would be great choices for us given our diets? And, if so, where would you recommend staying?
Thanks!-
re: tlondon
jen kalb
Mar 11, 2012 07:42 PM
I think this region is a tough one for vegetarians. There are vegetarian dishes, for example tortelli with ricotta and chard or spinach, but many dishes use meat broth or the cured meats of the region for flavoring, if not as a major nutritional component.
At Arnaldos we had wonderful mushroom and veg-ragu sauced pastas with no visible meats, but I dont know whether these sauces are totally vegetarian. the first course cart is mostly cured meats, with I think some small salad type dishes (these could be veg/egg) then come primi (mostly stuffed pasta in brodo and pastas, then the meat carts, carved or the bollito misto, then salad with a few veg (for example there were green beans), then the dessert cart. I suggest emailing to see if they can accommodate your limitations.
In most restaurants, the contorni are secondary unlike other parts of Italy..
-
re: tlondon
I have to disagree with jen kalb that the Emilia-Romagna is particularly hard on vegetarians. I found it much easier than Venice, Tuscany, Umbria, Piemonte and the valle d'Aosta. In addition to pastas stuffed with ricotta or spinach or herbs, served with butter and sage, their are pumpkin pastas, gorgonzola pastas, mushroom dishes in season, passatelli and tagliatelle with tomato and onion sauce is a fine alternative to the meaty al ragu.
As for secondo, eggplant parmagiana is one of Italy's greatest dishes, and is nowhere finer than in Parma itself (or as close as you can get).
Meat-eaters often reassure vegetarians that "you won't have any problem in Italy" when what they mean is "you can eat pasta and pizza", so it is nice that in Emilia-Romagna the pasta is actually delicious and worthy of being the center of the meal.
All that said, I've never eaten at the restaurants you have mentioned.
Maybe your family would enjoy a vegetarian agriturismo.
-
re: barberinibee
jen kalb
Mar 12, 2012 09:09 AM
I was answering primarily with respect to Arnaldo's, but my general feeling is that prosperous northern Italy i (I have not yet visited Piemonte) is not a vegetarian paradise. It will be easier if you have reasonable expectation and ask ahead.
Sometimes its hard to find any contorni other than salad to accompany meals. Aside from the tortelli mentioned above which is a classic dish throughout Emilia, or the various pumpkin filled pastas in E-R and Lombardia,and of course pasta sauced simply with cheese, or with tomato and cheese, or the aforementioned melanzane parmigiana, I dont recall any wholly veg dishes. Mushroom dishes may include meat as a background flavor If the OP is not sensitive to broths and flesh that he cannot see (my veg daughter is like that) it may be possible to enjoy such dishes.
The more southern parts of Italy that havent enjoyed such prosperity and even tuscany have significiantly more to offer the vegetarian.
-
re: jen kalb
Sorry if I misread you. Your first sentence seemed to be a warning to vegetarians that Emilia-Romagna would be a "tough region" of Italy for them, and I simply do not see it that way, especially when compared with Tuscany. In addition to eggplant parmigiana, Emilia-Romagna has vegetable tarts called erbazzone, I can't think of one wholly vegetarian secondi in Tuscany.
Also, I cannot think of a range of pasta preparations suitable for vegetarians in Tuscany that begins to compare Emilia-Romagna. A tortelloni al gorgonzola is not just "pasta sauced simply with cheese" nor are herb-and-ricotta filled pastas, and the pumpkin-filled pastas are more than one type.. Mushroom tortellini is another option, as well as all the handmade flat pastas served with mushroom sauces or artichokes in season. Not all of these are flavored with meat. Sometimes mushrooms are simply grilled and served with balsamic vinegar as yet another purely vegetarian secondo.
I think the problem with contorni (and the possibility of unseen meat fat in a broth) is pretty much throughout Italy when it comes to Italian restaurants, but I've never had any difficulty getting seasonal vegetables in Emilia-Romagna
I think Emilia-Romagna is a more delicious destination for the vegetarian traveler than Tuscany, and many of the southern regions as well. It's not just how many dishes there are made without meat, but the tasty-factor. I'd hate to see vegetarians discouraged from going there. Many food tourists go to E-R for the cured or boiled meat, I realize, but it is hardly the only food reason to go there.
-
re: barberinibee
jen kalb
Mar 12, 2012 11:28 AM
well the OP has plenty of info now, and we will all be interested to see the report of how their family fares! I dont want to argue the relative merits of tuscan vs E-R cuisine, I certainly think the latter is more interesting, but I dont feel the heart of ER is in vegetarian food!
Arnaldos does include a bit of erbazzone in their array of antipasti (at least they were offered when we were there - very good. I just pulled up their online menu, and there are plenty of selections - except for secondi. Some of the little salad preparations offered as antipasti are very nice, their spugnolata (mushroom in a delicate lasagna like presentation with besciamella between thin pasta sheets is wonderful) So maybe I was unduly pessimistic.
http://www.hotel-reggioemilia.com/men...-
re: jen kalb
I don't think the heart of Italian restaurant food is vegetarian, period. But I don't think the heart of Emilia-Romagna food is meat. It is pasta, even if not conceptually vegetarian.
Erbazzone has been relegated to an antipasta, but I'm not sure it has always been that way. And it seems to m that I see more multi-ingredient insalatone offered as main course option for lunch than I do in any other part of italy I can think of. Often the insalatone have meat, but you can find them without. I rarely see insalatone on menus in other regions.
-
-
-
re: tlondon
@tlondon,
i can't tell if your question is directed at me or at cleopatra999. I've never eaten at Amerigo, so can't answer that.
If you are planning to be in Bologna, Trattoria Anna Maria is a great place for stuffed pastas. Here is their menu. You will see that they don't have a single meat-less secondo. You can order vegetable side dishes, but they will be quite plain.
-
-
re: cleopatra999
I've never eaten at Marsalino. I just grabbed the first Bolognese menu off the web that I saw to illustrate that insalatone is a very common offering in Bolognese trattorie, especially at lunchtime. While I can't testify to the quality of the food at Marsalino one way or the other, some other nice places to look for it are Bistro18 on the via Claveture and Les Pupitres on the via de'Giudei. Both have very nice outdoor seating on fully pedestrianized streets and Les Pupitres serves food continuously through the day. One more spot is Olivo in the piazza Aldrovandi, which daily features insalatone as 10e lunch that includes water, a glass of wine, a dessert and coffee.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
re: mingus
@mingus,
Well, in Reggio why shouldn't they assume you are there for the cheese! Perhaps it's also to emphasize that you are in the home of Parmagiano-REGGIANO. I can't help but think there is some resentment that Parma gets all the credit for the product.
I only mentioned grana padano with porcini on the outside chance you are a home cook. It's often rated as an inferior cheese, but I happen to like it with certain dishes (when the cheese is high quality and fresh).
I always ask a server who arrives with an oversized pepper mill to wait until I've tasted the dish.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
You've picked four wonderful restaurants, all wonderful in different ways.
Da Amerigo is easy to find because at this time of year it is still very light when arriving at 8 PM.
Coming back, all signs point to Bologna, so even though it is dark, it's easy to get back to the city. Very easy.Locanda Mariella is fantastic... really an osteria with Parmense countryside food, open at lunch, easy to find. Excellent a la carte menu and a great, I mean great, wine list. Just got its third
"Gambero" the highest rating that Gambero Rosso can give for an osteria (and nine out of ten times we've found that 2 or 3 gamberi are right on, unlike many of Gambero Rosso's restaurant ratings). Wonderful owner who really knows her wine and food.Da Ivan is another gem, better at night than at lunch. Very similar to Mariella, but the food is much richer because of the location (yes, it matters even though they are probably no more than 50 km. from each other). Excellent wine list. Ivan and his wife Barbara are the consummate hosts. Very nice rooms.
La Buca. There is no place like it. No so much for the food (although Miriam makes things that few do anymore... Rina of Villasampaguita should have tried her "prete" :) ), although the food is excellent osteria food, but for the "whole package"... Miriam, food, location, ambiance, wine list.There is only one Miriam, but her daughter Laura and son in law Luca are gradually taking over and are equally as good... and Luca has put together a very good wine list, not quite as good as Mariella and Da Ivan, but really good nonetheless. La Buca has been our favorite osteria in the Parma countryside for the last 32 years. Now has three lovely rooms.
We've been to all of them many, many times. I've written about La Buca, Da Ivan, Da Amerigo and I think Mariella several times, here or on that other (now relatively defunct) site e gullet. Do a search. I am fortedei on e gullet.
If I were in your position, knowing what I know, I would make it a point to go to all of them (probably stay in Parma for a few days rather than Bologna) or at the very least go to Da Amerigo for dinner and Mariella and La Buca for two days at lunch. IMHO, the four ristorante/ osterie are much much better than anything you will get in Bologna (or Parma). I know that's heresy for some on this board, but that's only because they stay in Bologna and never get to the Bolognese or better yet the Parmense countryside.The cooking of the Emilia Romagna at its best is not in Bologna.
Four of our favorite places, all of which we hope to go to in the next several weeks.
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, ITDa Ivan
via Villa 73, Roccabianca di Fontanelle, Emilia-Romagna 43010, ITLocanda Mariella
localita Fragnolo,Strada Provinciale 61, Calestano, Emilia-Romagna 43030, IT›5 Replies-
-
re: allende
Allende, thank you so much! It just makes planning that much easier when you are able to get quality information from people who really know the region.
I take your point and Jen's too, that staying in Bologna is not ideal for what we want to do, but unfortunately the Bologna accommodation was booked before I realised that the best food was in the region not in the city. So. I am stuck with having to travel back to Bologna each afternoon.
I am thinking that we will go to Da Amerigo on one of the nights when we would have had dinner locally, and then, as you have suggested, to Mariella one day and La Buca the next.
Decisions, decisions!
-----
La Buca
via Ghizzi 6, Zibello (PR), Zibello, Emilia-Romagna 43010, IT -
-
re: corineg
I spend a lot of time in Piemonte. This is my latest post http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/768883.
There are others and eating in Piemonte has probably been the subject of more blogs here other than Rome, Florence, Venice, and the area around Naples. Just do a search and you'll find plenty of opinions other than mine.
If I had only one restaurant to go to in Piemonte, it would be Cascinalenuovo in Isola D'Asti, but that is based on my food preferences and would be sure to ignite a fierce debate. The combination of food preparation and skill, food ingredients, ambiance, and wine list make it our favorite restaurant there, as it has been for the last 25 years.
That being said, it is an area that has a number of really good restaurants, for our money, probably more than any other region in Italy. Not only really good restaurants, but some of the nicest people who own them.
-
re: allende
Villasampaguita
Apr 10, 2011 07:56 PM
Good restaurant, but it wouldn't be the one I would go to if I only had one restaurant to go in Piemonte, but then I do live here.
-
-
-
