Firenze (aka Florence)

Firenze

OK, back to the core of this blog: food, wine and restaurants! I'll refrain from commenting much on Firenze except to say we had a fabulous three-night stay at Il Bargello B&B (the website does not do it justice). Firenze is a wonderful city we certainly plan to revisit. So, on to the food pictures. I consumed a decent amount of gelato in Firenze. This first shot is not great, but shows me enjoying a cone of pistachio, one of my favorites flavors. We tried gelato from a number of stands and while all of it was pretty good, there were stands clearly superior to others. I judge this first in the texture. Gelato should been more meringue-like than ice cream. I think some readers will take issue with this observation. Consider than gelato has substantially less air churned into it than ice cream. However, gelato, normally made with milk rather than cream or a mixture or milk and cream, has a lower fat content than ice cream despite additional egg. The effect on the tongue is much different. Gelato has more staying power, it melts a little less readily. I find it less rich due to the lower dairy fat, yet more luxurious in it's creamy mouth feel. Confused? The solution: eat some gelato and forget about it! Yum! The second aspect by which to judge gelato is...you got it, the flavor. The more intense the flavor, the better. I'm getting a hankering for some just thinking about it.

We ate dinner the first night at Birreria Centrale, a moderately priced restaurant serving traditional, rustic cuisine. We were given a little extra attention, Il Bargello having made the reservation for us. So we were treated to Prosecco at the start of the meal and a pour of grappa afterwards.

Cured goose breast with truffle oil, shaved pecorino tuscano and lemon on greens. Fantastic.

D's dinner, tortelloni (ricotta and shallot) in a rich hazelnut sauce. Yummy, but not pretty.
Gnocchi with pesto. These were a disappointment: tough and lacking in flavor.

Rustic, but tasty: roasted pork loin stuffed with apple and pear.

Lunches we took on the cheap: sandwiches or pizza. The pizza at a place called Yellow Bar was really good. Yellow Bar is a young, somewhat hip, family friendly place with a wood fired (what else?) pizza oven. When it came to sandwiches, I opted for speck. It's essentially a boneless variety of prosciutto that's been cured with juniper berries. Mmm, so good. It's a shame we can't get speck in the US.

Our second dinner was at Trattoria Anita, another traditional and moderately priced restaurant in a back street behind the Uffizi. It had it's pleasures and disappointments as well. The highlight was ravioli in sage butter, the let down: osso buco, decent flavor, but poor texture. Sorry, no pics for this spot. For our third meal we decided to raise the bar. So, we visited one of the better known spots in town, Cibreo. No, not the extremely expensive fine dining room, but their trattoria, a different room, entrance, menu etc., delivering food out of the same kitchen. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong about that). The food was outstanding. I wish I had taken more pictures. It was not presentation perfect, but it was spot-on taste-wise. D started with a tomato timbale (presented like a vegetable flan, but made with gelatin, not custard). Fabulous flavor and texture. She also had a pureed soup of yellow peppers, very yummy. I took the fish soup, a brownish concoction, thickened with bread which was out of this world. I also enjoyed the brandade (aka salt cod...I forget what the Italians call this stuff, maybe it's something like bacalao). It was served cold with toast and pickled beets on the side. We skipped dessert. I had an espresso and we got gelato on the walk back to Il Bargello B&B.

The salt cod.

Dining at Cibreo's trattoria.

Finally, I'll post a few pictures from the Mercato Centrale, Firenze's indoor market. Enjoy.

(Yep, this is tripe.) Beefsteak Fiorentina, anyone?

Venice

Venice

We've been back just over a month now and I still haven't posted much from Italy. Time to fix that! While I used the camera extensively, I came away with fewer food shots than you might imagine. Our single-night stay in Venice included good, convenient, however unremarkable food. The best were simple sandwiches from one of the better stands near Piazza San Marco. Still, I'll offer four non-food photos. Now, I'll say this for Venice: it may be one of the most unusual places I've visited. The maze of narrow canals and tall buildings is certainly transporting. Also, the basilica's ceiling may be one of the most awesome sights of Christendom. Yet there seems to be little Venetian culture beyond what is maintained for tourism. I am glad to have visited, to have seen this unique place and enjoyed it's sights, but I'm also glad we did not spend more time there.

A view from the Rialto Bridge

This building houses the Venice Fish Market

A typical view of a little canal.

Riding the vaporetti.

Magazine Article Photo Shoot

So, I get this call...

...from a young editor of a relatively new Cleveland journal called Cleveland Business Connect. She's writing an article on molecular gastronomy. Oh, boy...in Cleveland? The community here is pretty small, so I referred her to the few chef's I know who play with this stuff. I do not...not much anyway; however, I am very interested in borrowing a few techniques toward my own ends. Of course, I can't pass up an opportunity to be interviewed and I've no shortage of opinion. It will be interesting to see what she makes of my comments. Of couse, I'll report here with a transcript or a link. More interestingly, the magazine photographer followed up the next day, asking to do a photo shoot. So early this morning, I met the guy at my friends restaurant (Doug Katz is a gracious man) and I plated a couple things. What follows are the pictures I took with my point and shoot. Fortunately, I should have some of the pro shots to post in the near future. Enjoy these for now.

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Carrot Cube and Sous Vide Beet Ravioli (Goat Cheese) with Carrot Power and Beet Foam

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Pictured below is a Terrine of Sous Vide White Asparagus and Shiitake Mushrooms with Mushroom "Crumbs"

Prague, non food pictures

...the non-food picture post...

Many times I've been asked to model for GQ, Vogue, etc. I told my agent to stop taking their calls. But here I am anyway (posing for some silly web log) outside Hotel Anna, which I highly recommend (the hotel, I mean).

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Some pretty person looking forward to a meal at U Zavoje.

Below is a shot looking across the Old Town Square toward the Tyn Church.

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This is a view of the Little Quarter taken from the grounds of the Strahov Monastery.

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Looking across theVltava towards Prague Castle from The Old Town.

Prague Food

Prague

We had mixed food experiences in all parts visited on this trip and Prague was no exception. What remains true is that most guide books fail to direct readers to those really good restaurants we foodies crave: the authentic, lovingly prepared eats of side street and small town venues or even some of the places that aspire to a Michelin rating. One of the best places to turn for information is eGullet on the web. I can recommend a few of the places we tried. Before I do that, however, let me offer up a toast with the king of beers, Budweiser. No, not that whimpy rice beer thousands swill in the States. I'm talking about the real deal, the pride of the Czech Republic: Here's to you!

(One of our first evenings...exhausted, but enjoying the good brew in our hotel room. Sorry for the informal evening wear)

Now for the restaurants: First up is U Zavoje (they don't have the english version of the webpage ready yet). We ate in this venue twice enjoying a live jazz trio in the Vinny Bar (the Wine Bar) area. It's not uncommon for restaurants to have more than one seating area with various levels of formality, menus adjusted to meet those levels in terms of complexity and price structure, but have the food coming out of the same kitchen. The food was decent. Below are two examples: duck confit and vegetarian lasagna. On the first night I ate braised rabbit, which was superb. However, the best dicovery of this dining experience was the wine, the Moravian reds. I particularly enjoyed Vinarstvi Cebau, Tvdonice, Modry portugal (the grape variety) pozchi sber 2006 (sorry I can't do all those funky Czech accent marks). Dianna mostly stuck to the whites, particularly liking a fruity French sauvignon blanc, Domaine Peiriere 2006.

Next up is a great French place in the Little Quarter (across the river from The Old Town). I recommend it as a lunch diversion, Cafe Savoy. I could not fine a website for the restaurant, but it is reviewed in multiple places on the web. We relied on quiche and salad to fortify our bodies and spirits against the miles of walking Prague's old roads and side walks. Here's a shot of the interior.

Finally, we splurged a little at an Italian joint with pretentions to greatness, Aromi: Enoteca con cucina. We had a rookie server who made some mistakes. Also, we weren't the jet-set crew buying expensive champagne and wine and the timing of the kitchen reflected a reduced priority to our table. However, we weren't in a hurry and had a very good meal. Highlights included the amuse bouche ravioli (mortadella) in butter with fresh sage, the white asparagus soup with squid, and the palate cleanser of prosecco and lemon sorbet. The entrees were pretty good too, but it was getting too dark for outdoor photography. This was out last meal in Prague and an excellent foreshadowing of our travel to Italy. Thanks for reading. The report from Tuscany will follow later in the week. Cheers!

Home again

Ok, I admit it...

I am totally in love with Tuscany! Should I have expected otherwise? While the dry, stony hills of Les Alpilles draws me with a fierce attraction, the lush and peaceful hills of Tuscany feel like Heaven. I'll update with some particulars of trip related mostly to dining. (This isn't a travel blog afterall, although it is up to me to define.) We're still in recouperation mode and busy with the mundane chores of restoring the house and affairs to order. So, I'll leave you with a couple pictures for now, d'accord? Je reviens apres demain.

(chillin' at Voltera)

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(La Torre di Ponzano, our paradisiacal home for five days)

Petit Soleil The Restaurant News

...the second location...

The VixseBoxse Art gallery on Cedar Road in the Heights Center Building (Cedar-Fairmount neighborhood) will close it's doors this fall. (Edit 7/11/08: please note the business is not closing! Vixseboxse will remain an active business.) I've toured the space twice and met with the managing partner/owner to discuss the possibility of installing Petit Soleil in this delightful location. He supplied for me a letter of intent which outlined in very straightforward terms what looks and feels like a wonderful opportunity. Just yesterday I visited the space with my architect/project coordinator, Joe Hanna. Joe's a terrific guy who, I believe, has a very good sense of my vision for Petit Soleil...not to mention his knowledge and experience doing restaurants (I think it's this month he sees four of his restaurant projects opening their doors!). Having seen some rudimentary architectural drawings of the space, Joe had expressed concerns of square footage and seating capacity. These were alleviated during the walk-through. He seemed very optimistic about the possibilities for the space and it's size. This was, of course, music to my ears. He will be working on drawings, a proposal for the build out, to submit to the owners for their review. I hope to present them with this and more when I return for Europe. June will be a busy month, if this stays on track and the owners interest remains constant. I should be able to sign the LOI and start work on lease negotiations in June. Also, I've made some new, very promising bank contacts that should help me wrap up the financing. They've already made some good suggestions that I plan to adopt.

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And with that, my friends, I must say a bientot. We leave on Sunday and there is still much to do. The excitement builds as hours fall by. Prague! How cool is that? I can't wait!