Osteria Acquacheta #tbtmeal

I did it again! I disappeared. No more. NO MORE I SAY. Hopefully coming back for real now, with some new ideas. The first one is the throwback Thursday meals. Basically, #tbtmeal posts will be posts about places I have been to more than six months ago. I know, that was a clever way of keeping from dying of shame for not posting anything. 

Oh well. The first #tbtmeal of this blog will be one that I have been dying to post about... and one of the best meals of my life, from when I was in Italy. 

Montepulciano was incredibly empty. After visiting Siena, Pisa, and other tourist-filled cities, Montepulciano actually looked a little bit like a ghost town. There was no one in the streets! The day was not that pretty when we got there, it was super cold and cloudy, which contributed to my impression. That was the only city we decided to spend the whole day at, I don't even remember why anymore – probably because my mom decided it was the most interesting one.

Wine and cheese tasting

We had a tip going in the city – the best part about traveling with my mom is that we are both suckers for gourmet tips, which means that if someone recommends a restaurant in a city we have never been to we will most likely tailor our visit around finding said restaurant and eating there. It wasn’t very different with Montepulciano, where we were recommended the Osteria Acquacheta. First thing we did was go to the tourism office to get a map and find out where the restaurant was. After spotting it on the map, we went into the city gates (these medieval Tuscan cities almost always have a gate). The day was basically spent going into churches and into wineries, where they provided FREE WINE/BREAD/SAUSAGE/OLIVE OIL TASTINGS. Yes. I would have gone into every single store if we weren’t so easily guilt tripped by free tastings. Since every store we went in we had to buy something, we only went into three or four I think – anyway, it was worth it.

The entrance

And then we reached the restaurant. It was a small little door at the end of a narrow street. We were very surprised noticing a full house, when the city seemed so empty. We asked if we needed to do a reservation – they only had a 2:30pm appointment. Stunned, we accepted it and proceeded to look at old buildings and go to tastings. At 2:15 we got to the door of the restaurant (need I say famished?) and still had to wait around 40 minutes to be seated.

The restaurant had one rule: each person had one glass to drink wine or water. If you want to drink water, finish your wine. If you want to drink wine, finish your water. No fanciness! I was already excited about it – I love simple places. We shared a big table with another group, which never bothers me because I usually speak a language no one understands anyway, so it’s not like I have no privacy (although I don’t think I would be bothered by it if they did, honestly.) The kitchen of the restaurant was at the back and completely open. They had a huge brick oven in there, where they grilled their meat.

Appetizer

The house specialty was bistecca fiorentina. I posted about bistecca before, on the Totò post – check it! – we ate it as part of our New Year’s Eve meal. Well this one was different; better, tastier, more delicious, amazing, wonderful… sorry where was I? Oh yeah, house specialty. But let’s start in the beginning. For some insane reason that I cannot fathom right now – it has been more than a year after all – we decided to have a four-course meal. Maybe it wasn’t a decision, maybe it just happened. All I know is I started my path to happiness with fried goat cheese balls paired with artichoke cream. Fortunately, no one in my family really likes goat cheese, so I got to enjoy all of that amazingness by myself (excuse me for being selfish). It was just... so delicious.

After we had the appetizers (each of us had one), we went into the primi piatti, a.k.a. the pasta. I ordered Pici pasta with duck ragù. Pici pasta is similar to spaghetti, but thicker and with a hole that runs in the middle of it. Doing a little bit more research into it, I found out it’s a hand-rolled pasta that originated in Siena and is typical from that region. HA! Learning about other culture while eating = ultimate goal in life. I ordered duck ragù because I wanted something different from all the truffle sauces that I was eating. I liked it, but I also found it slightly overwhelming – I seem to have had amnesia at the time, since I don’t like duck that much. I don’t really know why I ordered that plate. Well, I did, and it didn’t let me down, I let myself down (drama).

Pici pasta with duck ragù

The owner and the bistecca (whole)

After eating an entire plate of pasta, we said: “Why not have some meat?” and ordered the bistecca. The bistecca is ordered by its weight, and the server (usually the owner of the place) brings it raw to the table for you to evaluate its size. It was a beautiful cut of meat. Beautiful. The owner was so cool too, he walked around the table, serving, talking to people, mocking his friends (I guess) and being nice. He even let me take a picture of him getting ready to cut a piece of the bistecca (oh yeah they’re freshly cut, ahem). Then the meat came in all of its glory and it was raw. It was so raw it was cold in the middle. I am not a fan of raw meat (I order meats “medium”, as opposed to the generally Brazilian preferred “medium-rare”), so I was worried. Maybe I wouldn’t like it after all. And then I took a bite. And then…

I died.

LOOK AT THIS

The meat tasted amazing. I never tasted anything like it. I noticed there was barely any seasoning to it, just a little bit of salt and pepper, but it was extremely tasty nevertheless. It was very quickly seared in the oven, which left the outside almost crispy, but the inside soft and juicy. JUICY AND DELICIOUS! It didn’t matter I was full, I had just eaten a plate of pasta and really, I wasn’t that hungry anymore. That meat was SO GOOD. It was so good, there was no way it would be left behind in my plate. Excuse me for not wasting amazing food.

Get this: the meat came with a side. A side of CHEESE - yeah. Grilled cheese topped with pears. It is a match made in heaven. The sweetness of the pear complements the cheese so perfectly. It looks pretty too!

Grilled cheese topped with pear

Dessert

And then we ordered dessert. I think we got several different things: a ricotta cheese cake thing covered in chocolate and nuts, another covered in caramel and I ordered biscotti and some type of liquor cause I was dying and I needed help making the food go down. After a shot of espresso, off we went to a loooong walk so that we could digest all that amazingness into our bodies’ system.

Honestly, I have no idea how much that entire meal cost. I’m guessing maybe a lot but it was worth it? Dad? Hehehehe

They have a website where you can check out a sample of their menu if you plan to go there (which you should!)… It seemed reasonable to me. It is a small place, so it’s less likely you’re going to get ripped off? I guess? In any case, it’s worth it. Absolutely worth it.

City: Montepulciano, Italy

Restaurant: Osteria Acquacheta

Food: Amazing

Service: Great

Price: €€ (?)

Enoteca Corsi

I am procrastinating. 
I haven't been posting lately basically because of the ridiculous amount of work I have for the next month and a week until graduation. But today I had to procrastinate a little. I mean, I needed to. Whatever, I want to. It turns out writing about food is much more fun than writing about Colombia's drug trafficking problem, Cuba's relationship with the U.S. or U.S. intervention in Latin America. And also waaaay more fun than applying for jobs. And less stressful, might I add.

So, today I write about the day I spent by myself in Rome. Beautiful Rome. After two delicious weeks in Venice, Florence and Tuscany, my family and I came back to Rome, where my parents needed to catch their flight back to the US and A. My flight got out of Paris only two days later, so I stayed in Rome for one last day. It worked out perfectly because I would get to see the Sistine Chapel - which I hadn't done five years previously when I had been to Rome for the first time.

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel

You know what? I was a little disappointed. I must acknowledge that my experience was probably something uniquely disturbing but by the time I got into that Chapel, I was so mad I didn't even enjoy myself. It turns out they only open it during certain times of the day. BUT they don't let you know that. Oh, no! They make you go on and on, always pointing in the same direction, which leads into a circle that never ends BECAUSE THE CHAPEL IS CLOSED. They could've just told me that. Instead, they decided to make me walk the same exhibitions five times! I was so hot from walking around the museum I took off my sweater and eventually LOST IT. So, as I said, by the time I got into the Chapel I was just mad. Plus, you have to look up to see the most famous painting one - which is minuscule! The one of David's finger touching God's? Yeah, small. 

I don't know. Maybe it was the result of hunger (of course) and the being tricked thing, but I saw things that were much more appealing to me. Monet's paintings at the Musée d'Orsay, for example. Or his garden at the National Gallery. Honestly, I am not as moved by art as I probably should be. Live music does it much more for me than art does. Although I do like going to museums, I am not as emotional as I am when there's a band playing. Stop judging me!

But what is important is what happened after I got out of that horrible place and went straight to eat! I went to a place called Enoteca Corsi, right next to the hotel I had stayed with my parents, close to the Pantheon. From the name, one already infers that it is a wine place. I read in an article from the 90s (which was framed and hung right next to my table) that around then there was a move for enotecas to start serving lunch, which were generally homemade meals for a much cheaper price than local restaurants would charge. They only serve meals during lunchtime, however, which is what makes them different from regular restaurants. 

I was there at the right time then (1:30 in the afternoon). From a very appealing list of choices, I decided to go with the homemade meatballs with peas and roasted potatoes, all with extra olive oil to top it off (you can actually see it in the picture.) I have to say one thing first - I don't like peas. After I ordered this dish, I was asking myself what was wrong with me that I just ordered meatballs with stupid peas? Why not pasta?! (probably because I had already been eating pasta every day for the past 3 weeks but shhhh)
Turns out - you guessed right - the peas were actually a great addition to this meal. Since the meatballs had so much flavor and the potatoes were seasoned with rosemary, I would go for the peas almost like they were a palate cleanser. Seriously. The potatoes were delicious. They weren't crunchy nor mushy, and the rosemary worked perfectly with the meatballs. It did taste like a good home-cooked meal. 

The restaurant

The place was small, but not claustrophobic and the service was great. Although I must say I didn't really understand how exactly these places are supposed to have a more agreeable price. This plate, although simple it may seem, certainly wasn't a bargain. From what I remember it was around 14€, which sincerely is expensive.

Hidden little place

After dropping my stuff at the hotel, I decided to go for a walk and then back to a gelato place I had visited when I was with my parents. Happy decision. San Crispino is a small, almost hidden "gelateria" two streets down from the Fontana di Trevi. Their gelatos are divine. Simply divine. 

I decided to get a pistachio (I love pistachio gelato) and grape ice cream. Which were heavenly. Delicious. Delectable. Tasty. The shit. However you wanna put it.

I love Italian gelato.

The inside 

Yes - I took a picture of my gelato. I'm not even sorry.

The rest of the day I spent strolling around and doing sight-seeing. I got to see this around sunset:

Saint Peter's Basilic - NO FILTER 

Great ending for our Italy family trip. I miss it - the food, the time we got to spend together, the picture-taking, the making-fun of my mom, the beautiful cities... But especially the food :)

Restaurant: Enoteca Corsi

City: Rome, Italy

Food: Great

Service: Good

Price: €€

Also featured on this post was Il gelato di San Crispino - holy gelato! 

City: Rome, Italy

Gelato: Divine

Service: Super-friendly

Price: Cheap!!

Totò - Happy New Year!

Happy New Year (22 days late)! After a long break, which was spent in lots and lots of restaurants acquiring new information for my blog, hence eating, I have the pleasure of writing this post. I hope I will accomplish my goal of awing everyone with this new post. Not because of my writing skills, which haven’t changed much, but by the food I have to present. This meal, ladies and gentlemen, was epic.

First, I must say I come from a culture where every single type of food can be sold in “all you can eat” style. In Brazil, we have the famous churrascarias, where meat is served to your table during the entire length of your meal – I know, amazing! This concept evolved through different kinds of cuisine, so now we have “all-you-can-eat” style sushi, pizza, pasta, and even beer! How crazy is that? You pay a certain amount and you sit at the bar and they keep the beers coming. Again: I know, amazing!

I recounted this to demonstrate that I am used to eating a lot. I love eating (big news), and I also like to get my money’s worth, so I would always dive in – who are we kidding? I still dive in!  So it was surprising that I – my extremely glutton self – would be impressed (and a little scared) of the Italian-style meals.

Me and my handsome "baby" brother

My dear family and I reunited on Christmas’ Eve in Rome, to start a trip of a lifetime through the beautiful country that is Italia. After Rome, we went to Venice and then to Florence for New Years. Our most pressing problem when we got to Florence was to find a good restaurant (we had an extensive recommended list) to have our celebratory capodanno meal on the night of the 31st. After seeing a lot of crazy-priced deals, we bumped into this little place called Totò which had a long list of plates and wine and champagne included in the 65€ per person fee. I know it seems like a lot, but the prices were not going any lower than that in the other restaurants. The place looked very Italian and smelled amazing when we walked in at 4 in the afternoon to make our reservation, so my parents decided to go with it. The menu was at follows:

·      A cart of antipasto

·      Gnocchi with truffle sauce and porcini mushrooms

·      Potato tortellini

·      Bistecca à la Fiorentina (T-Bone steak their style)

·      Florentine sausage

·      Deep-fried artichokes

·      House salad

·      House dessert

·      Wine

·      Champagne glass

·      Coffee

Let’s begin: the cart of antipasto was actually a cart! In the middle of the restaurant! With dozens of choices of antipasto! There was shrimp cocktail, octopus ceviche, prosciutto rolled in a breadstick, deep-fried olive-stuffed olive (!!!!!!!), chicken salad, roasted eggplant slices, boiled shrimp… and many other things that I couldn’t even try because I knew there was more food coming. And it did.

Genius!

The second part of the meal, also called “first course” in Italy, is almost always pasta. Amazingly enough, in the menu they had two different pastas listed – from which I assumed we would pick one, but no! Both came. Happiness… I have to say, the Potato-filled Tortellini (one of Tuscany region traditional plates) was delicious, but I am a sucker for mushrooms, especially when they are in a truffle sauce. Seriously, what can compete with that?! Mushrooms AND truffles. On colorful gnocchi. Beautiful! 

The third part of the meal, called “second course”, is generally a type of protein of some sort, such as beef, lamb, rabbit, sometimes fish. In our fortunate case, we got half of a T-bone steak grilled in Florentine fashion – a.k.a. wonderfully – and a Florentine sausage. The beef was very tender and cooked to perfection, still very red on the inside (they way it’s supposed to be) but almost crispy on the outside. It wasn’t the best we ate, but it was pretty good. The sausage was very different to me, used to the American southern usually over-processed sausages, because you could kind of feel the meaty texture in it. It was also divine. To accompany our outrageous meat selection we got fried artichokes and salad, which I obviously didn’t even touch – I was in too deep to care.

For meat lovers only

Artichokes

By the end of this, we were all on the verge of a food coma. Imagine pairing all of this with some bread and wine… two whole bottles of wine for three people (my mom barely drinks). But there was still dessert! The house dessert of choice was profiteroles. And then the glass of champagne came. I couldn’t drink all of it. Swear to God. I just couldn’t. There was too much in my system.

After this eating marathon, we had to walk somewhere, just to make this settle a little. The city was packed and there were free concerts going on in six different squares in the city for the 3809834723 tourists that were there (approximate number). We found a nice little spot in the Republic’s square, where there was a band playing bossa nova and then a jazz band came up. Dancing in the below freezing temperature of that Florentine night, we celebrated the coming of a new year, happy to be together.

Restaurant: Totò

City: Florence, Italy

Food: Great

Service: Good

Price: OK