The Food, The Food
It's non-stop eating.
From local mom-and-pop restaurants to the fast food at historic sites to the sandwiches in mobile trucks, the food is awesome.
I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but the Italians - and Europeans in general - respect food. So unlike their American counterparts.
Yes, there is packaged sliced bread in the grocery store, but the folks are lined up buying the fresh-baked bread in back.
Lots of Coca-Cola - but it's made with sugar - and tastes so much better. Even crappy McDonald's has what could be referred to as real food - not that we've been in one to prove it - but the outside menus show so many offerings other than the chemical-laden crap sold in the US.
Respect for food.
We were in Ostia Antica yesterday and had sandwiches at the small cafeteria at the site. Simple salami and cheese on fresh rolls. Yes, they were made in advance, but they were made in advance on-premise. They were delicious.
I had a Saltimbocca alla Roma night before last. Simple, yet so much flavor. Fresh ingredients...
One of our real treats is having a pasticceria around the corner... One Euro pastries to die for! Those, along with fresh melon, have been our standard breakfast. Maybe some Italian yogurt... I should eat like this all the time.
Only thing I'm missing? My American-brewed coffee. I like my mug-o-coffee - sans milk. We do have a coffee maker in the apartment, but the coffee has all been espresso-ground. It makes for a bit of a murky brew.
But I think I'll survive...
Gastronomic Heaven
Food, glorious food...
I thought the best food I had ever had was in France. I'm changing my mind...
Okay... I know that so much of the dining experience is time and place. But... so much of it is the quality ingredients, too. Just wonderful.
Last night Phoebe and Nancy made Nancy's take on a classic putanesca. Olives, tomatoes, garlic, crushed red pepper... On fresh pasta. With fresh - fresh - crusty bread.
Okay... so we're eating this in an apartment across the street from the Colosseum. But... It still doesn't get any better.
The food seriously has been great. From small sandwiches to multi-course dinners, the pride in the food is evident. This is not American Fast Food. Even the fast food isn't American fast food. The people here demand quality - and they get it.
I've taken lots of pictures of lots of food, but right now I want to get out and eat some more of it... So...
I'll be back. In the meantime, here's Phoebe and Nancy dancing in the Piazza Navona...
Italian Food
A kitchen in Rome! Am I a happy kid, or what?!?
Our first trek into Italian eating was yesterday lunch. A sidewalk cafe down the street from us. I thought I took pictures - evidently, I didn't. Oh well. I'll blame the excitement of lunching on the street in Roma and lack of proper sleep.
I had a great sandwich - filled with tomatoes, mozzarella, arugula - and a thin omelette. OMG! Good. Gastronomic heaven. Others were having risottos, pasta dishes, much more substantial foods. I went simple. I'm glad I did. It's hot in Rome right now. Light meals are much easier on my system...
We hit the grocery store around the corner for fresh pasta and a bunch of vegetables and I cooked up a papardelle with garlic, onions, Italian zucchini, sun-dried tomatoes, bell pepper... Who knows what else... It was so much fun!
The store itself was fun. We had a lot of fun in the back with the fresh bakery and butcher. Very little English was spoken with the woman and man behind the counter. I said "pane" and pointed to a large loaf on display. She motioned cut in half and I sad no. She moved to a quarter and I said "all." She good-humoredly lectured me on how to say a "whole loaf." I laughed, repeated it back, got an A for my Italian lesson - and promptly forgot the word.
We have a small kitchen but a great gas stove! And lots of pots and pans. We'll cook, again...
After touring the ruins, we headed to a pizzeria - and air conditioning. My first Roma Caprese salad. Fabulous, as one would expect. It's just amazing how good simple ingredients can be - when they're grown right and without Monsanto being involved.
Victor ordered an "Assortment" of sandwiches - which turned out to be a singular Tuna sandwich. Methinks the translation should have been "Assorted" - as in "we have assorted sandwiches for €3,00 each." Since he also ordered a large salad and I had ordered a pizza, neither of us left hungry.
The tuna sandwich was awesome. No mayo or binder...
The huge salad...
Just brimming with fresh produce...
And the Pizza...
Prosciutto and artichokes. Oh, yeah!
And it was a thin - but substantial - crust.
It was also a combination I wouldn't have thought of, but damn! It worked well!
We haven't even scratched the surface of Rome - sights or food - so there's plenty more exploring and excursioning to do.
This is a lot of fun!