To get to Bologna, we drove our rental car back into Florence to catch a train. Since we had some time before our train departed, we managed to squeeze in another meal at Trattoria La Casalinga (so good!) and had another amazing meal. I will definitely do a more detailed post on the tremendous meals we had in Italy, but suffice it to say, we loved this restaurant so much that we left Greve in Chianti early just so we could have lunch here again.
After returning the rental car, we went to the train station and caught the train to Bologna. It was a super quick ride - about 40 minutes. Once we got out I immediately noticed a distinct difference. I'm not sure what I had expected of Bologna. For some weird reason I imagined it would be quaint and charming - and it was the exact opposite. It felt very busy and fast-paced. The Italians here generally spoke better english and everyone seemed to be in a rush - not at all like the Italians in Tuscany who were on what we endearingly termed as "italian time". Service here also tended to be a bit better - perhaps due to the larger amount of business and academic travelers frequenting the city.
Unlike my previous blogs about my trip to Italy, I will not do a day by day summary. Instead, I will focus on the highlights of my trip (which basically revolves around eating) because I didn't really spend much time visiting the typical tourist sites other than seeing the Piazza Maggiore, Piazza Nettuno and the Fontana di Nettuno (Neptune Fountain, with very graphic and volumptious nymphs). So what were the highlights?
1. Italian Days Food Tours. Our favorite experience in Bologna was actually not in Bologna, but rather in the surrounding areas of Bologna (e.g., Modena). It was a food tour led by owner-operator Alessandro - who is an energetic, knowledgeable lover of food. The tour started very early (7am) and we were picked up in a small van with a handful of other hungry travelers and taken out into the countryside.
The first stop was a parmigiano reggiano factory where we watched the incredibly time-consuming and careful production of cheese. It was truly an amazing experience whose charm could only be experienced first hand. I had seen similar tours on television but it really does not compare to seeing it with your own eyes. This factory only produces 40 wheels of cheese a day, which then has to be aged at least 12 months, and then tested to see if it can be certified as true parmigiano reggiano. After the uber educational tour, we sampled tons of cheese, fresh fruit, pastries, etc. - washed down with lambrusco, a local wine. 
Then we were taken to another factory to learn how traditional balsamic vinegar is made. I never realized that they could only make tiny amounts per year - which is aged at least 12 years. It really doesn't seem to make financial sense to produce this in the traditional way, but I suppose it is a labor of love. We were able to sample several kinds of balsamic vinegars with ricotta cheese, gelato, etc.
Then it was onto the proscuitto factory. Tip: This is probably not a good tour for vegetarians and non-pork eaters - but for everyone else, it is food heaven! We learned all about how they make and test each proscuitto, and of course, we were given ample amounts of proscuitto to enjoy.
Now, Alessandro did warn us to wear 'stretchy' clothes since we would be eating A LOT, but we were all still surprised when we were taken to a local restaurant to have a multi-course meal of pastas, appetizers, steaks and desserts - after our morning of sampling copious amounts of food. I'm not sure I have ever eaten as much food as that day - but it was all delicious. And it offered us a quick overview of traditional food in Bologna - which is much heavier and heartier than what we experienced in Rome and Florence.
The tour isn't cheap - we paid about 290 euros for both of us. But it was such an enjoyable experience that we really didn't begrudge the expense at all. Alessandro is delightful and his english is quite good. Most importantly, he obviously loves food and is proud of the Italian tradition behind the amazing food - and that enthusiasm permeates throughout the entire tour and is simply infectious.
2. Fine dining at I Portici. On our first night in Bologna we ate at our hotel restaurant which was awarded one Michelin star. We were a bit hesitant about doing another prix fixe since our experience at ad hoc in Rome was a little bit disappointing. The room that houses the restaurant was previously a theater and the space could only be described as reservedly grand. I almost felt like I had to whisper and I was worried more attention would be paid to ambience versus food. But my fears melted away once we got our cocktail orders and the bread basket.
Oh my. My vodka martini came very very close to that of Musso & Frank's - which is the martini against which I compare all martinis. And the breadbasket - a masterpiece of carbs.
 |
| This is squid sliced into "pasta" - delicious! |
My husband and I got one meat prix fixe and one seafood prix fixe - and each dish was not only creative and artistically presented, but also delicious. And as an added bonus, the wine pairing was perfection. (I'm still waiting for them to send me the wine list ... I hope they don't continue to ignore my request. There was a sauvignon blanc that was to die for!)
Dinner for the two of us was around $350 with wine and cocktails. Compared to some of the more expensive (and less impressive) prix fixe meals we've had recently in Los Angeles (- I'm looking at you Orsa and Winston!), this was actually a value.
This is probably more of a special occasion restaurant but it is definitely worth it!
3. Local dining at Trattoria di Via Serra. (Via Luigi Serra, 9/B) For those who shy away from fine dining and want to eat what the locals are eating - you must check out this restaurant which is located away from the touristy sites. Alessandro (from the food tour) recommended this to us and we were excited to give it a try and we were not disappointed. They don't seem to get many tourists but the co-owner (and host) was super nice and even translated the entire menu for us orally into english. The other owner (and chef) came out later in the evening to greet everyone but got very shy when he saw us because he didn't speak much (if any) english. But both of them were lovely.
But more importantly the food was delicious - basically, good home-style cooking. We had pastas, steak and additional sides and appetizers. We were definitely too greedy and ordered way too much. Tip: We noticed that in Bologna, the serving sizes are much bigger than other parts of Italy and the food is generally heartier. So be careful when ordering!
At the end of the night, we were presented with a homemade bottle of nocino (walnut liqueur) and told we could drink as much as we wanted. That brought back memories of the grappa in Greve in Chianti. It seems to be an Italian tradition to offer homemade digestifs to your guests and diners. We really should adopt such a wonderful tradition.
4. Gelato at Cremeria Funivia. (in Piazza Cavour) I wish I had more time to try gelato in Bologna, but it was difficult when I felt overly stuffed half the time. I chose this place as my one Bologna gelato place based on several local recommendations, and I am glad to report that the recommendations were all correct. The gelato here is delicious. There was one flavor in particular - Tortino Funivia - that was superb. It was a deep rich chocolate ganache-like flavor. I've never had anything like it before.
5. A little bit of art at Museo d'Arte Moderna di Bologna (MAMbo). (Via Don Minzoni 14) We had not planned on coming here, but I think my husband was feeling "cultural" again so we spent a rare rainy afternoon in this art museum. And I am very glad we did. The collection was very well curated and exposed us to new artists we had never seen before. It was a nice break from all the traditional religious paintings we had been seeing for the last week or so.
What are your favorite experiences in Bologna?
No comments:
Post a Comment