Susan & Arnie Travel

I call this picture Pesce con fame (Hungry fish). I think this is my favorite food picture. The fish was baked and delicious and I couldn’t resist playing with it. I created this art at Centopoveri, Via Palazzuolo, 31r (near Santa Maria Novella). This was listed in the guide book as a small romantic restaurant specializing in seafood. However, it has morphed into a much larger restaurant with a wood burning pizza oven. They replaced the rustic tables and chairs with modern Milan-type high style plastic chairs. I was not optimistic about the food when I saw the new decor but I was wrong to judge this book by its cover. I started with the zucchini flower ravioli in cream sauce. It was delicate and very good. Arnie had the raw artichoke salad that had lots of sliced parmesan and great crunch. Arnie followed his salad with the sliced steak. He was kind of doing an Atkins diet thing. I could not have been more pleased with my baked Seabass with asparagus (pesce con fame).


First, the initial presentation was lovely, filleted with the head and tail placed back on the plate. The fish was so light and flavorful. Best of all, it was really well priced. The staff went nuts when they saw my “art”. Everyone came out of the kitchen and we had a group picture. Surprisingly, when we returned 3 weeks later for pizza, they remembered me. Oh, and we got those freebie drinks and Arnie found a new Grappa, Sibona, made from the Barbera grape. It is his new favorite.
Some have suggested that we may be partly responsible for the world wide food shortage. There may be a little truth in that and I do feel a bit guilty about our over-indulgence, nevertheless, we did enjoy ourselves. To eradicate some guilt I made a contribution to our local food bank and I would encourage you all to do the same. That said, here’s what we ate:
4/1 La Maremma, Via Verdi 16r.
La Maremma is in our new Santa Croce neighborhood. The décor is rustic but the food was not. They have very sophisticated food for surprisingly good prices. They also have a great wine list. Arnie started with Risotto with grilled radicchio followed by duck in orange sauce. The risotto was done perfectly as was the duck. The orange sauce was not overly sweet and had a bit of a kick to it. I started with pasta with spring vegetables followed by fillet seasoned with herbs served on Tuscan bread. The bread soaked up all of the filet juices and made for quite a flavorful open face sandwich. This is worth a repeat visit.
4/1 Enoteca Boccadama, Piazza Santa Croce 24/26r.
Boccadama is right next to our Palazzo. In fact, our front doors are adjacent. We would not normally eat right on a main tourist Piazza fearing that the restaurant has no incentive to serve good food because of the location. The menu looked interesting and we were tired from our long trip of moving our belongings a 10 minute cab ride. Arnie started with spring Pea soup with goat cheese that was very good and he finished with a lovely warm octopus salad. I had the pureed fava soup that was a little bland and followed that with eggplant with melted cheese that wasn’t quite eggplant parmesan because the eggplant was grilled. I was pleasantly surprised.
4/3 Quatro Leone, Piazza della Passera, Via dei Vellutini, near Pitti Palace. We weren’t planning on going here but it was raining when we left the Pitti Palace and this restaurant is close by. We both started with salads and Arnie wanted the octopus but they were out so the waiter suggested the mixed fry; fried rabbit, chicken, artichokes and onion rings. What could be bad about that. I had the beef stew. The real theater was the bistecca. The waiter brought out what we would consider a raw roast for the approval of the patrons. Then, that same beast was brought back to the table, charred and looking like it still had a pulse. We said we would go back and try it but we just ran out of time.
4/8 Trattoria Sostanza, Via del Porcellana 25r
Sostanza is an old time Trattoria with two long rows of tables and a middle aisle. The aisle people sit on stools and the wall people sit on a bench. I was a wall person and had a view of the kitchen at the end of the aisle. The menu is pretty simple. You get one of 3 pastas with your choice of butter or meat sauce. I had the penne with meat sauce and Arnie had the tortellini in butter sauce. Good basic stuff. As a second course I had the veal chop, which was really really good and Arnie had the fillet. I didn’t pay much attention to his dish because I was enjoying mine too much. One of the most memorial parts of the meal was the spinach. It had just enough garlic and olive oil and could have been a meal on its own. We encountered more Men Who Lunch. The 5 men sitting next to us ordered what looked like a 5 lb. roast that they examined in its raw state and devoured with gusto when it emerged charred and bleeding. We finished with vin santo and biscotti. We were the only English speakers in the restaurant which we think is a good thing.
4/9 Osteria del Pozzo (formerly La Baoranda), Via Ghibellina 67r
This is the new restaurant with the stickers from the previous restaurant. I started with a mixed salad that was really good and Arnie had ravioli with cream truffle sauce that is a contender for the best pasta dish (Giovanni and Belcore are in the running as well). Arnie had the special beef stew, a possible winner in the beef stew category. I had the pork chop; beautifully seasoned and tender. I think I already mentioned the 2 free limoncellos and grappas. We wanted to return but, so much food, so little time.


4/11 Mangiofoco, Borgo SS Apostoli 26r.
We had a good chuckle while we sat near the steep stairs and noticed a handicap access sign. We wondered how they would manage to get anyone with a handicap down those stairs. Maybe they are just required to have signs, not comply with them? Anyway, we came to Mangiogoco because we wanted something light. We had visited this wine bar for drinks and the cute young staff members encouraged us to return for lunch. They have a very limited menu that is pretty light by Tuscan standards. We started with the best Salumi & cheese plate. I never eat this stuff at home but Arnie had to be careful to guard his half of the plate. We discovered that the kid, who was the bus boy in the evenings when we had our wine, was the chef during the lunch service. I decided not to tax his abilities and had the swordfish carpaccio and Arnie had the salad with tuna and mozzarella. Both were very good and we felt very righteous after our almost diet meal. This is definitely a place to return to, if not for lunch, then for their excellent wines by the glass.
4/12 Osteria Antica Mescita San Nicollò, Via di San Nicollò 60r
I already wrote about this one: Bruscetta with black cabbage & lardo, wild boar stew (the best), duck in orange sauce. We went back for a repeat and again had the fabulous bruscetta. We shared a tagliatelle with asparagus and this time Arnie had the veal stew and I had the roasted rabbit. Great food for great prices.
4/13 Osteria Caffé Italiano, Via Isola delle Stinche 11/13r.
This is another neighborhood restaurant, more upscale than we usually choose, but Sunday is our dress up day. We started here with their Salumi tray that was really good. Arnie had the rabbit and I had the chicken grilled under a brick. Both were good and basic, even if the prices weren’t. It was a very pleasant Sunday lunch.


4/14 Ristorante Il Profeta, Borgognissanti, 93r
This was a research project to compare this restaurant to the much more rustic Sostanza. Slow Travel hosts this blog and I read and participate in the Slow Travel Forum. One person wondered why everyone seems to talk about Sostanza for bisteca but there was no mention of this restaurant. I decided to find out why. I started with a nice mixed salad and Arnie had a really good risotto with red wine and bacon. I, of course, ordered the bistecca and Arnie ordered the sliced filet. It is not very common to have a bistecca for one person. What I got was about a 1 pound T-bone. Arnie had to eat most of it. It was good, but it was way too much for me. The waiter brought over a free dessert and drew a line 2/3 through it saying that since I didn’t eat much of my steak, I had to eat most of the dessert. Who am I to argue? We never went back to Sostanza for the Bistecca, so my research project was not complete. I’d say the pasta at Il Profeta was better than Sostanza but I do think that the veal chop that I had at Sostanza was seasoned better than my bistecca at Profeta. The pricing structure was about the same but Il Profeta added a 10% service charge. Il Profeta is a real restaurant with tablecloths and cloth napkins and Sostanza is a very rustic trattoria. Deciding between the two would depend on the type of experience one wanted and whether the pasta was as important as the meat. One can’t really go wrong with either. There is the 10% addition to consider as well.


4/16 Trattoria Pallottino, Via Isola delle Stinche, 1r
This is recommended in 2 guide books. Seeing a line of older men waiting for a table was the only recommendation that we needed. We returned to see what they were willing to wait for. This is not a fancy place by any means. There are communal wooden tables and stools. I had an unobstructed view of the kitchen. The kitchen staff is all women. The pasta chef, tattooed and pierced, worked with the most banged-up sauté pans, throwing a pinch of this and a pinch of that. I watched her make my pasta carbonara. She put most on the plate then decided it needed a bit more time and dumped it back in the pan for a few more tosses. She did Arnie’s pasta arabiatta the same way. Arnie had the beef stew that tasted like it was made yesterday and reduced down to a fraction of its original volume. It was fiery with black peppercorns. My veal scaloppini with porcini mushrooms was very tasty and a huge portion given the price. One big draw here is the 2 course lunch for 8.50 euro. This was good food for good value.


4/17 Trattoria del Fagioli
This restaurant is around the corner from our Santa Croce apartment and I noticed the infamous stickers on one of our walks. We first tired it on a Saturday night and it was a mob scene. We decided to return for a more relaxed lunch. We started with Crostini with lardo, (sliced warm bread with pig fat). The lardo was not sliced as thin as San Nicollo so it didn’t melt as easily so it was a little less appealing. I started with the chicken soup with pastina because it was one of those rainy days. Arnie had the giant tortellacci that were very good. Arnie then had the involtini, rooled slices of veal stewed in a tomato sauce. I had the meatballs which were so tender they reminded me of my mother’s meatballs. We also had the steamed giant asparagus that we say as we walked in. Man, they were sweet. I had a great view of the kitchen and watched the ancient chef. There was a mix of tourists and locals. I found out later that day about their global advertising. I did a Google search for a gallery in Florence. A link for a video of the gallery came up. While I was watching the video I noticed a link next to it for a video of our restaurant! I watched the video and learned that the restaurant was a family affair with the 2 brothers as wait staff and dad and brother-in-law in the kitchen. We didn’t get a chance to go back and tell them what a good job they did on their www video debut.
Link to video: http://www.geobeats.com/videoclips/italy/florence/del-fagioli

Our best meals in Florence were at home. Towards the end of the Florence stay we ate more at home than in restaurants. Fresh pasta from the market; fresh sauce; beautiful cheeses; home made sausages. Life just doesn’t get much better.
After 2 short months in Florence we are now off to Calabria to find my father’s Italian roots.

Here is the link to the rest of the food pictures: http://www.flickr.com/gp/25519767@N06/41WL9i

Heaven, I'm in heaven...
Susan & DarioHeaven, I’m in heaven…. This is me getting a big bear hug from super-rock-star legendary butcher (Macellaio) Dario Cecchini. We did our annual pilgrimage to Panzano and this year got to eat dinner in his new restaurant Solociccio. Some background: I have been following; some might say stalking, Dario for years. I first read about him in the foodie guidebook Eating in Italy by Faith Willinger. This was well before the internet and Food TV when people actually learned things from reading them on paper. She called him the, “Michelangelo of macellaii (butchers), worth a pilgrimage.” That was enough for me. Those that know me well know that I voraciously read travel information, especially food related, and this paragraph on Dario was located on page 330 of her guide. Never underestimate the value of research! Anyway, Faith Willinger talked about his great meats and a seasoned sea salt that he sells called Profumo di Chianti. The salt is pulverized with Tuscan herbs and transforms anything that it touches into an ethereal eating experience. Dario has since been featured in nearly every foodie magazine in most countries and on all manner of TV shows, including a special on Anthony Bourdain’s show No Reservations and in the book by Bill Buford, Heat.

Our first trip to Panzano to the butcher shop was around 1996. I’ve been addicted to the seasoned sea salt ever since. Here's a little secret: our dinner guests are divided into those who are and those who are not "Dario" worthy. In other words, we use the Dario sea salts on meals where we determine the guest is worthy. Rest assured, if you are on my e-mail list, you are Dario worthy. Last trip I bought about 8 packets, vacuum sealed. They actually look like an addictive substance and one year Arnie got taken into secondary screening in the Brussels airport when he was carrying the vacuum packed sea salt along with the potpourri from the Farmacia di Santa Maria Novella. Obviously he made it home but he loves to tell the story about his fear of a cavity search.

Anyway, back to Dario. One of our fondest memories of Dario was his celebration of the resurrection of the Bistecca della Fiorentina. That’s the monster T-bone steak that I mentioned on an earlier posting. (See above) During the Mad Cow scare the European Union (EU) banned all bone-in meat. Bistecca is a staple of the Tuscan diet. It would be like banning all hamburgers in the US. I read that Dario had a funeral for the poor Bistecca and raised money for a children’s charity in the process. We were lucky enough to be in Florence when the EU lifted the ban on the bistecca and Dario had a celebration of the resurrection. My family has seen the pictures of the celebration but here’s the link to 2001 pictures: http://www.photoworks.com/photo-sharing/shareSignin.jsp?shareCode=ACA0E92C56F&cp=ems_shr_alb_pml&cb=PW

The street in front of the butcher shop was lined with food tables, there was free flowing wine, and the local band marched down the street followed by Peppino, a 600 lb pig. This again raised money for a children’s charity. Our friends have seen the foot long rubber pig that we purchased at the event, who proudly hung from our kitchen threshold until this last remodel.

There is now an annual Festa dei Macellai a Panzano (Butchers Festival) which sounds like what we attended in 2001, held in late October, where butchers from all over Italy set up tables to sample their wares and money from ticket proceeds goes to the Children’s Hospital of Florence. (See link to Panzano below).

So, I was thrilled to hear that Dario had opened a restaurant. Actually he has two. Solociccia is open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights for a 7PM and 9PM seating and on Sunday at 1PM. (e-mail for reservations: http://solociccia@alice.it ) It is across the street from the butcher shop. Officina della Bistecca is his meat extravaganza open on Saturday night at 8:30 PM and Sunday at 1PM and I think this is located next to the butcher shop. (e-mail for reservations http://macelleriacecchini@tin.it ) The dilemma was which to choose?? We waited until the end of our stay in Florence because it has rained almost every day. The beautiful view is part of the fun of going to Panzano. Walking in the rain is no fun anywhere. Time was running out so we took the plunge and made our reservation. We made our decision based on the day and time rather than the menu and selected Solociccia for Thursday at 7PM. Our preference would have been a Sunday lunch but the bus back to Florence would not be until 5:45, giving us almost 3 hours to nap at the bus stop. The alternative was to hire a driver to pick us up, but that got too complicated. We thought the weekend nights might be too crowded, so we picked a Thursday night and stayed in a lovely B&B taking the bus home the next morning. I made our dinner reservations by e-mail 2 weeks before.

THE FOOD

I know most of you don’t care about anything but the food, so I won’t keep you in suspense for much longer. One arrives promptly at 7 because one must leave promptly before 9 for the next set-up. We arrived early since we only had to walk 5 minutes. I will save the B&B part for later so those hungry for food talk and pictures can be satisfied. We were directed to a room with one table set with 16 place settings. Can you guess that we were the first to arrive? We sat at the far head of the table. We were joined by 2 couples who sat on my left who I thought were Italian but one couple was from Israel. On Arnie’s right was a group of 6 Americans, friends from grade school (including one precocious young daughter). At the other end were 2 German couples. As often happens, English became the common language. The table was set with water, 3 liters of wine, Tuscan bread, olive oil, the famous sea salt and pinzimonio, which is fresh raw vegetables meant to be dipped into the olive oil and salt. Then trays of food were brought out in waves.

First we had Crostini di sugo all’uso di Natale. This was small pieces of toasted Tuscan bread topped with the most delicious spicy meat ragu. It started with a sweet taste and finished with a peppery kick. I was so excited I didn’t get a picture. I politely passed one to each of my seatmates and then to me and jealously eyed the one remaining piece that stayed on that platter and was never consumed. I dreamt about that lonely delicious crostini and wished I showed my true piggy colors and devoured it.

Next came Fritto del macellaio ( see above) which was a mixed fried tiny meat balls, chicken, onion rings and sage leaves. Oh, this was good. The chicken was cut into thin strips, the meat balls were crunchy on the outside and moist and delicious on the inside, the onion rings and sage were in the lightest of batters. A sane person should have stopped there but we were only two thirds through the appetizers!

The next platter was the Ramerino in culo (see above) which loosely translates as rosemary up the butt. It was little balls of beautifully flavored ground beef, not what we get as grocery store ground beef but THE best quality fabulous cow, ground beef. There was an indentation with a sprig of rosemary shoved in and they were partly cooked and partly raw. Like Tuscan sushi. Well, I let my piggy self go and had extra helpings.

The next platter was Ficco di manzo al forno, beyond premium roasted beef sliced and flavored with the sea salt and olive oil. Simply perfection. Our youngest seat mate devoured this one. Following the roasted beef was Tenerumi in insalata, basically boiled beef cartilage made into a fabulous broth then cooked with vegetables. I’m not a cartilage eating kind of girl, but the flavors of the vegetables were fabulous. Think a densely flavored beef gelatin in liquid form that flavors vegetables that are cooked but still crunchy. Oh yeah.

Our final meat course was Carne in galera, potroast cooked in water, vinegar and spices until it dissolved into loose strands of meat. Dense, rich, just a hint of acid. I had thirds of this one. There was a bowl of chick peas and white beans on the table for anyone wanting to add a little carbohydrate to their saturated fat. In the fullness of time platters of Torta all’olio, olive oil cake, were brought to the table. This was a dense yellow cake, not too sweet that went very well with the after dinner liqueurs, Digestive dell’Esercito Italiano. There were 3 varieties of them, Grappa, and 2 others I don’t remember (because I drank them) all made by the Italian Military, we were told. We finished with espresso, and all of this for 30 euro. There is truly not a better deal in Italy! If you only had one meal in Italy this should be it. Anyone who finds themselves on death row in the U.S., God forbid, should ask for this as their last meal.

We picked up the menu for the meat extravaganza, Officina della Bistecca, and this is what you get for 60 euro each: Brustico di Sushi del Chianti (I’m assuming that this is what we would call steak tartar); Costata all Fiorentina; Bistecca Panzanese; Bistecca Fiorentina; Pinzimonio di verdure; panne; fagioli; panroated potatoes and onions; lardo; Torta all’olio; Digestive dell’Esercito Italiano; vino. Basicly, the best damn meat known to man, charred, probably still with a pulse, flavored with the best damn salt in the world. The back of the menu states that, “The Officina is not recommended to those of little appetite.” No kidding. Next trip we have to try this one.

ANTICA MACELLERIA CECCHINI

We learned first hand that Dario is not just a legendary rock-star butcher, he is a REAL butcher. We went to the shop at 9:20 the next morning and he was hard at work butchering half a cow for the Officina della Bistecca lunch they were preparing for that day (It was a special Friday lunch.) He also cut my salumi and packed my lardo. Wowee Wow Wow. His girlfried Kim was in the shop and we had a nice long conversation (in English of course, we don’t have long conversations in any other language) during which time she poured us each a glass of Chianti. Did I mention that it was about 9:30 in the morning? While we were there, almost 30 minutes, several mature men (I’m careful not to call anyone an “old man”) strolled by and stopped in for a hug or a brief chat with Dario. The butcher shop has a table set up along the wall with cold cuts and cheese and wine: in case the process of buying meat makes one too weak to get home without sustenance. The meat case made me want to stay in Florence longer so that I could cook more. Dario was also making his “meat loaf” a mixture of ground super wonderful beef to which I saw him add wine, red pepper flakes, lemon juice, paprika and his salt. I was drooling. So sad that we had so few days left to eat here. Aside from gaining international attention for his skills as a butcher (did I also mention that he recites Dante behind his counter?) he is apparently a great humanitarian. We learned from our seatmates at dinner, who live in Panzano part time and Israel the rest of the time, that Dario is very involved in raising money for a hospital that treats Palestinian children.

How could you not love this guy??

YOU MUST GO TO PANZANO AND EAT AT DARIO’S RESTAURANT!!!! If you are within reach of Panzano and you purposely pass up this opportunity your life will be without meaning.

B&B MARCO VIGNI

I asked for advice on where to stay in Panzano from the Slow Travel Italy Forum when we decided to spend the night. ( http://slowtalk.com/groupee/forums/a/frm/f/862600685) Slow Travel hosts this blog and I have been participating in their forum for a few years. People post questions on the forum and other people, from around the English speaking world, answer them. I’ve learned some great information. So, I posted the question, “Where to stay in Panzano?” and a wonderful woman, Judy Witts, who runs a cooking school in Florence and worked with Dario, responded with the suggestion that we stay with Marco Vigni. (www.vignituscanyrooms.it ) Thank you Judy. Marco rents rooms in his 18th century Tuscan villa located on the main street in Panzano, 5 minutes walk from Dario’s restaurant. I e-mailed him in English (I am too unsure about my language skills to try important transactions in Italian) and reserved a room. ( info@vignituscanyrooms.it ) We were greeted by Christina who was working in the beautiful garden when we arrived. She showed us to our lovely room on the 3rd floor, (no elevator, and no problem) with a beautiful view of the garden (see above) which is as big as the villa. There was a communal kitchen that we walked through to get to the room. The room was bigger than our bedroom at this apartment in Florence. It had simple furnishings and was very comfortable. Christina told us to put the sign on the outside of our door if we wanted breakfast. We didn’t think we would be hungry after our big feed and we were right. There were rooms next to ours but we did not encounter the other guests. The room was very quiet. There is a humorous antidote, isn’t there always? Friday, April 25, is a holiday in Italy. Panzano was celebrating the holiday with the Festa della Stagion Bona, Festival of the Start of the Good Season, that involves a procession in historical costumes of the Renaissance, a mediaeval play and plenty of food stands. When we arrived at 4:30 on the 24th we noticed men building a small wooden structure, like a booth. When we walked past them at 7, on our way to dinner, they were still at it, not making much progress. When we passed them at 9, on our way back to our room, they still weren’t anywhere near complete, but they were enjoying some alcoholic beverages. Around 11 we heard the faint noise of hammers and heated discussions. We speculated about when they would be finished. Well, not at 9 in the morning, but they made great progress. We didn’t stay in town long enough to see what the booth was for or to see the festival. For 65 euro, we had a great room, a nice shower, a short walk to our restaurant and we were very happy.

PANZANO
Panzano is roughly an hour bus ride from Florence. The bus schedule is reduced on weekends and holidays. I would strongly suggest that anyone spending time in Florence take the bus to Panzano. It is a beautiful ride through the Chianti hills and it only costs 7 Euros round trip. Panzano is a lovely small hill town with some really good restaurants; aside from Dario’s restaurants we have eaten at Il Vescovino and Enoteca Baldi. I’ve read about Oltre il Giardino and there is a pretty hotel with a restaurant, Hotel Sangiovese. Il Vescovino and Oltre il Giardino have beautiful views of the Chianti hills. Enotecca Baldi is a great wine bar serving wonderful wines by the glass, as well as light meals. There is also a wonderful cobbler on the main street, Via G. da Verrazzano, who hand makes exquisite shoes and jackets with the most interesting of leathers. And of course, there is my favorite butcher who has my favorite dinner restaurants. Taking the bus is a great, cheap, fast way to see Chianti, and you don’t have to worry about the drive home after lunch.

Here’s the link for more info on Panzano: http://www.panzano-in-chianti.info/
Here’s the link to the rest of the pictures of our wonderful adventure: http://www.flickr.com/gp/25519767@N06/3D1Aej

We were lucky enough to be in Florence on one of the few occasions that the whole complex of Santa Maria Novella was open to the public. The complex consists of the church, the monastary and the ancient pharmacy. The literature said that the monastery is the first to create the concept of dormitories, dining areas, kitchens, infirmaries, pharmacies, and cemeteries in one space. Urban development. Unfortunately, we were restricted in the areas where I could take pictures because half of the complex is now a military training center. However, you will see that I more than made up for the restrictions by the number of pictures that I did take.
The Florentine Dominican monks built Santa Maria Novella in 1221. According to one guide book these monks were “a fanatically inquisitorial order fond of leading street brawls against suspected heretics and encouraging the faithful to strip and whip themselves before the altar.” The piazza outside of the church, one of Florence’s biggest, was enlarged in 1244 to accommodate the crowds that came to hear St. Peter the Martyr, “one of the viler members of the saintly cannon. Peter made his name persecuting so-called heretics in northern Italy and ended up with one of their axes in his head.” The interior of the church and monastery that these guys created contradict their seemingly violent tendencies.

The Spanish Chapel was built in 1350 and frescoed by Andrea di Bonaiuto. In the scenes of Florentine life Bonaiuto depicts his losing design for the dome of Florence’s cathedral. (See above left.) He may have lost the design concept to Brunelleschi who got to build the famous dome but Bonaiuto showed us what he thought Florence should look like.

The courtyard walkway of the monastery (the cloister) is covered in frescoes by Paolo Uccello from around 1335. (See above and below) It was very interesting to see these 14th century frescoes in contrast to Ravena's 5th century mosaics.





In 1866 the whole structure became property of the state after the unification of Italy and the suppression of religious orders. The Dominicans regained custody of the church in 1868 but the cloister remained in the hands of the government closed to the public. It was really hard to comprehend that this beautiful space is used for military training. However, those bad boy monks would surely approve, given their rough and tumble beginnings.

All the beauty aside, my favorite part of the Santa Maria Novella complex is the pharmacy where the monks prepared traditional recipes with special herbs that they grew in their garden, mostly for the Medici family. The physical space of this now commercial enterprise is beyond belief. Within the pharmacy is the Sacristy of San Niccolo, built in the 14th century and frescoed by Mariotto di Nardo. (see below)








In the 1600’s the monks got marketing. They opened the pharmacy to the public in 1612. In the 18th century the monk’s unguents and creams were spread over the known world (according to them). In 1866 the pharmacy was state owned along with the church but it was later sold to Cesare Augusto Stafani, the nephew of the last monastic director. Now, his family really got marketing. They now have shops in Rome, Paris, New York, Los Angelis and Tokyo but there is nowhere like the mother ship. Accessed by the public on via della Scala 16, the entrance to the farmacia is very understated. You cold miss it because the awning is obscured by the awning of a pizzeria next door. (See below)






There is a simple threshold that leads into what looks like a small church. It is a place of worship for me. I just love their stuff!! The perfume of Catherine di Medici; the almond soaps; the potpourri. I am a total sucker for their marketing.

During this celebration you could get into the farmacia from the monastery and they took total advantage of this access to host a special exhibit in their museum on the oldest perfumes known to man. Their literature says that in 1850BC (that’s roughly 4,000 years ago, give or take) there was an earthquake that destroyed a perfume factory in Cyprus. Archeologists uncovered the abandoned factory complete with a perfume still (see below) and tablets listing the perfume recipes. Do you see where I am going here?








Using the most sophisticated equipment (or Arnie might say marketing [actually he used another word]) the farmacia was able to reproduce a 4,000 year old fragrance dedicated to Aphrodite. “The fragrances and aromas of this marvelous land have guided us with extraordinary simplicity to the choice of the essences, which diluted in olive oil, have given life to a new, yet at the same time, ancient creation. The scent’s first impression is of Bergamot and pine, followed by rosemary, lavender and sweet wormwood. The lasting impression is of cedar wood, oak musk, galbanum and thuja. Limited Edition of 4000 bottles.” This last quote was translated into English and Japanese. How could I possibly resist? I put my name on a waiting list and, sure enough, while we were in Ravenna, I got the call; my 4,000 year old perfume had arrived. :)

Here is the link to the rest of the pictures;
http://www.flickr.com/gp/25519767@N06/1D8J21


Here is a link to a video of the farmacia: http://video.concierge.com/?fr_story=70eabc474834dcacee94fe96931104601ff90c23&rf=bm



Here’s an article in the Smithsonian Magazine on the farmacia:http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/heaven-scent.html?c=y&page=2

We took a side trip to Ravenna to see the mosaics. There are several options to get to Ravenna from Florence. First there is an express train to Bologna then a transfer to a regional train on to Ravenna. Then there is the express train to Bologna with a transfer to a regional train that stops about 30 minutes outside of Ravenna and requires a bus transfer. Or, there is a regional train that does not require any transfer. The express train from Florence to Bologna is faster, but once in Bologna there is a lot of down time in transferring to the next train, so they all take nearly 3 hours. The big difference is the price: options 1 & 2 on the Express trains are 26 Euro and option 3 on the regional train is 7 Euro. Go figure. We opted for the cheap train because it was the easiest. It meant that we had to leave at 7:30 AM and return at 5:45 PM. That gives one enough time to do “run-by-art”, have lunch and come home.

We were feeling very smug about our ability to buy a train ticket from the Kiosk. This time we got to the “insert your money” part and we could not find the damn money slot. Here we were, 7 AM, no coffee, trying to stuff a 20 Euro bill into every conceivable section of this machine. Finally, after what seemed like forever, I noticed a blinking green light in the machine next to ours: THE CASH TAKING MACHINE! We didn’t have a separate cash taking machine the last time. Oh well, we were humbled and got our tickets. We had to double check the track our train was leaving from because it was a little 3 car number, looking vintage 1950. That was it. Arnie said it sounded like it was continuously trying to find second gear, but it gave us a nice slow look at the country side between Florence and Emilia-Romagna (the region that Ravenna is in). We left Tuscan rolling hills, went through long tunnels, emerged into ravines with steep mountains that reminded Arnie of Vermont and then open plains that Arnie said looked like Kansas, but with grape vines instead corn fields.

It was drizzling when we arrived then it started to rain. We headed to the Tourist Information office, not terribly close to the train station, and found a very helpful woman. She not only gave us maps but marked the maps with restaurants for lunch. I really liked her because she complemented my Italian. I think she was just relieved that she didn’t have to speak English.

Our guide books are woefully inadequate in describing the phenomenal mosaics of Ravenna. Here’s what little we learned: Ravenna was the capital of the Roman Empire 1500 years ago. So, they had some beautiful Roman Villas. Then, the Byzantines conquered it in the 6th century. Our first stop was the Basilica di San Vitale, built in 547 AD. I could not begin to describe the beauty of these mosaics or the serenity of the octagonal church. The mosaics are tiny fragments put together to make shimmering pictures. Breathtaking.



Next we went into the tiny Mausoleo di Galla Placida. This is about 100 years older than the Basilica. Galla Placidia was the sister of the Roman Emperor Honorius and she got one fabulous tomb. These mosaics are in midnight blue and glimmering gold. A German tour guide was describing them in great detail, to no avail for us. Breathtaking. (See Above)

From Byzantine Ravenna we went back in time to Roman Ravenna. Domus dei Tappeti di Pietra is a Roman Villa uncovered in 1993. The floor mosaics are unbelievable. The Villa was thought to belong to a Roman statesman and the audio guide never explained why it was buried and unknown for almost 1,500 years. Again, breathtaking. (see above)


After a short visit to Dante’s tomb, it was lunchtime. We thought Dante was buried in Florence but he was banned for some transgression and died in Ravenna. Florence forgave him and wanted his bones back, but Ravenna told them if he was not good enough in life, they couldn’t have him in death.








We made our lunch choice based on proximity to our last cultural event before realizing it was lunch time. Locanda del Melarancio, via Mentana 33, won the lunch lottery. There was casual dining downstairs and we opted for the more comfortable upstairs. Arnie started with a delicious penne with speck (bacon like stuff), grilled radicchio and tomatoes and I had the asparagus soup. The penne was really good, you couldn’t taste the grilled radicchio but the speck added a lot of flavor. My soup had big chunks of fat asparagus and a drizzle of truffle oil. It was very comforting on a rainy day. We ran into a little menu dialect issue that led to Arnie’s choice for a second course. The menu listed a fesa of beef as a special. We thought it would be some unknown part, maybe even a nasty bit, but it was in a balsamic reduction and balsamic vinegar is made in the Emilia-Romagna, so how bad could it be? Fetta is the Italian word for a slice. It turns out that fesa is dialect for “slice”; Arnie had sliced roast beef with a balsamic reduction. It was very good. I had something a bit more interesting: boned lamb chop wrapped in rabbit with bits of prune and fennel, in a prune sauce. It was really good. We needed our strength to continue our journey, so we had the ricotta soufflé with chocolate sauce. (While at lunch I got a welcome cell phone call that the perfume I ordered had arrived: that will be the next blog entry.) Fortified, we continued to our last mosaics.








Sant’Apollinare Nuovo was built in the mid 500’s . The left side of the church was reserved for women so the mosaics above that side depict 22 virgins. Why virgins, I don’t know. The mosaics above the right side, the men;s side, depict 26 martyrs. Whatever the theme, they were, again breathtaking.


We did not have time to take the bus out of town to see Sant’Apollinare in Casse and we missed seeing a few other things on our tourist map before catching the 5:45PM train home. That got us to Florence by 8:15. A long, full day.



Here is the link to the Ravenna pictures:
http://www.flickr.com/gp/25519767@N06/7F507N

Here’s the official website to Ravenna if you want more info:
http://www.turismo.ra.it/

Today we had one of our better meals. Arnie thinks it was the best; I’m still debating today versus my grilled goat rib chops from La Giostra and my shrimp on a bed of red bell pepper puree from Belcore. I must say, every thing today at Zibibbo was excellent. But before we do food, a bit about the Italian pomp.

Most days we walk through the Piazza Signoria, the living room of Florence. The guide books say that in 1258 there was a major conflict between the dudes that supported the Pope (Guelphs) and the dudes that supported the Holy Roman Empire, who you would think was the Pope, but was a secular faction (Ghibellines). Anyway, the Pope’s dudes defeated the secular dudes and tore down their houses. They thought the ground was cursed so they outlawed building there, giving us a nice big Piazza to sit in and have drinks.

The Palazzo Vecchio is the main civic building from the 14th century that is in the Piazza Signoria. The fake David is in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. We learned from our guide book that there is a male profile carved into a stone of Palazzo Vecchio. This is thought to be a carving by Michelangelo, just sitting there, no plaque, no cover, just sitting there.


Also in the Piazza is the Loggia della Signoria, built in 1376. It is a covered porch with 3 arched columns and contains some kick-ass statutes. Like the Michelangelo carving, they are just sitting there, being used by pigeons. Things like an original ancient Greek lion sculpture and a giant statute of three figures carved from a single block of marble in 1583 by Giambologna. It is a big free museum.

We were taking our leisurely morning stroll to buy some shoes (for me) when Arnie spotted a gaggle of plumed hats ahead in the Piazza Signoria. Then we heard the marching band and followed the music to a grand celebration. We still don’t know what it was about, but, it was very fun. Men & women in very colorful military uniforms were on horseback; men with 4 stars on their shoulders were strutting about; one man wearing a sash was being saluted; and all this to the rousing music of a military band standing in front of the Loggia. It was a great mix of old and new except the marching band uniforms were not what you call modern. The junior officers (guys with no stars on their shoulders) were trying to keep the crowds back from the band when a 3 star guy told them to let us be. So, the “no stars” and the “3 stars” stood among us great unwashed and listened. Then, the 3 star told the no stars to part the waters so that the band could march away. They did, but the band marched in the other direction. (We saw the same band the next day in our Piazza. I guess if you have those uniforms dry cleaned you want to get more than a few hours use out of them. Also, finally I had fitting background music for my entrance into the Piazza.) What a morning! We skipped the shoes and just went to lunch.
Here is the link to some of the celebration pictures:
http://www.flickr.com/gp/25519767@N06/63xc2S

I’ve read about Zibibbo Trattoria, Via di Terzollina 3r, for years. Benedetta Vitale owns the restaurant and is the co-founder and former partner of the restaurant Cibreo. In her new restaurant she emphasizes traditional Tuscan cooking with local ingredients. The quality of the food was superb especially given the reasonable prices. Arnie was very taken with the breath and good pricing of the wine list. The reason it took us so long to go there is that it is outside of the city, a 15 minute cab ride away. Every article spoke of taking the number 14 bus, however, we would never have known where to get off of the bus. As it turns out, her restaurant is just steps away from the end of the bus line. Now that we know how easy it is to get there we will be back-even if not on this trip.








We started with a warm salad of puntarella, aTuscan spring green, just a bit bitter, kind of like asparagus. It had a light dressing of anchovies and olives. Boy, was that good. It tasted like they picked the greens when we placed our order. Arnie ordered the Ziti with cicoria and taleggio cheese (Pictured above). Now, that sounded pretty ordinary. Not. The Ziti was clearly homemade. The cicoria tasted like sautéed leeks. The taleggio cheese gave it a subtle kick. I had the tagliatelle with asparagus in a parmigiano cream sauce. Can you say rich?? The tagliatelle had the perfect bite and the parmesan sauce was to die for. Arnie was more daring for his second course. He ordered the squid cooked in spicy squid ink sauce; Inzimino di calamari. It was served on 2 slices of Tuscan bread to absorb all of the good sauce. It was so spicy his head was sweating. I had THE best roasted pork served with spicy applesauce. The pork was so tender I didn’t need a fork and it tasted like veal. For dessert we had a light chocolate tart. The room was very spacious and the windows looked out onto the Tuscan hills with large Tuscan estates sprinkled hither and yon. As always there was theater. The restaurant is near a hospital. Two gentlemen came in for lunch and one was clearly a doctor. He answered his cell phone 3 times within minutes of sitting down and was saying something about a Melanoma (skin cancer). His friend wanted to order a bottle of wine; he said no, no just a glass. The waitress poured them each a glass of house wine and he commented that it was a very big pour. She then left the bottle on the table and, sure enough, the doctor helped himself to a second generous pour. One hopes he remembered the poor guy with the Melanoma.

We saved the 20 euro cab fare and took the bus home. What a great day.

I have more food stories but that is enough for today.

Here’s the link to all of the Zibibbo lunch pictures. http://www.flickr.com/gp/25519767@N06/D84PWZ