Finally, the food photos! I'm not responsible for any damage that might happen if you drool on your gadget or keyboard. Sometimes we were so hungry I forgot to take a photo before eating, other times I didn't have the camera handy, and a few times, the food was not really picture worthy.
Some general notes about dining in Italy, first. Most restaurants will charge a table charge, which is usually between 2 and 4 euros per person, but on the other hand, tipping is not expected, and there isn't even a line for it on the charge card slip. However, service personnel always seem very grateful if you leave a few coins, and we often did that when we felt they made an extra effort. (BTW, the smallest euro paper currency is 5€, and 1€ and 2€ coins are common.)
Another thing is that most restaurants open for dinner at about 7:30 pm, and many Italian people start dinner at 8 or 9 pm, and it may easily last a couple hours. Adding to the time spent at the table is the fact that the wait staff often seems reluctant to bring the bill, and I've always had to request it when we were ready to leave. I don't consider that a service problem, just the way things work at restaurants in Italy.
Now, some pictures. Our first dinner on this trip was at a small place just a short walk from our hotel in Venice, and it was also the same place where we had our first dinner when Jenae and I made our first trip in 2011. It was just as good as the visit 4 years earlier, but even more special this time because sister Mindy and boyfriend/good guy Nathan were with us!
Venetian food features a lot of seafood, and at Osteria Antico Giardinetto, we started with mussels and clams, steamed and served with a tasty broth, herbs and vegetables:
Nate was avoiding certain foods, so he ordered grilled vegetables, and they tasted as good as they look in this photo:
Another one of us had the steak:
And these next photos are a couple desserts from the same place, first chocolate mousse, and second, panna cotta:
The next night, still in Venice at a place that served mainly seafood, a platter of local grilled fish, with a few pieces of polenta:
Here we are at a gourmet Italian grocery store in Turin:
enjoying a simple salad and white wine for lunch on a warm day.
The next group of photos were from our last evening of the four of us together in Turin, before Mindy and Nate returned to the states. We had a fabulous dinner at Al Gufo Bianco, with Piedmontese wine and food:
After being greeted with complimentary prosecco and focaccia upon our arrival, Mindy had chicken and truffle salad:
For an appetizer, I ordered a sample of Piedmontese specialties:
For first course, Jenae had ravioli:
Nate had noodles with mushrooms:
Matt had the noodles with sausage ragu:
For the second course, Jenae and Nate both ordered the grilled swordfish:
Matt had the braised veal cheeks with Nebbiolo wine sauce:
And Mindy had the pork tenderloin in pastry:
At this point, the server rolled over a cheese cart, with a nice selection of cheeses, but we declined that, which seemed a bit surprising to the server. However, we were looking ahead to dessert, which was over the top. They rolled the cart to our table, and Nate started by selecting a dessert. The server plated it, and then asked "What else?"! She encouraged us to try a couple things each, so we did!
Chocolate something and whipped cream something:
Tiramisu, panna cotta, and whipped cream something:
More desserts:
At this point, we were full, and ready for the check. The server arrived at the table with a plate of cookies and meringues:
We nibbled on those, waiting for the check, and after about 10 minutes, I nodded towards the server, she smiled, and came over with another plate of cookies! Another 10 minutes, and then the check arrived. It was a terrific meal, which we all enjoyed immensely.
The next few photos are from Gli Angeli, in Rapallo, on the Italian Riviera. My first course is eggplant Parmesan, and it was perfect:
Jenae ordered the baked goat cheese, drizzled with aged balsamic vinegar:
Her pasta course was lobster over fresh made pasta:
And since it was a cool evening, I had lobster stew baked in pastry:
For dessert, we shared panna cotta:
From Rapallo, we took the ferry to a nearby tiny village that has a restaurant for lunch that Jenae was excited about. The name of the place is Da Laura, and we started with salad made from greens and tomatoes from their own garden:
She had the fresh made pasta with pesto, made from basil and herbs, also from their garden:
And I had the same pasta, but with tomato sauce. You can see the beach just beyond our table:
Back in Rapallo, for an early evening meal, we went to Bar Enoteca Il Castello for a bottle of Ligurian wine and local snacks:
In Milan, I found a place seemed popular with Italians, and another good sign is the menu in Italian only:
A traditional Milanese dish is the Osso Bucco with risotto. Not very photogenic, but very tasty:
With a bottle of local red:
The next evening in Milan, we went to Signorvino, a nice wine bar, where we enjoyed another bottle of red and some local cheeses:
To close this blog entry, gelato from Peck, a nice market in the heart of Milan:
Thank you for following along with our photos and stories. If you wonder why Jenae and I repeatedly visit Italy when there are other great foreign destinations, this blog offers a few reasons. Italy counts 50 UNESCO World Heritage Sites within its borders, the most of any country on the World Heritage List. The people are very kind, the delicious regional foods and wines, art, architecture, great train system: all these things keeps it special for us.
