Last month I spent a couple of weeks in the Bay Area for work, mostly to shoot my next cookbook with the very awesome photographer Ed Anderson and the super incredible food stylist George Dolese. Even though #UntitledSouthItalyCookbook is pretty much complete, the Tasting Rome tour continues! While I was out west, I was lucky [...]
Il Vecchio Castagno in Serrastretta, Calabria It's been a very, very long year for many, many reasons, among them a very demanding and ambitious tour to promote Tasting Rome. I really wore myself out on the road and, while I did have the time of my life, I feel like I have aged [...]
For years, when I visited the States for the holidays (or anytime, really) I would stress the seams of my luggage by overstuffing it with Pecorino Romano, Gragnano pasta, panettoni, horse jerky, whole guanciali. You know, the usual. A run-in with the USDA put an end to my meat deliveries—I still don't have a horse [...]
The highly anticipated Mercato Centrale food hall (above) opened on a sketchy stretch of Via Giolitti on the southern side of Rome's Stazione Termini yesterday. The location, detached from the station's tracks and main concourse, will likely be the biggest obstacle the market faces. Termini is a real nightmare and no sane person enjoys sticking [...]
Pomegranates are traditionally eaten on the second night of Rosh Hashanah. Rome has one of the world's most ancient Jewish communities--the first Jews arrived during the Republican age around the year 161 BCE. This historic community, whose descendants live in Rome to this day, has rites, traditions, history, and a dialect that are unique in [...]
Wherever you go in Rome--or Italy for that matter--a cheap coffee made with beans of anonymous provenance and dubious quality is never far away. Ubiquitous espresso-based drinks are so popular because, aside from the cultural tradition and obvious addictive nature of caffeinated beverages, they are quick and cheap. They offer a morning pick-me-up or a [...]
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