Carlo e Camilla has perhaps the coolest dining room I was in last year. The photos don’t really do the space justice so just go!
Category Archives: Italy
Favorite dishes of 2016
I started with more than 60 and have narrowed it down as much as possible. In no particular order here are my top dishes of 2016, whatever ‘top’ means on any such lists. Largely these dishes are not representative of my favorite meals of 2016 and many are from what I would consider casual restaurants. They may not all be the best dishes technically but are the dishes that I could eat every day and often have cravings for. In the interest of fairness of I have disqualified the Au Cheval burger, the Humm Dog, Black Truffle Explosion, and Oysters & Pearls as well as all bread courses.
balsamic, truffle, artichoke
Luskus with Kitchen Table @ Bubbledogs
New York
osetra – plantain, papaya, rum
Alinea
Miami
elvis tartine
Eating House
Miami
beef crudo
Momofuku Nishi
New York
farm egg baked in celery cream
Miller Union
Atlanta
foie gras and truffle macaroon
Osteria Francescana
Modena
sheep’s milk gnocchi
Jockey Hollow
Morristown, NJ
passionfruit semifreddo
Contra @ Gramercy Tavern
New York
carolina gold rice
Roister
Chicago
okonomiyaki
Xiao Bao Biscuit
Charleston
snap pea sushi
Olmsted
New York
pike quenelle
nam tok beans
Kin Khao
San Francisco
spicy tuna toast
Wildair
New York
ko egg
Momofuku Ko
New York
general tso fried chicken
Chaan Teng
New York
Modena, Italy – 4/21/16 – Osteria Francescana
I admittedly had been waiting to finish this post thinking that maybe Osteria Francescana would move up to #1 on the San Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants list for 2016. A huge congratulations! And this was clearly the best reservation I made in 2016. I thought Osteria Francescana would be on my bucket list forever but the stars aligned during a week in Florence and a very trusting friend didn’t ask questions and just went along with my dining plans. Perhaps it was the long drive, or having to park outside of the city walls and walk to the restaurant, but I think I arrived more excited with anticipation than I have been in a long time. The night before we debated the two menu options online but were thrilled to find a third option which combined the best of both. The beverage pairings included my favorite cocktail of the year thus far and I’m still trying to track down all of the ingredients. It was also by far the most memorable pairing I’ve ever had. I loved so many of these dishes especially because of the quirky names and the stories behind them and because Massimo Bottura’s personality just seals the whole meal. That and those foie truffle macaroons.
Misery and Nobility
Lentils are better than caviar
Mackerel, suckling pig and saffron
Gnocchi as tzatziki salad
Mediterranean en papillons
Autumn in New York
Five ages of Parmigiano Reggiano in different textures and temperatures
The crunchy part of the lasagna
This little piggy went to the marker
Croccantino of foie gras
Caesar salad in bloom
Oops! I dropped the lemon tart
Castellina in Chianti, Siena, IT – 4/20/16 – Querceto di Castellina
The setting of Querceto di Castellina is exactly what one imagines Tuscany to look and feel like. After a tour of the property we enjoyed this fantastic lunch and tasting on the porch with an absolutely beautiful view. Perhaps it was somewhat influenced by the setting, but the lasagna was absolutely perfect, as was the rest of our meal but that lasagna I’m still thinking about weeks later. And as chianti seems best paired with food, this was an even better tasting experience than just drinking chianti alone. A big thank you to Mary for being such a wonderful hostess and you are very lucky that your future mother-in-law is such an amazing cook. I only wish we had taken more rose with us as it did not last very long! Such a absolutely memorable day.
Panzano in Chianti – 4/19/16 – Officina Della Bistecca
I really never thought I would ever make it to the very tiny town of Panzano in Chianti to visit Officina della Bistecca. I have been lucky enough to attend a few events in NYC with Dario Cecchini and had always hoped to make it here, but it just always seemed too far out of the way. Luckily the stars aligned and I found myself here for perhaps the most fun lunch I have ever experienced. I believe I am missing photos of a few courses although the photos do not do this justice in the same way that some of the best bands live do not sound nearly as good recorded. As expected the meat was fantastic and for the first time since arriving in Tuscany several days earlier I came to appreciate Chianti. And if there were no witnesses I would have finished the entire olive oil cake.
Beef tartar
Seared rump carpaccio
Bone-in rib eye or strip steak
Panzanese steak
T-bone or Porterhouse steak
Garden vegetables
special salt
Tuscan beans with evoo
baked potatoes
Chianti “butter”
Tuscan bread
Vittorio’s wine
Evoo cake
Grappa
(Approximate names as the cuts are particular to Tuscany)