Restaurants in Cortona

Dear Friends,

This blog is about a new restaurant in Cortona that our friend Juan Angel has showed us:

It is called "Trattoria Tacconi", and it serves typical Cortonese cuisine. Very local and small, it only has five tables at street level and is run by a couple.

The very nice woman takes care of the customers orders and also cooks. You can see the kitchen from the tables, and you must pass through it in order to get through the bathroom.

The host told us about what they were serving for the day: A couple types of pastas with three different sauces that turned out to be delicious, and a second plate that was an exquisite steak.

After that we had two or three more small plates and some coffees. They do not serve desserts except for gelato. The food is excellent and definitely worth a try.

The clientele is varied: some businessmen, workers in the area, and plenty of "regulars". Very few tourists ever come here.

The check wasn't exactly cheap, but for two plates of pasta, two steaks, a litre of the house wine, water, the side plates, and the coffees, it came out to �60. Like I said, not exactly cheap, but at many other places the steaks alone would add up to  �40, and the delicious food is well worth it.

If you get a chance to come to Cortona, I highly suggest you try out "Trattoria Tacconi" so you can have your own idea of how good the food is here.

Kind regards,

George

Routes around Tuscan towns

Since many of you have been asking for articles on the towns in Tuscany we are going to start a section of the blog focusing on routes to various Tuscan towns that can be made in a single day.

Today we will talk about the following route:
Siena - San Gimignano - Monteriggioni

This route is undoubtedly one of the most appealing of those that can be made in one day.

Starting in Siena and parking in the "Stadio di Siena" or in "Piazza del Mercato" you will find yourselves practically in the centre of town and just a 10 minute walk from the beautiful Piazza del Campo, one of the most impressive historical monuments in the city.

Your visit ought to continue towards the Duomo. The Duomo, or Cathedral, is 10 minutes on foot from the Piazza and certainly a place which any visit to Siena should include. It is simply exquisite, and in my opinion, the most beautiful cathedral in Italy after San Pedro. Its beauty is not only saved for its exteriors but its interiors are even more magnificent. Siena was one of the wealthiest cities in the world during the Middle Ages and the people wanted the cathedral to be the most beautiful in the world. Inside the cathedral you will find stunning mosaics and works of art by the great artists from different eras.

Once you�ve finished in the cathedral I recommend a walk around the centre, strolling its especially narrow and charming streets, and also two very quick visits to the Accademia Chigiana (Siena�s Academy of Music) and to Palazzo Salimbeni (the historical headquarters of the oldest bank in the world, Banco Monte dei Paschi di Siena).

This visit to Siena should last around 3 hours, finishing around 12. 30 if you�ve started your day promptly! Now you can head to Monteriggioni. 

 Monteriggioni is an interesting medieval village situated about 15km from Siena and so can be reached very quickly on this route. I suggest you have lunch here as it has a couple of particularly nice restaurants: The first is Bar dell Orso where you can eat a simple but delicious meal of cold cuts, cheese and good wine on the splendid terrace, The other restaurant I recommend is called il Pozzo and is found in Monteriggioni itself in the central square. Il Pozzo is certainly more expensive but a more elegant dining experience where you can enjoy excellent homemade pasta dishes. This restaurant also has a lovely little terrace so you can eat al fresco but in the shade.  

Monteriggioni has a small church which I certainly consider to be worth a visit as its towers and medieval walls are still in perfect condition.

About 3 in the afternoon you should be thinking about leaving Monteriggioni to head to San Gimignano. This little town is well known for its medieval architecture, one of the gems of the region. It has conserved many of the towers which in the Middle Ages belonged to wealthy merchants and families that wanted to show off their power to the rest of the city.

San Gimignano has an interesting cathedral with marvellous frescoes by Ghirlandaio, but even a walk through the city is an experience. In the highest part of town there is a bar with panoramic views where you might want to relax with a glass of wine.

If you leave around 17.30 you will have plenty of time to go back to your accommodation to get ready for an excellent Tuscan dinner� 

I hope you�ve enjoyed this article and have taken away some useful information.

As always, comments are welcome and particularly appreciated if you have something interesting to add regarding the topic discussed.

Where to eat in San Gimignano

Dear friends,

This post as the previous one is addressed to all those who are visiting Tuscany at the time. I find it worth recommending where to eat so that you are not prey to the typical bad and expensive touristy restaurants.

Today�s post is about San Gimignano, a medieval town which by no means you can leave out in your trip to Tuscany. San Gimignano is probably the best preserved medieval town throughout Tuscany with ravishing towers that are perfectly kept.

San Gimignano as all the tourist destinations has a lots of expensive and bad restaurants, therefore when you are visiting this priceless town you should eat at the restaurant La Cisterna which is right at the heart of town on the main square.


In this restaurant you can savour excellent Tuscan cuisine, simple yet with good ingredients and while you are eating you can admire the ravishing vistas of the hills of Chianti.

The following is the restaurant�s address:
Piazza della Cisterna, 23 - 53037 SAN GIMIGNANO (SI)- ITALIA - Tel. 0577 / 940328

Well friends, I hope you enjoy Tuscany�

Warm regards

Giovanni

Walter Radaelli, an exclusive restaurant near Montepulciano

Hello friends,

If you are in Tuscany in the area of Montepulciano or Cortona or if sometime in your trip you head for Valdorcia you should take a break to eat at a new restaurant that I have discovered a few days ago. I am referring to the restaurant Walter Radaelli, an enchanting restaurant of creative Tuscan cuisine located in Bettole, Valdichiana.

The ambience of the restaurant is exquisite for its location, as it is situated in the interior of an ancient recently restored farmhouse, as well as for its elegant and carefully tended decoration that has been chosen and tastefully planned to the last detail. Besides, its fare is really delicious.

In the summertime it is possible to eat outdoors in the external patio of the farmhouse and enjoy an enchanting view of Valdichiana.


As I have told you the dishes that Walter Radaelli proposes belong to the nouvelle Tuscan cuisine, therefore there is much innovation compared to the traditional regional dishes.



So, for good cuisine lovers this place is a must-visit that should not be left out along the way to Pienza or Montepulciano from Firenze Arezzo, or Siena as Betolle is on the road leading to them.


Enjoy this gastronomic Tuscan experience�

All the best,

Giovanni

Finisterrae

Hi, friends!

Today I want to share another restaurant I simply adore with you. It is called Finisterrae and it is in Florence, in the heart of the city, in Santa Croce square, opposite the famous church.

Fisnisterrae is a different eating spot from the typical ones you would find in the city as it specializes in Mediterranean cuisine with not only Italian dishes, but with Arab Greek and Libanese specialties as well. The food is superb and if it is to your liking you can try the Cus Cus, the Kebab or the Mussaka.

If you don�t want to be that exotic this restaurant also serves pasta from all Italy, not only Tuscany, such as Paccheri Campani (a very tasty pasta from Naples) or typical pasta from Sardegna based on semolina with strawberries and clams.

The restaurant also has a good selection of wines, of Spanish wines, too (if you grow nostalgic about them) and other more exotic ones from other Mediterranean regions.

The place is wonderfully decorated with Arabic touches and provides carefully chosen Mediterranean chill out music. If you come to the restaurant in the summer we suggest you should get yourself a table at the terrace, not in the exterior one, overlooking the Santa Croce church, but in the interior one, which opens up into an internal patio with a fountain and a lot of vegetation.

The last time I went to this restaurant was a year ago and I really found it was a perfect place for trying out some food besides the typical Tuscan cuisine, that�s why I want to recommend it as a restaurant to visit in Florence.

Well, friends, I�m attaching the link to the web of FINISTERRAE, where you can find more pictures of the ones published here, as well as the restaurant complete menus.

I hope you�ll enjoy and have fun in Tuscany.

Piancastagnaio and el Amiata and a meal at Saxa Cuntaria

Last Saturday I decided to pay a visit to my friend Marco and to go to one of the regions in Tuscany I hadn�t visited yet, i.e. Piancastagnaio.

Piancastagnaio is located at 800 meters high and it dominates the Valdorcia, the Rocca di Radicofani and the old Via Francigena, which used to join Rome with France. Piancastagnaio, as all the towns which appeared near the Francigena, is a town with an interesting historical, cultural and artistic patrimony. The town has a boundary wall and it still preserves its medieval buildings, its noble palaces and its narrow roads, which wind among small squares and viewpoints that look out on three regions: Umbria, Lazio and Abruzzo.

The town is also famous in Italy for its mercury mines and for a statue at the entrance of the wall, which is a reminder of the fact that the whole town lived on mining.

For ski lovers, the pistes are just a few kilometers away as the station of Mount Amiata (the highest peak in Tuscany) is just a few minutes� away by car.

Marco, native of that town, resolved that to fight off the cold this season he had to eat well and he decided to take me out to the best restaurant in town.

The restaurant is called Saxa Cuntaria and it is certainly one of the restaurants where I have better eaten in the whole of Tuscany. The place is small, it�s got just a few tables, and it�s really intimate. The owner is a peculiar character who personally waits the tables and assists all customers.

As it was my first time at the restaurant I left Marco order my food and so we both ate the same, which I highly recommend, of course:

Starter: zuppa di farro alle castagne
Main course: taglaita con Lardo di Colonatta.


Both dishes are delicious; I specially recommend the main course which is a Chianina steak cooked in lard with a side order of superb black baked beans.

The restaurant has one of the best wine cellars I have ever tasted in Tuscany; it also offers many noble wines from other regions in Italy. For a change, Marco and I drank an excellent Sicilian wine.

The restaurant is a bit expensive, 45 euros per person, but the food and the wines are worthy it.

So, dear friends, as everything we recommend in this Blog, this place is also one of the sanctuaries of good Tuscan food. If you visit La Valdorcia or Mount Amiata, you can�t miss it!

I�m attaching a few pictures, as usual. On this opportunity, I�m including one of Marco, to whom I am dedicating the article.

Regards,

Giovanni.

New Year's Eve in Tuscany

Tuscany is a perfect place to enjoy the last night of of 2008. This unique region offers a wide range of options for all tastes and for all ages: for those who are seeking peace and quietness, for those who are wishing dancing all night, for those who dream of beginning the new year tasting the excellent specialities of a traditional Tuscan resturant in a friendly and warm atmosphere...

Therefore Tuscany has a large offer of accommodations, so you can choose to spend your holidays in a exclusive Villa with your family and friends, in a beautiful country house or in a charming hotel. You will find for sure the place that fits perfectly with your accommodation needs.

Some years ago I decided to spend my Christmas holidays with some friends in a wonderful Villa close to Cortona, and all I can say is that it was an unforgettable experience living those days among our Tuscan neighbours learning all about their traditions, the way they live Christmas and tasting the excellent specialities of the Tuscan gastronomy. We had the New Year's Eve dinner in a great and small restaurant south of Siena called "La Visantaia".


As always there will be plenty parties - allnightlong- in cities such as Florence, where you can find good music, the best dj's, and all the best for the last night of the year. In this link you will be able to see some of the options for that night: http://www.capodannofirenze.it/new_year_eve_florence/new_year_eve_florence_saschall.html

Also Woody Allen will be in Tuscany for the coming weeks, he will be in concert in Florence on December 22, so if you are thinking of being there that day I might suggest you don't miss the chance!

I hope this advices to be useful for all of you, and I wish you the best in Christmas and in 2009!


Alicia

Wonderful food in Tuscany

All the products that you can at "Hosteria Vecchia Rota" are very good because the Oste only take the best products that he can find changing them depending on the season of the year. If you have the opportunity to be in Marciano in Tuscany in July or in August I would strongly suggest to ask for "Pici all Ocio". Ocio is a big withe duck that you can eat almost only in summer and it is really one of the best meat in the world!

Hosteria Vecchia rota has not got any website so unfortunately I can not put the link for you but if you wish to go I just put below the telephone number and the address.

Hosteria Vecchia Rota
Via XX Settembre 4
Marciano della Chiana

tel: 0575 845362
cell: 335 5912812

If you wish to go I would strongly suggest to call them and to ask for a reservation as it is a very popular Osteria and many locals go every day.

My best regards for all of you!

Simon

Al Ritrovo Bibbiena

The restaurant is not a large place - and the main portions is in a tented area right infront of the kitchen - but this is also a good point, because you can sit outside catch the light breezes in the summer time and live the small town life on the streets in a quaint little town like Bibbiena.

Though the menu also contains several standard Italian dishes - the cook oftens adds a twist such as the potato filled pasta with butter and truffles, very inviting! The menu also included some basics, which for those of you who are looking for something just a little lighter than normal might enjoy the vegetable soup - just like my mother-in-law makes!

Pizza is served at dinner time only and is well made with a good tastey thin crust. I tasted the Peppery steak stew - and it was worth cleaning the bowl out. Wine can be purchased by the bottle or you can get smaller portions in a carafe - great alternative for those of you traveling in small groups. The house wine is good - you don`t have to order from the list to get a good hearty flavour to accompany your meal.

I know they say their specialty is fish - but I really can`t comment on that because I only tasted the turf menu but if they do the fish like the do the plates I did taste, you can go secure that it will be down with a unique home style flare.

Parking is tough in Bibbiena - you should really look for a place outside of town and walk in. The town is not that big and actually there are lots of cute little shops and beautifully restored historic building to view. To find the restaurant - just walk all the way up to the main square (there is only one) and look up facing the clock. Turn to your left in the far corner and you will find a restaurant with a large white tent in front.


Specialty is Fish

Piazzetta Mario Pierazzuoli, 4

Bibbiena Arezzo

Phone +39 0575 536209

Closed on Thursday

Restaurants in Arezzo:La Torre di Gnicche

It`s a small little place just right for friends who want to laze about and drink some wine and try some tasty finger foods - or an easy paced lunch / dinner or even mid afternoon snack. The menu is particular and changes every week depending on what the cook feels like creating.

This restaurant does NOT do pasta of any type - but in compensation they do some fantastic bruschettas: toasted bread with varies delicious toppings. One of my favorites is a soft Italian cheese, raddico rosso and lardo di colonata. Two hefty size sliced of bread - you choose the topping and you have a good substitue for a plate of spaghetti - and the possibiity to taste the wide selection of Italian cheeses and cold cuts.


Order bit by bit - because the portions are a good size and your eyes may definitely see more things than your stomach can hold. You can order your wine by the glass - which allows you the freedom to select many types. I have personally tasted the Polpetone - the American meatloaf probably came out of this prototype. You can taste that it is home cooked, with a nice brown gravy. I have also tasted the mixed cheese plate - very abundant - and the cheeses where definitely out of the ordinary.


Don`t skip the desserts - they are all made in house and merit a taste with a good glass of Moscato or Vin Santo. They can help you choose, just let them know if you like it sweet or dry.

La Torre di Gnicche means the Tower of Gnicche, and Gnicche was the name of a modern day Robin Hood who lived in the Casentinoo area. He existed around the mid 1800`s and a a reputation from stealing only from those who could afford it. He would keep his share (of course) and distribute the left-overs. In fact many young Italian boys from that area earned the nickname Gnicche (pronounced Nick-eh) when they were found to be just a little more active than others!


If you are in Arezzo and have had enough of everyday typical meals - then I suggest you search this place out. Its cozy atmosphere, and rather laid back look to it makes it easy to settle down order a glass of wine and watch the locals filter in and out. Though in the summer it can attract some tourist you will find the mainstay of this place are Italians and the quality of food and the moderate prices are proof of that.

Please find Below more information about this restaurant

La Torre di Gnicche

Piaggia S. Martino 8

52100 Arezzo

Phone Number: +39 0575 35 20 35

Closed on Wednesday

Where to eat in Pienza

Pienza is a lovely town in the south of Tuscany where art and nature live in perfect harmony. If you have the chance to visit this wonderful place I would like to suggest same places that you should not miss at all. The first one is the The Restaurant Il Chiostro an incredible place inside an old convent just in the center of the little Village. You can acces to the restaurant from an incredible garden overviewing the Orcia Vally. You should go to this restaurant in summer or spring because the best of the restaurant is the terrace from where it is possible to enjoy a superb landscape of Tuscany countryside. The food is also good and Maurizio the owner will do the rest to make your dinner or lunch unforgotable. Anonther place that you should not miss at all is "Latte di Luna" a very nice restaurant just at the end of the village. This place is famouse for serving the best "maialino di latte" (pork) in the area. More information about Pienza can be found at the officialweb site of Pienza

Trattoria Zaza Florence

Trattoria Z�Z� set behind the San Lorenzo Market, was an old wine-shop when it opened in 1977. At the time you could just get �crostini neri� or a slice of salami with your wine, but with time it naturally transformed into a rustic tavern where the knowing locals could eat traditional dishes like Pappa al Pomodoro, Ribollita, Baccal� alla Livornese and finish with Tiramis� served in a wine glass - all in a welcoming, no-fuss atmosphere.

Today Z�Z� has a website from which you can make your reservation and even shop on line.

Trattoria Zaza

Trattoria Z�Z� is located in Piazza del Mercato Centrale in Florence, right near Trattoria da Mario.

Fish Fair is near Siena

At Badesse Fresh Good Fish on the Cheap!!

This little town near Siena (Badesse is the name of the town) hosts this fair that every year returns to present increasingly better dishes and service. That is what our friends told us, anyway.
And I must say I believe them, since the taste of fish was really good (kinda Marcellino's in NY, just to compare) but with much less flare than a regular restaurant and just a bit more uppity than a regular fair. Cloth napkins and table cloths, porcelain dishes, and silverware contrasted with teh plastic chairs, but at the end the quality of the fish was really good. I had some pasta with pesto and little squids, while someone else tried the black seabass.


All good I have to say and the service was fast. The Greco di Tufo was really good and the Watermellon at the end sweet as it should be. The cotton candy maker was just perfect for the kids (and not only for them !). We spent an average of 20 Euros each, really cheap compared to similar quality restaurants. Something I would really recommend is the "Moscardini in Crosta", small octupus in spicy tomato sauce and on toasted bread. Yummy!!


The fish fair in Badesse runs each year from the beginning of July for two weeks. Better if you go during weekdays.