oliver@omwines.com

Rombauer may have been timid, or she may have been authentic. Most of the Italians I have talked to* use garlic very sparingly, certainly nowhere near the way it's used in the average Italian-American restaurant. I had the good fortune to have a young Torinese cook prepare dinner in my kitchen last year, and he didn't leave a clove of garlic in a single dish. Where he used it he sauteed it in the oil briefly, then removed it. *mostly from the North, admittedly. The South may well be different.

I have posted several B and Bs on my website, along with my Piedmont eating tips. I have stayed at both BandBs and recommend them both highly; the one in Serralunga is of course a little more convenient for visiting Barolo producers. www.omwines.com oliver@omwines.com if you have any questions Buon Viaggio!

Agree. Greve has at least one ATM; they are at least as widespread in Italy as here.

There has to be some message in this about Michelin-- In all of Rome, there are only 8 one-star restaurants (all Italian). It somehow seems peculiar that Paris would have 4 Italian 1-star, and Rome only 8. I think the Michelin system is definitely skewed toward French-style restaurants, and restaurants in France overall. I would never use a French guide as the arbiter of Italian restaurants. I understand that some English restaurateurs aren't happy with the Michelin system either.

I moved to the US twenty years ago, and that was indeed how I was taught to wash dishes in England. One of the first things my uncle taught me upon moving in with him in the US was how to wash dishes properly. I imagine this has changed somewhat in the intervening years, though; my sister has both a mixer faucet (tap) and a dishwasher.

My experiences: Antica Corona Reale da Renzo. (Cervere) - was excellent several years ago. Polished versions of trad dishes. Locanda dell'Arco, Cissone Roots Piedmontese cooking in a beautiful room in the Alta Langa, a few minutes from Dogliani. Terrific cellar including some older bottles, and the proprietor really knows his wines. Agriturismo also, including some newer rooms. Osteria dell’ Arco (Alba) - Slow Food outpost. Ate there in April, thought it was excellent. Good list. Boccondivino (Bra) - Slow Food company canteen, essentially; was excellent several years ago. And if you haven't tried it, La Coccinella in Serravalle Langhe is outstanding. It's in the Alta Langa, not far from Dogliani. Three brothers run both kitchen and the dining room; terrific food (very flavorful but not heavy), with a wine list that gets better every time I go. Two simple rooms upstairs for agriturismo. For the definitive Bollito Misto, Ristorante Moderno in Carru, which bills itself as 'La Patria di Bollito Misto.'