Erba Luna

[SWISS_CHEF]

Still working on wine.

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Hi Judith,

If you decide to offer a few wines from Piemonte let me know. I have been importing our local wines to Switzerland and have some good connections here.

[hathor]

Still working on wine.

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Hi Judith,

If you decide to offer a few wines from Piemonte let me know. I have been importing our local wines to Switzerland and have some good connections here.

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We're working on wines now, so I may take you up on the offer. Thanks. We've got some local wines, and some Sicilian, but I really want some of the smaller, can't find it in the COOP vintners.

Oh my....sometimes looking at the "to do" list can you make you depressed......

[hathor]

Ciao!! It's been a long, hard week!! We moved all the stuff (tables, chairs, the complete kitchen, a huge bar and the etc.etc.etc you can think of) from the old Erba to the new Erba.

Docsconz, you asked about kitchen eqiupment? Well, here is our oven. Flying over the streets of Montone.

Most of the big gear was moved out thru the window of the old Erba. Which I thought was pretty damn impressive, that was until we got to the new Erba and the stuff was lifted about 200 feet into the air. You can't really get a feeling for the height in this shot...but hopefully you'll get the idea.

This part was truly funny. No one thought to bring or use a dolly to move the equipment once it was set down on the front patio. Instead, these Umbrians tapped into their medieval roots and used some large wooden stakes as rollers. They were much happier lugging around big logs that using some new fangled contraption like a dolly.

Another cool thing....see that guy in the white shirt on the left? He's just a friend that stopped to help. All week long people have just been dropping in and giving us a hand for a few hours. Oh, and no union issues here. When we need to move that massive banconi (bar) the plumbers and electricians et al, just dropped their tools and pitched in. Can you picture that happening in NYC??

We're making progress...and planning on opening next week. I have to run now...the dishwasher is working so we are about to wash every single thing and put it away!!! You have no idea how good that will feel. All we've done is move piles of 'stuff' from one place to the other to make room.

Ciao!!

[divina]

oh my god.. next week!!!

send the invites!!

[cbrezi]

Are you open now? i need to get out of Roma sometime very soon and would love to come to your restaurant. i hope everything is going well for you and yours in the meantime.

[hathor]

Ciao Ragazzi!!

Our doors are open for business!!

My apologies for falling off the face of the eGullet planet, but life took a turn for the TOTALLY INSANE.

We held our 'inauguration' party on Friday, August 9th. Although we had lovely plans for lovely invitations, we decided to go ahead with the party about midnight on Thursday, and did a boat load of phone calls on Friday morning. It wasn't the smoothest way to go about it, but we live in a small town and words travels fast. We were mobbed!! I mean mobbed. And although I think this was totally insane, we hadn't really put the kitchen thru its paces and we had electricity failures, and coffee machine issues and hot water heaters leaking, and the Telecom guys ripping up the front walk way, etc. etc. etc. It was a fun party, although my memory of it is sort of in little clips and not very coherent.

The next night, Claudio,who is our leader, fully booked the restaurant! Was he insane??? Yes. We couldn't handle a fully booked restaurant, and I'm sorry to say that things did not go smoothly. When the 20 lb bag of cinghiale sausage hit me instead of Martina, I'd say that was a low point.

You guys want the real story, right? Not the 'pretty version'.....

But wait, we sank to an even lower point....that Saturday night after the fully booked fiasco night that I would like to block from my memory...it was about 2:30 am....we had probably had 2 to 3 hours sleep in the past 48 hours....when the wall in the bar started sprouting leaks. It's an ancient stone wall....and it must have ancient drain pipes that have never been cleaned. At 3:30 in the morning. we finally built a dam and let the water flow out of the door. We've since named the bar the Venice Room. The pipes have been cleaned....and new drains installed, so hopefully this problem is solved. But remember, no one has used this space since the 1500's, so we may be in for some other surprises.

The first week is just a blur.... learning to work together, fine tuning the menu, working on service and presentation...and these are things we are still working on, and I hope we will always continue to try and do better. Oh, and we had our town festa going on, which is a HUGE deal.

But...life is taking on a rhythm and things are more manageable.

Here are some photos. There are some more on my blog (which I have to keep update because for some reason, my mother is eGullet shy or challenged, I'm not sure which and I have to keep my mother up to date...I'm sure you understand.)

We now have music in the kitchen, people have forgiven us for the first night panic mode (our Italian friends were incredibly understanding and supportive...it was amazing!). We have lots of repeat customers, new friends, we've become a late night hang out spot, I think we are responsible for rerouting foot traffic in town, and all in all, I pinch myself to believe that we pulling this off.

I promise more stories later...ok!

And yes, Cbrezi...get out of Rome and come visit!

[docsconz]

What a story, Judith! The space looks beautiful. Tanti auguri!

[pedalaforte]

Congratulations -- for surviving that first week and for having such a great sense of humor (I suppose that's what gets you through all this, no?).

The place looks fabulous. I mean that. I'm sure you know that, but you deserve so much credit for making it happen.

Best of luck. Things cerainly will smooth out (the water from the walls over geologic time will polish things nicely! Bad joke?)

Be well, be proud, go forth and feed hungry people. And, if you can't feed them so seamlessly these initial days, then have plenty of wine on hand to fog their opinions and memories!

Cheers

[hathor]

Sense of humor only returned a few days ago! Thanks for all the kind words and support!

One of the challenges of this space is that it is in the walls, and although that means we have a very dramatic space, it's long and narrow (about 5 meters wide). Every 5 round trips from the kitchen to the garden is 1 km! We are all looking a little more svelte than a few weeks ago. We named the garden Milano and the kitchen Rome, and let me tell you, that highway gets a lot of traffic! We're struggling to find a good system to communicate between FOH and the way-BOH. Head sets are weird. Walkie talkies are obnoxious....if it's in the bar and you're in the garden you can't hear it. So, any suggestions would be nice. Not too expensive. Needs to work thru very thick stone walls.

And what's with everyone coming to visit and hang out in the kitchen?? We have this gorgeous restaurant, with all these nooks and crannies for seating, and all our friends hang in the kitchen. Not that I'm complaining in the least about that, it just strikes me funny.

Edited August 24, 2007 by hathor (log)

[weinoo]

Head sets are weird.  Walkie talkies are obnoxious....if it's in the bar and you're in the garden you can't hear it. So,  any suggestions would be nice. Not too expensive. Needs to work thru very thick stone walls.

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Ciao, Judith!

Will two cans and a long string work through those gorgeous stone walls ?

Honestly, this sounds like an "interesting" logistical problem - I'll put my thinking cap on, but don't know if I'll be of much help!

[pedalaforte]

We're struggling to find a good system to communicate between FOH and the way-BOH.  Head sets are weird.  Walkie talkies are obnoxious....if it's in the bar and you're in the garden you can't hear it. So,  any suggestions would be nice. Not too expensive. Needs to work thru very thick stone walls.

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Carrier pigeons. Buy a flock, use a couple of them a day, then serve those two the next dinner. Move on to the next two, serve, ... buon appetito!

[Pontormo]

Carrier pigeons. Buy a flock, use a couple of them a day, then serve those two the next dinner. Move on to the next two, serve, ... buon appetito!

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Not very sanitary!!!

Judith: How elegant, warm and non-fussy at the same time! Gorgeous!!!! Love the Mackintosh-like chairs and the simplicity of design.

Man, you really have to market to the Spa set. The 1 km. in between Milan and Rome (very funny) suggests a way to get the Glamorous Set to pay for the privilege of serving as wait staff while dropping pounds. Head-sets may be a bit dorky, but they make sense. You can't be sending text messages while chopping, stirring, flipping or opening doors.

How about asking some of your kitchen visitors to sit down and take pictures of their food?

[divina]

Even my little Sicilian snack bar in the Central market got the handhelds... for ordering.. and they could just holler as it is tiny!

also helps with the books I am sure!

[hathor]

OK....you're all a bunch of wiseguys!

We thought about the tin cans, but no one had any cans.

We talked about pigeons, but no one wants to pluck them.

We definitely talked about the Erba Luna benessere program...guaranteed to lose one size in one week. We're actively looking for footwear sponsors....of the orthopedic kind! The first week, Jeff and Martina were in a miserable competition to see whose feet were in worse condition Jeff won.

Of course that was after we wore pointy boots for 2 days in a row. He will NEVER live that down.

Divinia: what kind of handhelds? For placing orders? What happens when someone orders off the menu?

My fantasy is electrodes. Attached to the FOH staff, in discreet places...then when the plates are ready to go..zap! OK, FOH is my husband, so I may have some ulterior motive going on. But, damn! Wouldn't that be effective??

And on a completely unrelated note: I'm stunned at what people feed their kids. OK, pasta bianca (plain pasta with parmigiana), that I get. Simple ravioli. OK. But someone wanted us to make this sort of broth with little pasta..again, ok, but it was the saltiest broth you can imagine. It was like drinking pasta water....and it came out of a box. Then there was this overweight little kid, and his parents requested that he have just a plate of potatoes. What? Why?? Sorry, just a rant. But, its so surprising to me.

And, uh...keep the ideas coming...!

[divina]

the handhelds that restaurants in the states have.. looks like a blackberry!

they can also WRITE.. for the special orders

[SWISS_CHEF]

Ciao Judith,

The pictures look fantastic! You will find that being mobbed is good for the balance sheet and sooner or later your body will developer the necessary muscles to let you cope with the fatigue

I am living vicariously through your posts!

I can't wait to see it in person. Are there some B&B's in you town?

Also, can we see pictures of the food please!

Ed

Edited August 26, 2007 by SWISS_CHEF (log)

[hathor]

OK! OK! I get the message...I'll take some photos of food. The problem is that I don't have time to stop and take photos. When we are hopping, there isn't time to say, oh can you wait a moment while I change my lens?

Actually I'm hoping to get my son back over here to do some photos for us. He did a series of photos that we have on the walls, and I'd love for him to do some food shots as well. But, the damn kid is working like crazy in Philly and has no time for his mama. (I'm just grousing...I am so thrilled that he is working!!).

Ed, I totally understand what you mean about developing the stamina and strength. It's just like anything else, you need to develop that 'muscle memory', and you use up so much more energy when you are learning something than when it is second nature. But what fun is life if you are not learning something new?

ciao!

[tupac17616]

Judith,

I'm thrilled to learn that things are up and running with the restaurant! You and Jeff are the most gracious hosts, and your cooking is a beautiful thing (I still think about that Piemontese room-temperature eggplant parmigiana, for example). I am sure that will translate into nothing but success in this new venture.

All the best to you both,

tupac17616

[hathor]

Grazie Tupac!!

You must be nearing the end of the journey....are you still skinny??

What a fantastic summer you have had!

Judith

[tupac17616]

Grazie Tupac!!

You must be nearing the end of the journey....are you still skinny??   

What a fantastic summer you have had!

Judith

That is a very valid question indeed! Let's just say Italy left me with a little parting gift of about, oh, 20 pounds. But what a journey it was.

[hathor]

And now the moment you've been waiting for! A picture of some food!

We had 2 little kids eating in the garden last night and we got a little silly. The funniest part is that they both wouldn't eat their Mr. Tomato heads and walked home clutching them in their little hands. Very cute!

Here is one the menu covers.

Sorry, it's a funky scan of the menu. But we have 3 menu covers: one with a square hole, one triangular, and one round, each shape has 3 different photographs either taken by me, our son, or Claudio and one by Jeff. The photos are either of places in town, or of food that we've grown or use. These radishes were our first harvest of the season from Corlo.

We have some very interesting art on the walls, either paintings by a local artist friend or photos that my son has taken. I'm hoping to post some of the art on the restaurant web site. Although, take a look at this:

Emilio, our friend and local artist, created these metal diavolos that are positioned way up high on the walls. I think there is a photo of Emilio working on the installation somewhere up thread. I love them, but they are certainly a bit eccentric!

I'm beating around the food bush, but I have a reason. I'm not happy with any of the food photos that I've taken. The lighting is operating room bright and white and not very conducive to good photos. But here you go:

One of our most popular antipasto's is the Insalata Tiepida, which is a bed of rucola, covered in warm sauteed in porcini and grated pecorino cheese.

Another popular dish is the Filleto in a Grand Marnier sauce. We serve contorni (vegetables) on the plates, which is somewhat unusual in Italy. Frequently you need to order the vegetables separately.

As soon as we have some time, I really would like to photograph more of the dishes. The "as soon as we have some time' list is pretty long though....

Happy Labor Day Weekend to all you Americans!!

Ciao-ciao!

[Naftal]

Hello- I loved the food pictures.

Is/Are rucola like field greens?

Loved the Mr. Tomato Head...

and the green hair is so post-modern

I loved the Diavolos.

And, of course, I loved menu cover.

[hathor]

Hello- I loved the food pictures.

Is/Are rucola like field greens?

Loved the Mr. Tomato Head...

and the green hair is so post-modern

I loved the Diavolos.

And, of course, I loved menu cover.

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Thanks!!!

Rucola is arugula is rocket. Depends on where you live. It's a thin, peppery tasting green that is used a lot in Italy.

[hathor]

OK, while I'm soliciting opinions:

We have a little, very local magazine that gets distributed to all the stranieri (foreigners). It has a fair amount of influence and exposure with foreigners who live here. It probably gets delivered to the local agrotourismos, etc.

They came for dinner last night, 2 people from the magazine and 2 friends, for a 'social' evening. We comped them on the wine ($$ expensive wine) and desert. They then explained that they are now doing restaurant reviews, and that it costs 450,00 euros to have your restaurant reviewed....and she's a vegetarian...in Umbria. She did let me know that they were impartial, and did give some bad reviews, but that they submitted the review to you prior to printing. Am I crazy, or is this just about the strangest 'review' situation you've ever heard of?

[weinoo]

Am I crazy, or is this just about the strangest 'review' situation you've ever heard of?

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You may indeed be crazy, Judith, but this is the strangest "review" situation I've ever heard of!

Screw 'em...