Going to Viareggio

[cibo susci]

I am going to cook in Viareggio in Nov and I will be going all around the area. I want to eat in small country placees. Help me out plaese.

[divina]

I am in Florence.. how about more info?

are you going to be working in Viareggio???

or cooking for fun?

if you are working. there probably won't be much time off, usually one day a week!

let me know.

Will you have a car?

[cibo susci]

Iam going to take a fun class but it is what I do for a living. Iam a chef in Hoboken NJ. I will rent a car when I get there.

[divina]

how long is the class and how long are you staying.

There are a zillion places to visit...in Tuscany, and liguria, based on your time frame!

Of course I would say come to Florence to see the fabulous markets, San Lorenzo and San Ambrogio..

[cibo susci]

10 days!!! I have been to Liguria and I have friends in Florence and all throw out Tuscany. But I dont like to be in big partys. So I travel alone. At night I will go out with them. Are you from Tuscany?

[divina]

FLorence has been my home now for 21 years, left San Francisco in 1984, was a pastry chef at the Stanford Court Hotel.

November is white truffles... the weekends are White Truffle festivals, the closest one to you is the San Miniato .. closer to Pisa.

I love eating dinner at Mulino del Cibus in Castelnuovo Magra..a group of friends with a fun local place in one of the guys grandfathers old mill, hence Mulino.

Great wine selection...

don't know if it would be fun eating alone though.

Edited August 1, 2005 by divina (log)

[cibo susci]

What do you do there?? Truffles are my thing!!!!! You can have your oysters and foie gras truffles truffles truffes. Chek out our website www.thejefferson.net. Do you know where it can rent a scooter for the week??

[divina]

I teach cooking....and eat!

I am not sure about Vespa rental in Viareggio off season.. and also not sure about driving a Vespa long distances in November..cold rain...dark!

where are you taking classes?

My website and my blog are in my signature.. there is a dining guide online for Florence and chianti on my site as well as recipes!

Edited August 1, 2005 by divina (log)

[cibo susci]

New Jersey has the same weather. I will be @ Sapprita di Toscana. I was going to teach. I want to look for a place there.

[divina]

what are your dates?

are you teaching for 7 days... and only have three free???

[cibo susci]

nov 5 until 10th, but just in the morning.

[divina]

are you staying on after.. to go to a festival.. they are only on weekends

[cibo susci]

Hey Ill be leaving on the 15 th. When and where is the festival.

[Bob G]

If you are going to Toscana Saporita you will be pretty occupied during your time there. I took the week long class last month. It was a blast. If you are staying another week near Viareggio - Pisa - Lucca you can try a couple places east of Pisa. In Uliveto Terme, right by the bottling plant is Da Cinotto. And near Vicopisano - Lugnano try Osteria Vecchia Noce. The first is a family place, a favorite when I travelled in the area on business. The latter is more formal but well worth spending an evening.

[cibo susci]

Thanks Bob,so you liked the school?

[pamela in tuscany]

In Viareggio, I tried Ristorante Romano and liked it. I've only been once, and I ordered the Minestra di Farro, Verdure, e Pesce (farro soup with vegetables and fish) because it is their Buon Ricordo dish (you get a ceramic plate, I collect them...). There is a good gelateria, Mario, on Via Petrolini...

[cibo susci]

In Viareggio, I tried Ristorante Romano and liked it. I've only been once, and I ordered the Minestra di Farro, Verdure, e Pesce (farro soup with vegetables and fish) because it is their Buon Ricordo dish (you get a ceramic plate, I collect them...). There is a good gelateria, Mario, on Via Petrolini...

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Love the plates and I love gelato!!! I what to open a gelateria and pizza in New Jersey. Thank you for the tips!!!!

[Bob G]

Thanks Bob,so you liked the school?

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It was great. Sandra and her staff are awesome. Marco and Joey were a riot. This is not a school to train chefs, though. I'm an enthusiast, not in the business. The instruction was geared a bit more towards newbies but is thorough and informative. Some of the info and techniques I already knew but most of the others were seeing things for the first time. What you'll get is good hand on basics, good ingredients, unlimited wine (yep), a scenic facility and daily tours of the area. Don't hesitate to ask the staff about anything. - Bob

[cibo susci]

It sounds great!!! I have been cooking for 20 some old yrs. That includes makeing pizza alll thought my teens. Which it is still hard to find great pizza. But thata is what I am looking for. Being a chef is not what I do it is who I am. Ill go just to drink wine for the week. Thanks Bob

[Bob G]

It sounds great!!!  I have been cooking for 20 some old yrs.  That includes makeing pizza alll thought my teens.  Which it is still hard to find great pizza.  But thata is what I am looking for.  Being a chef is not what I do it is who I am.  Ill go just to drink wine for the week. Thanks Bob

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Well, you are really going to enjoy pizza night. You will make the dough and the toppings ahead of time. Mariano then cooks them in an ancient wood fired oven. We made so much that we kept some in the fridge to have some cold pizza for breakfast. The Italians were horrified. It was very, very good. - Bob

(PS-Ask the staff about beer pong.)

[cibo susci]

It sounds great!!!  I have been cooking for 20 some old yrs.  That includes makeing pizza alll thought my teens.  Which it is still hard to find great pizza.  But thata is what I am looking for.  Being a chef is not what I do it is who I am.  Ill go just to drink wine for the week. Thanks Bob

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Well, you are really going to enjoy pizza night. You will make the dough and the toppings ahead of time. Mariano then cooks them in an ancient wood fired oven. We made so much that we kept some in the fridge to have some cold pizza for breakfast. The Italians were horrified. It was very, very good. - Bob

(PS-Ask the staff about beer pong.)

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Now thats funny!!!!!! Beer pong?

[Bob G]

So, Cibo - Are you gettign ready to head out to Viareggio? What have you been doing to prep for the adventure? - Bob

[divina]

Just got back from conducting a chocolate tour for professionals.. can second Da Cinotto.

We were sent there for lunch during out break with our class with Paul DeBont.

The White Truffle festival closest to you is in San Miniato and is the Second, third and last weekend in November.

Sunday after lunch is a ZOO.. you cna't even walk the streets!

[cibo susci]

I am leaving next Friday I cant wait.

[Bob G]

Just got back from conducting a chocolate tour for professionals.. can second Da Cinotto.

We were sent there for lunch during out break with our class with Paul DeBont.

The White Truffle festival closest to you is in San Miniato and is the Second, third and last weekend in November.

Sunday after lunch is a ZOO.. you cna't even walk the streets!

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Diva, I'm curious about your take on dining expectations American visitors bring to Italy. What makes a restaurant like Da Cinotto so unique to my experience but almost commonplace in Italy? The food, of course, is outstanding. Yet there is an economy of movement, a respect for the customer, an unforced presentation, and a natural setting that I just don't experience here at home. At a business lunch with nine or ten of us at the table Stany (sp?) effortlessly attended us and worked the rest of the room while his wife worked the kitchen. That was it - just the two of them. Great food in a warm atmosphere. Amazing. He even gracefully handled a colleague who decided to pull out her Ugly American routine during this meal.

Is it as fundamental as, aside from the tourist traps, the diner is never under the clock to eat and get out? During two trips to Italy covering four weeks of dining out, the only meal where we were pressured to eat and move was at Il Latini, Firenze. (The place could have been dropped into Epcot-Disney World. For me, the experience was a fabrication developed by focus groups to keep the Americans marching through the door.)

Certainly, the use of the freshest ingredients plus centuries of tradition are missing from our Chilis-Fridays-Applebees culinary canon. Is this why we are blown away by the simple and comfortable style of many Italian restaurants? Or, do a lot of us show up and complain that we can't find spaghetti and meatballs or a good hamburger? - Bob G.