There are many reasons to visit Italy, any part of Italy. Here in Rome there are Roman ruins, beautiful churches, incredible art, and the energy and activity of a world capital.
Last night, however, I was reminded of my favorite reason for coming to Italy: to eat.
We got to our hotel around 9.30 yesterday morning and chatted with Alberta, the owner. We napped and relaxed and then walked around the neighborhood. (Imagine being able to walk down the block and turn left, and see the Colisseum.) Besides enjoying being out and about, we were already plotting the main event of the day: where would we eat dinner?
After checking several places Alberta had mentioned, we settled on La Carbonara, a little neighborhood place a few blocks from the hotel, on Via Panisperna. We went about 7.30, early by Roman standards, but a crowd was already building.
Since we were still a bit frazzled by jet lag, we wanted a fairly light dinner, say an anti-pasto and a primo piatto (an appetizer and a first course, usually pasta). Terri chose frittura (mixed fried, battered vegetables) and penne arrabbiata, and I got two very Roman dishes, carciofi all Giudia and spaghetti carbonara. The house red was a Tuscan wine, from Maremma, a merlot/sangiovese blend.
Carciofi is artichoke, in season now, and 'alla Giudia' means 'Jewish' style. A whole young artichoke is deep fried, then put on a plate and drizzled with olive oil. That's it. You eat the entire artichoke, starting with the crisp outer leaves and working down to the soft heart, and the stem, too.
Spaghetti carbonara is not as simple, but almost. Sauté olive oil, garlic, and pancetta (Italian bacon), then pour over freshly cooked pasta. Then add raw egg. The hot pasta cooks the egg. If you've never had carbonara, you may be wary. But if you have had it, you know it is one of the greatest things to ever enter your mouth and go down your throat.
Two delightful dishes, a delightful dinner companion, a delightful bottle of wine in a delightful little restaurant. What a delightful way to begin our latest visit to Italy.
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