Today’s post subject is taken from my A-Z Challenge Suggestion Box:
‘Why don’t you write more about Italy and its heavenly cuisine through the rest of the month? At least, that is what I want to know more about. A closeup of a gelato stall, tossing pasta, cooking seafood…. drooool! You get the picture right?’
Good idea but I’m not much of a foodie and don’t tend to rave on about food. I may have mentioned it before, but I don’t really love Italian food. Yes, I can see the positives in fresh pasta, creamy tiramisu or an aromatic cappuccino. I enjoy a good ragu or minestrone soup as much as the next woman. And I’ve had some extremely tasty meals in both restaurants and friends’ homes.
But I’ve also had a lot of plates of bland spaghetti, bowls of cold spinach and many, many dishes featuring sliced hotdogs. Trips to restaurants where the menu is identical to the last restaurant I visited and the one before that. Fine when you’re in Italy on holiday for a week, but when you’re there for three years?? Sometimes you do just yearn for something different.
Anyway, putting all that aside, last week in Rome I really did have a couple of wonderful meals and this month I will develop my foodieness and share some of the highlights with you.
AristoCampo is a restaurant in Trastevere that I’ve walked past hundreds of times and it always caught my eye. Mainly because of the sign, ‘We are against War and Tourist Menu’. So when we were debating where to eat on our big (smokey) night out, this was my first suggestion.
I don’t eat tons of meat so after a starter of Bruschetta with tomato, I opted for one of the specials: Pasta with Aubergine, Tomato and Ricotta. It was the tastiest dish I had in my whole time in Italy. Rich, flavoursome and with plenty of sauce.
I’m sure the enjoyment of the meal was enhanced by the thrill of being back in Rome and really making the most of our short time there, and, after a couple of beers and half a bottle of wine, anything would have been tasty, but it was seriously good!
We finished the evening off with a shared tiramisu (it disappeared too fast for photos) and a moonlit stroll to Piazza Del Popolo. A perfect Italian Foodie Evening.
BARBED WORDS 