FOOD

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=50 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="0ab0ce82egerdp.png"> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=95 BGCOLOR="#CC99CC" TEXT="#080000" background="0aa265f1ezuady.png"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B>Hynda and Nolan's  Rome and Other Adventures</B></FONT><B>  </B><B> </B><B>|   </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Hynda and Nolans Rome and Other Adventu"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id320.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="ROME FALL 2012"><U>ROME - FALL 2012</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id321.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="RANDOM UNO"><U>RANDOM UNO</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id322.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="PEOPLE"><U>PEOPLE</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id323.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="RANDOM DUE"><U>RANDOM DUE</U></A>   |   <B>FOOD</B>   |   <A HREF="id325.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="RANDOM TRE"><U>RANDOM TRE</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=385 colspan=2 BGCOLOR="#FFFF33" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>FOOD</I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <I><B>FACTOID: </B></I><I>Did you ever wonder about the number found on the pasta boxes? It was an attempt to standardize the pastas since what was called thin spaghetti in one section of Italy may have been called capellni in another. So manufacturers in order to standardize made up a numbering system. This also helped if there was a language barrier in the factory since the #5 was understood to be the same in any language.</I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Ancora Piu Buoni</B></I></div> <bR> <div> OK.. so some people like to think of Rome as the Trevi Fountain, the Coliseum, the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps. The King thinks of Kellogg's Special K. When we first lived here the King discovered that the Special K here was indeed special. Although the flakes sort of the looked like the American version the taste, sogginess and crunchiness was totally different and much better. We got into the habit of buying two boxes to pack in our suitcase to take home so that the King could enjoy them in DC until we made the semiannual trip back to Rome.</div> <bR> <div> Nothing lasts forever and it seems that the Italian version of K Special (as my grandmother used to call it) has changed. The translation of the saying on the box is: even more good things. Basically, they changed to ingredients, texture, sogginess, etc - all the things that made the Italian brand special.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2244b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> Also notice the price on the box, which is 2.89 euros. In the past the same box has sold for close to 4 euros, which to me means that they have put cheaper ingredients in the box. </div> <bR> <div> Some manufacturers in Italy put prices on their items and that is the price you pay where ever it is sold. For those old enough to remember this is how it was done in the US many years ago. The manufacturer would only sell it to merchants if they agreed to sell the item at the listed price - that is - there could be no discounting. I am proud to say that my uncle Bernie who owned several children's clothing stores in the DC area (Lily's Children's Shops) was one of the first to sell items at discount in the DC area.</div> <bR> <div> We did find one old box in a small market.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2444b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>La Buona Birra Italiana</B></I></div> <bR> <div> Featured in our local supermarket is Birra Dana. Dana is the name of one of the Queen's daughters. We bought one can to taste and one to possibly bring home. We may not be able to check it since the pressure may cause it to explode.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2644b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> On the Internet it says that Peroni, a large beer manufacturer in placecountry-regionItaly, makes the beer. It is listed as one of their cheap beers. One entry on review of the beer stated: “Uninspiring, typical Italian mass-produced cheap lager.”</div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Gelato on a Stick</B></I></div> <bR> <div> When we walk home from Trastevere after dinner we normally take one of two routes. One evening when we were walking home we happened to notice a gelato store (Rome must have 5,000 of them) that had a refrigerated case by the door that normally holds beverages. This one had shelves of what appeared to be upside-down Popsicles. There were some smaller ones that were one euro and larger ones that were 2.5 euros. They were in rows marked by flavor. On the first night we discovered them we had a 1-euro licorice one. They all had a chocolate coating that made them look like regular ice cream pops but they were made of gelato. The young lady behind the counter told us they were all made in the back `laboratorio'. We now walk home only one way - past the gelato pop store.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2844b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Eataly</B></I></div> <bR> <div> At the Ostiense train station, the second biggest in Rome, there was a building that sat abandoned and unused since we first started coming to Rome in 2004. It was built during Mussolini's rule and was typical fascist style of architecture - big, square and basically ugly. Since we were here last the building has been renovated and they now have three floors of very expensive food - very much like a huge Whole Foods but even more expensive. It is very sleek and modern inside. The food displays are enormous. They also have lots of restaurants. </div> <bR> <div> The two pictures attached are:</div> <bR> <div> Besides having about 10 aisles of packaged pastas they make fresh pasta everyday. The picture shows the fresh pasta counter. I think the total number of different shapes and sizes of pasta is 310 and they must have had close to that number. </div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2a44b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> Olive oil is made all over placecountry-regionItaly. This area of the store had only olive oils made in Lazio, the state that Rome is in. There was another section that had olive oil from all of Italy with a map and a table full of bottles from every area of the country.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2c44b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Mizzica - Another Cannoli Place</B></I></div> <bR> <div> So in our quest to find the best cannoli in Rome we were told about another place - Mizzica in Piazza Bologna. This is located about one mile from our apartment so one afternoon we decided to try it. It was a Sunday afternoon and the streets were empty on our walk. We saw virtually no cars and very few pedestrians. When we arrived at Mizzica it was packed with people. It was so crowded that we decided not to wait and went for a short walk around the neighborhood since we do not often go here. </div> <bR> <div> When we went back it was less crowded and we were able to get a cannoli and an arancini. Arancini is a baseball-sized ball fired and filled with rice and assorted items - sometimes meat. It is the street food frankfurter of Sicily. We got one with eggplant and cheese and it was fantastic. </div> <bR> <div> We also got a cannoli and it was good but not as good as Dagnino. The shell on this one tasted a little stale and the inside ricotta was not as tasty as some others. (See Spring 2012 for other Cannoli reviews.)</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a2e44b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Le Mani in Pasta</B></I></div> <bR> <div> Our friend Judy had introduced this restaurant last year. This year we decided to go back and try it again. They had a number of specials on the board and the Queen decided to try something other than pasta. She chose a tuna with a pistachio crust. Since we share dishes we both got a chance to sample it and it turned out to be some of the best tuna we ever had. It was served with a sauce that seemed to have some mayonnaise like texture. It also had a bunch of `pickled' vegetables shaped like an upside down cup.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3044b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> This is the sign outside Le Mani in Pasta. The translation says “I decided to go on a diet. But I only lost a long long time.” We interpret this to mean that the diet was a waste of time and he lost time from eating.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3244b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Terrace Lunch</B></I></div> <bR> <div> We have gotten into the habit of sort of skipping lunch. We normally are out and sometimes we get a panini but sometimes we just forget and have a small snack when we get back. The Queen decided we should have better snacks so she went out to one of the local markets and bought some veggies for lunch snacks. This little antipasti tray is better than we get at most restaurants.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3444b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Ristorante de Gabriele</B></I></div> <bR> <div> One science of the Queen invited us out to dinner at a place close to the Catholic University of Rome where he teaches and does research. The fall is mushroom season in Rome and this restaurant specializes in mushrooms. The photo below is of the appetizer that consists of mushrooms (have no idea which one), cheese, strawberries, blueberries, pepper and olive oil. It was a pretty big appetizer and we thought we were done once we finished it. </div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3644b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> Then came the pasta dish that was with funghi porcini. The waiter is holding up a mushroom that was huge.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3844b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Pastrami</B></I></div> <div> Another first for Rome? It does look a little like pastrami in the picture but I will am not willing to test it. Maybe I can convince a visitor who is tired of pasta to get it one day.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3a44b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>Cono Pizza</B></I></div> <bR> <div> In Porto Ischia we came across this advertisement for Cono Pizza or pizza ina cone. We did not try this.</div> <div> <IMG SRC="1a3c44b30.jpg" border=0 width="580" height="435" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>