Restaurant Totem, Lisbon, Portugal (2007) by
Galina Stepanoff-Dargery
This Week
A Very Proud Announcement! by John Mariani Cheyenne Frontier Days by Robert Mariani New York Corner: Veritas by John Mariani Man About Town: Cola's by Christopher Mariani Quick Bytes
A VERY PROUD ANNOUNCEMENT! My
new book, How Italian Food Conquered
the World
(Palgrave Macmillan) is a rollicking history of the food and wine
culture of
Italy and its ravenous embrace by the entire world in the 21st
century.
From ancient Rome to Il Boom of
post-war
Italy,
from
Italian
immigrant
cooks
to
celebrity
chefs,
from
pizzerias
to
high-class
ristoranti,
this
chronicle
of
a
culinary
diaspora
is
as
much
about
the world's
changing tastes, prejudices, and dietary fads as about our
obsessions
with culinary fashion and style, full of savory anecdotes about Tony
May, Mario
Batali, Giada de
Laurentiis, Danny
Meyer, Sirio Maccioni, Lidia Bastianich, Michael Chiarello,
Marcella Hazan, Giuseppe Cipriani, and Ernest Hemingway (below), Nigella Lawson, Tony
Vallone, Piero Antinori, Angelo Gaia, Mario Puzo, Frank Sinatra, and
many more, along with restaurants like Delmonico's, G. Lombardi's
Pizzeria, Mamma Leone's, Patsy's, Perino's, Romeo Salta, Bice, Al Moro,
Bagutta, Il
Cantinori, Le Cirque, Barbetta, San Domenico, Valentino's, Marea,
Spiaggia, Cecconi,
Zafferano, and hundreds more.
“John Mariani’s tale of Italian food and its culture is a revealing and very informative one. Beneath its covers, within its pages, lies a story of a people who, century after century, have sought to share a love of their food and culture and marry the two so effortlessly that the end result has not only captivated but `conquered the world.”—Lidia Bastianich, host of PBS-TV’s “Lidia’s Italy.” “John Mariani’s superb writing has captured perfectly the rise of Italian food throughout history, unraveling the evolution of a cuisine that confused the world before conquering it!”—Tony May, owner of SD26 restaurant in NYC. "A fact-filled, entertaining history that substantiates its title with hundreds of facts in this meaty history of the rise of Italian food culture around the globe. From Charles Dickens's journey through Italy in 1844 to 20th-century immigrants to America selling ice cream on the streets of New Orleans, Mariani constantly surprises the reader with little-known culinary anecdotes about Italy and its people, who have made pasta and pizza household dishes in the U.S. and beyond."--Publishers Weekly "Equal parts history, sociology, gastronomy, and just plain fun, How Italian Food Conquered the World tells the captivating and delicious story of the (let's face it) everybody's favorite cuisine with clarity, verve and more than one surprise."--Colman Andrews, editorial director of The Daily Meal.com. "A fantastic and fascinating read, covering everything from the influence of Venice's spice trade to the impact of Italian immigrants in America and the evolution of alta cucina. This book will serve as a terrific resource to anyone interested in the real story of Italian food."--Mary Ann Esposito, host of PBS-TV's Ciao Italia. "John
Mariani has written the definitive history of how Italians won their
way into
our hearts, minds, and stomachs. It's a story of pleasure over
pomp and
taste over technique."--Danny Meyer, owner of NYC restaurants Union
Square
Café, Gramercy Tavern, and Maialino.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
by Robert Mariani
"Wyoming is a land of great open spaces with plenty of elbow
room. . . . There are sections of the State where it is said you can
look farther and see less than any other place in the world."--Federal
Writers' Project, Wyoming: A Guide
to Its History, Highways, and People (1941).
Welcome
to
Horse
Country--Judging from
the parade that kicks off
the 10-day-long Frontier Days event, Cheyenne has an unusually large
population
of equestrians. If you’re not on a parade float or in a marching band
here,
you’re on horseback or driving a horse-drawn carriage. The mayor, the
governor,
the local politicians all walk-trot along the parade route on
beautifully kept
steeds and it’s clear this is definitely not their first time in the
saddle.
Even the 9 or 10-year-old kids here are as at ease on horseback as
“Hoppy,” and
Gene, and Roy and Dale. Wrangler®
jeans seem to be Cheyenne’s trouser-of-choice, and of course, just
about everyone’s
wearing a cowboy hat and boots. There’s a big Wrangler clothing and
equipment
store right downtown, too, where just about every version of cowboy and
cowgirl
attire is available. Backstage
at
the
Rodeo—Located in
the Northeast corner of the sprawling
Frontier Park Rodeo Grounds is Cheyenne’s Old West Museum.
Open year-round, the
museum features one of the country’s largest collections of beautifully
restored horse-drawn carriages along with an extensive array of Western
art,
saddles, rodeo belt buckles and photos of world champion riders and
ropers.
Welcome to The Plains--Across
the
street
from
the
historic
Union
Pacific
Depot
stands
The
Plains Hotel. It’s
a short ride from the rodeo arena and just 5 stories high. The Plains
Hotel is
an up-dated remnant evoking the hay day of Cheyenne’s prosperous
“railroad
days.” First opened in 1911, the Plains’ lobby and rooms have a
definite mid-19th
Century elegance. One can easily imagine tired, dusty cowpokes fresh
off the
trail sauntering into the Hotel’s classy tile-floored lobby and
thinking
they’ve fallen right into the lap of luxury. By today’s standards, The
Plains
may seem dated, which is its charm. The lighting is subdued and
somewhat
replicates the romantic mood that the Hotel’s original gaslights might
have
cast. The rooms are spacious and have all the amenities, but feel
somewhat
austere by 21st Century
standards. Where The Buffalo Roam--The
day
before
the
Frontier
Days’
rodeo
extravaganza
began,
I
visited
the
nearby
Terry Bison
Ranch where you have a chance to get up-close-and-personal
with their buffalo
herd. You’re driven out onto the pasturelands in a wonderfully rickety
little,
hand-built train and supplied with a bag of “bison treats.” The moment
the
train stops, a big, shaggy herd of about a dozen buffalo surrounds you,
eager
for their goodies. You get a real sense of just how big and imposing
these
beasts are when you’re literally a few feet from them. They aren’t
especially
human-friendly, so you’re advised not to try to touch or pet them. Big
Dinner
at
the
Little
Bear--One
night
I
took
a
20-minute
drive
out
to
The
Little Bear Inn for dinner. This popular,
unassuming roadside restaurant opened in the 1870's
for
people traveling north by stagecoach to the Black Hills to mine for
gold. But
the growth of the rail lines marked the end of the stagecoach route in
1887. Down-to-Earth
Breakfast at The Luxury Diner—Perhaps no
place in
Cheyenne embodies the unpretentious, keepin'’-it-real cowboy style
quite
like
the Luxury Diner and Motel at
1401-A West Lincolnway. From 1896 to 1912, the
Diner was an operating trolley car in the Capitol City. It’s been a
working
diner since 1926. Folks say you really should not leave Cheyenne
without having
one of their cheeseburgers. Where
to Go in Medicine Bow— The term “Vedauwoo”
means
“land
of
the
earthborn
spirit”
in
the
Arapaho
language.
It’s
the
name
of
a
magical 250-acre park (right)
made
up
of ancient rounded, rocky outcroppings
located in the Medicine Bow area near the city of Laramie. Known as a
great "wide crack climbing spot,” Vedauwoo offers a breathtaking,
tranquil, high
mountain setting where climbers and hikers can really “get vertical.”
There are
over 900 climbing routes currently here, for different experience
levels. I
watched in amazement as a quintet of climbers rappelled down the face
of one of
the shear rock faces. (No safety nets here. You’re on your own.) Dinner
and
a
Show— If
you’d
like
to
experience
Cheyenne
family
style
hospitality
at
its
most
endearing,
wend
your
way
up
into
the
foothills
to
the Bit-O-Wyo
Ranch just a short drive
from town. Here Ranch owner Dennis Steele and his multi-generational
family
will treat you to an evening of song, laughter, Bar-B-Que and
friendship. “Leavin’
Cheyenne”—After
another
nice
barbecue
dinner
outside
on
the
breezy
Little
America
Hotel’s
patio,
I
headed
back
to
my
room
to
pack for departure the next day. In
the distance
I heard the wail of another freight train as it pulled out of the
downtown
depot heading west across miles of moon-lit plains. I thought about the
brief
but exhilarating times that sound had once brought to Wyoming’s capital
City,
and how this annual “Frontier Days Celebration” has re-captured that
euphoria
and built it into a piece of the Old West’s History that everyone can
experience and enjoy. It made me realize what a gift this event is to
anyone
who has ever watched a classic Western film and wondered what it felt
like to
ride the range and be a part of that unique and totally all-American
Cowboy
Culture.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ NEW YORK CORNER
by John
Mariani
www.veritas-nyc.com
Back
in
1998,
when
enophilia
was
raging
in
the
land,
Park
B.
Smith
and
Gino
Diaferia
pooled their
considerable resources, which included the former's spectacular
personal wine
collection of nearly 200,000 bottles, to open Veritas (from the Latin
motto
"in vino veritas").
The intent was to have a modestly sized restaurant built around that
collection
and to match the food to it in the French-American style then coming
into
focus. It was no surprise that Veritas soon was winning awards for its
wine
cellar and the kitchen raves for its cuisine under Chef Scott Bryan,
who was
succeeded in 2008 by Frenchman Grégory Pugin, an eight-year
protégé of Joël
Robuchon.
Every
entree
scored
high,
from
seared
sea
scallops
with
roasted
cèpes,
sunchoke
puree,
and
lush
foie
gras
to a maple-brined "wooly pig" with charred tomato and
wilted butter lettuce. Niman Ranch loin of lamb is good, with tarbais
beans
and a lustrous minestrone broth but best of all is the short rib raviolo--one big raviolo--with oyster
mushroom and pickled red onions. This is a
good-sized raviolo, but
however big it might be, it is so delicious that you'll want
another.
Veritas is open for dinner only nightly. Appetizers run $11-$19, main courses $24-$39. Bar menu $5-$16.
148
8th Avenue 212-633-8020 There’s only one main room at Cola’s, with a blue-and-white tiled floor, white marble tables, wooden chairs and a small waiter’s station topped with tall pepper mills, a few bottles of wine, and an espresso/cappuccino maker. Like the restaurant, the wine list is very small, comprised of a handful of red and white wines, just one label for each listed varietal, an area that Cola’s might easily improve on. The
food is a blend of regional Italian and Italian-American dishes with a
Sicilian touch, and like many NYC Italian restaurants, the
pasta dishes trump all. Homemade pappardelle
comes to the table steaming, topped with a hearty wild mushroom veal ragù
while the marble-sized potato gnocchi
are coated by a creamy spinach
and gorgonzola dolce sauce.
The pasta portions are generous, easily enough for an
entire meal, but also perfect as a starter when shared. Other notable
appetizers are the grilled Portuguese octopus served with roasted
potatoes in a
wild fennel vinaigrette, drizzled with olive oil and the cremini
mushrooms stuffed with chopped prosciutto and roasted pine nuts. Meat
and fish
dishes include a veal saltimbocca, braised short ribs, filet of sole
Pantelleria (named after an island off Sicily, famous for its capers)
and a local market fish cooked to your liking. There are also
nightly specials, one dish for each night of the week. There
is a personal and, given its size, cozy intimacy to Cola’s that
is fading from Manhattan
restaurants, a rare
quality and style that may be considered old fashioned but is certainly
much
enjoyed at a time of raucous restaurants and impersonal service.
The secret to Cola's success may well be in its being true to itself.
Open daily for dinner, lunch Mon-Fri. Antipasti $6.95-$9.75, pasta $11.95-$14.95, and meat and fish dishes $15.95-$18.95.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````` NOT
TO
MENTION
FURTHER
Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) is suing
several companies
affiliated with a House office building cafeteria for $150,000
for
negligence over an "unfit and unwholesome" sandwich wrap he bought in
April 2008 that contained an olive pit that caused him "sustained
serious and permanent dental and oral injuries requiring multiple
surgical and
dental procedures, and has sustained other damages as well, including
significant pain, suffering and loss of enjoyment."
"The restaurant uses one of the most awkward slogans I have ever heard: `Something hot coming to your mouth.' Mind you, the restaurant’s name is Pho 69. Is that improper syntax or a deliberate, but ill-advised, attempt at a double entendre? I think I’ll just leave it there." Stett Holbrook, "First Street Pho," San Jose.com (1/12/11)
QUICK BYTES ✉ Guidelines for submissions: QUICK BYTES publishes only events, special dinners, etc, open to the public, not restaurant openings or personnel changes. When submitting please send the most pertinent info, incl. tel # and site, in one short paragraph as simple e-mail text, WITH DATE LISTED FIRST, as below. Thanks. John Mariani
* The Virtual
Gourmet's John Mariani will
be
appearing
at
an
author's
dinner
at
Trattoria Lucca in Charleston, SC, next Wed.,
March 2, hosted by chef-owner Ken Vedrinski. Call 843-973-3323;
www.luccacharleston.com. . . . .John
Mariani will also be giving a cooking demo at the Charleston Food &
Wine Festival on Friday, March 4, and an author's signing on
Sat. March
5. For info click
here.
* On March 14
in NYC, the 9th Annual Taste of Greenwich House
will welcome 40 of NY’s finest restaurants as they serve up tastes from
the
kitchen in support of the variety of urban social service and art
programs
offered through Greenwich House. Featured chefs from restaurants will
be in
attendance. General Admission $125pp., VIP $200pp. Call 212-991-0003 or
visit www.greenwichhouse.org/taste2011.
* In March, The
Tangled Vine in NYC
will celebrate its one-year anniversary with a series of
events and specials devoted to different wine regions. The first week
is
devoted to wines from Spain, followed by France, Germany and Italy with
wines
from the selected region 20% off. As part of the celebration, on March 6, they host a Taste of the
Mediterranean Wine
Dinner featuring organic winemakers Flos de Pinoso from Spain and
Domaine de la
Patience from France. Wines will be complemented by dishes from
Executive Chef
David Seigal served family style. $49 p.p. Call 646-863-3896 or visit tangledvinebar.com.
* On March 12, The 3rd Annual NJ Food & Wine Festival at Crystal
Springs in Hamburg NJ,
holds a series of wine and spirits events, including
a seminar on rare boutique and cult wines, tastings of wines from
Italy, France
and New Zealand, a scotch tasting and a cocktail pairing event. The
evening's
Grand Tasting brings together 30 wineries and 20 NYC and NJ restaurants
including Tribeca Grill, Oceana, CulinAriane, Pluckemin Inn, Plein Sud,
Restaurant Serenade, Strip House and more. Individual events from $30 -
$95.
Call 973-827-5996 ext 3 or visit NJFoodWineFest.com njfoodwinefest.com
.
* Chef-owner Riccardo Ullio of Sotto Sotto is honoring his restaurant’s 12th anniversary by hosting four-course prix fixe wine dinners inspired by 12 different regions of Italy, one evening per month, complemented by wine pairings reflecting the specific region featured. $65 pp and $85 with wines. Call 404-523-6678 or vurestaurants.net. ```````````````````````````````` Everett Potter's Travel Report: I
consider this the best
and savviest blog of its kind on the web. Potter is a columnist
for USA Weekend, Diversion, Laptop and
Luxury Spa Finder,
a contributing editor for Ski
and a frequent contributor to National
Geographic
Traveler,
ForbesTraveler.com and Elle
Decor. "I’ve designed this
site is for people who take their travel seriously," says Potter.
"For travelers who want to learn about special places but don’t
necessarily want to pay through the nose for the privilege of
staying there. Because at the end of the day, it’s not so much about
five-star places as five-star experiences." THIS
WEEK:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eating Las Vegas is the new on-line site for Virtual Gourmet contributor John A. Curtas., who since 1995 has been commenting on the Las Vegas food scene and reviewing restaurants for Nevada Public Radio. He is also the restaurant critic for KLAS TV, Channel 8 in Las Vegas, and his past reviews can be accessed at KNPR.org. Click on the logo below to go directly to his site.
Tennis Resorts Online: A Critical Guide to the World's Best Tennis Resorts and Tennis Camps, published by ROGER COX, who has spent more than two decades writing about tennis travel, including a 17-year stretch for Tennis magazine. He has also written for Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, New York Magazine, Travel & Leisure, Esquire, Money, USTA Magazine, Men's Journal, and The Robb Report. He has authored two books-The World's Best Tennis Vacations (Stephen Greene Press/Viking Penguin, 1990) and The Best Places to Stay in the Rockies (Houghton Mifflin, 1992 & 1994), and the Melbourne (Australia) chapter to the Wall Street Journal Business Guide to Cities of the Pacific Rim (Fodor's Travel Guides, 1991).
The Family Travel Forum
- A community for those who
"Have Kids, Still Travel" and want to make family vacations more fun,
less work and better value. FTF's travel and parenting features,
including
reviews of tropical and ski resorts, reunion destinations, attractions,
holiday
weekends, family festivals, cruises, and all kinds of vacation ideas
should be
the first port of call for family vacation planners. http://www.familytravelforum.com/index.html;
ALL YOU NEED BEFORE YOU GO
nickonwine: An engaging, interactive wine column by Nick Passmore, Artisanal Editor, Four Seasons Magazine; Wine Columnist, BusinessWeek.com; nick@nickonwine.com; www.nickonwine.com. MARIANI'S VIRTUAL GOURMET NEWSLETTER is published weekly. Editor/Publisher: John Mariani.
Contributing Writers: Christopher
Mariani, Robert Mariani,
John A. Curtas, Edward Brivio, Mort
Hochstein, Suzanne Wright, and
Brian Freedman. Contributing
Photographers: Galina Stepanoff-Dargery, Bobby Pirillo. Technical
Advisor:
Gerry McLoughlin. Any of John Mariani's books below
may be ordered from amazon.com by clicking on the cover image.
© copyright John Mariani 2011 |