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Best Region in Italy for a Gourmet?

by Barry
(Canada)

I am visiting Italy next fall and the main purpose of the trip is to eat well, I really don't want to run between cities eating in tourist traps. I want to explore great restaurants offering authentic cuisine in at most one or two regions.

I understand that Venice and the Veneto is your first love so to speak and can quite understand it if you tell me to visit this region but is there any other region that you would recommend as second best after the Veneto?

Maria's Reply The Veneto does have some really good food but you might be surprised that it is not top of my list. The region of Piedmont where we used to live is my number one.

It is the region which started the Slow Food Movement and everywhere in the region has something special from the wine region of the Langhe with its world famous truffles through to the elegant city of Turin with cuisine as sophisticated as that of Paris.

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by: david gerstel

we did find three very nice places. One is a new fish restaurant in belforte del chiente. the other was the logge in Urbisaglia, and the last was a nice restaurant in loro piceno. There is a great LOOKING restaurant in ripe san ginesio, but the food was not quite as nice as the ambiance. there were no restaurants that we dined at that were the measure of my favorite bistro in montreal.

Maria's reply: Next time I think you need to visit Piedmont which is the home of slow food and I will take you to some places that will take you to new levels of culinary heaven:-)

I have lived and worked in London, New York and many other major cities and nowhere have I ever eaten anything like in Piedmont.

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food in italy
by: david gerstel

This comment is only in regard to Le Marche. And ONLY in regard to the area around San GInesio.

We stayed near SG for over three weeks in Oct 2010.Each night we went out for dinner,radiating out up to about 40 kilometers.

We had three kinds of dinners. One...fancy, two....family, and three...casual

the casual, usually pizzas, were unusually good. simple, tasty, reasonably priced.

the family...pastas were good, meats were poor(by american standards, vegetables always extra and not normally very good or creative.
fancy.... antipastos were excellent, meats were uneven. primis were excellent, secondi's uneven.very little opportunity for fish, vegetables not great.

in our area, i would not rate the food beyond medium. certainly the pastas were good. food was generally not creative. almost always, with 1/2 liter wine, fancy for two was about 35 euros.

there were a few exceptions which were memorable, but for the most part, i cook more creatively at home in montreal. and in montreal i would rate the food very highly. on 10, montreal 10, italy 6.

but i still love italy.

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