I am salivating over that menu at Osteria del Capo!

dal, not del.

FuryFluffy and Mellen: Although Belle Parti was the best restaurant of the trip (Posh Nosh in very elegant surroundings), a very close second was Osteria del Capo, as far as quality of food and value for money. Everything was perfectly fresh and perfectly cooked. I could see myself eating there a few times a week if I lived there. The diners are all local regulars, and everyone knows everyone else, although that appears to be common for most restaurants I visited in Padua. I loved it that they recognized me on my second visit :).

More restaurants.

Friday 22nd September: Lunch in Ferrara: Sapori di Via Mayr

This is a tiny neighbourhood restaurant in my favourite Ferarra neighbourhood. Don’t expect fancy, but the food is really good home cooking and it is full of locals with babies. I had the pasta ragu, which was wholesome and hearty. I decided to try the pizza, which is recommended, but only managed to eat less than half. With two glasses of wine and water, the bill came to 26 Euro. No Website.

Saturday 23rd September: Lunch in Siena: Al Mangia

http://www.almangia.it/en_index.php

I wasn’t expecting good food in Siena on a Saturday in the Campo – better to set my expectations at the outset :). I was in the Campo, and I thought ‘what the hell’? I found a restaurant with linen tablecloths and a reasonable menu and enjoyed the cacophony of the Campo. I chose the baby pizza to start, which was not great and only finished half, but the main of penne with basil was actually quite good. Bill, with two glasses of wine and large water was 42 Euros. Hardly value for money, but given the location, to be expected.

Sunday 24th September: Lunch in Siena: Osteria la Mossa

I planned ahead for Sunday, as I wanted a proper meal. This restaurant, in the Campo, was recommended by the staff at the hotel, as a place where the locals eat, and did not disappoint. I had bruschetta to start, and a plate of ragu cinghiale (boar) as the main. Food was top notch and not very expensive at all (7 and 16 Euros respectively) and streets ahead of the food the day before. My splurge was half a bottle of excellent Amarone for 26 Euros – naughty me, but I had been SUCH a GOOD girl all week with all the candle lightly I did in the various churches :). Total bill with water and coffee was 57 Euros. I highly recommend this restaurant. It is easy to miss. With your back to the Palazzo Pubblico, look for the steep set of stairs on the left side, and it is just to the left of it.

Sunday 24th September: Dinner in Perugia: Amore per la pizza

http://www.amoreperlapizza.com/

I had taken a bus from Siena to Perugia and arrived to cold rain. I was perished and a bit hungry. I thought I might eat in the hotel, but as not up for posh dining and the prices were ridiculous, one of the disadvantages of staying in a five star hotel. Anyway, I needed a walk.

I set out to find a highly recommended pizza place (Pizzeria Mediterranea) but it was full, but just around the corner was the Amore per la pizza. You can dine outside in the square in front of the restaurant, but certainly not that night! Inside space was a cosy vaulted basement. The bill for a very tasty Pizza, two glass of wine and large water came to about 15 Euros. Good place for pizza.

StCirq: >dal, not del.<. I am laughing here Mellen: Once an editor, always an editor :). I can see you at your kitchen table with a BIG red pen, correcting my grammatical and spelling mistakes HAHAHHA

You got that right, Ger! I am a ship without water if a red pen isn't within an arm's length! Wouldn't ever deign to correct YOU, though. Plus, I studied Italian for something like 8 years, so I should know better!

I need to get off my duff and start researching watering holes for our trip to Italy a few weeks from now. I know I want to go back to the Albergo Papagallo in Stresa, but that's more for a sentimental journey back in time than for the food. And I want some good lake fish. I know nothing, zip, about dining in Milan, and need to do my research.

Your pictures and descriptions are making me ravenous, though. Believe it or not, the cuisine here can be limiting and I am SO ready to leave the duck behind and dive into some Italian specialties!

You had a thing for pasta ragu, Ger!

>You had a thing for pasta ragu, Ger!<

FuryFluffy: You are SO right. I almost NEVER eat pasta at home - maybe four times a year. Or Pizza for that matter. However, in Italy, I go nuts for the ragu - with rabbit, veal, beef, boar! I can't resist ragu when its on the menu. Maybe it was because I was walking about 18K - 20K steps every day and I was craving carbs. However, by the end of the trip, I could not stand the sight of it. I swear I will not touch pasta again until I return to Italy next time.

>cuisine here can be limiting<: Mellen: See above response to FuryFluffy. By the end of the trip I was craving anything OTHER than Italian food! :)

Monday 25th September: Lunch in Perugia: Da Cesarino

On the Piazza IV Novembre, beside the Cathedral, this restaurant caters for the business management lunch-time crowd, so it is very busy at 1230 when it opens, but tables open up at about 1400, and it closes at about 1430.

I ordered the chicken Diavolo (a small spatchcock half chicken with seasoning, barbequed), which was delicious, with some veg. I ordered a glass of local white, and the owner just opened a bottle and left me to it – I had at least two glasses but he only charged me for one: MY kind of restaurant! Total bill with litre of water and coffee was a very reasonable 25 Euros (actually, the bottled water was more expensive than the wine :) ) . I tried to go there later in the week, but unfortunately it was closed. Another recommended restaurant. It is important to note, that almost ALL restaurants in Perugia cater for the local crowd, so you probably can’t go much wrong, regardless of which one you pick.

Tuesday 26th September: Lunch in Gubbio: Taverna del Lupo

https://www.tavernadellupo.it/en/

I had planned to get to Gubbio first thing in the morning, but that plan was scuppered, as, mea culpa, I can’t understand an effing bus schedule! So, instead of taking the 0800 bus, I had to take the 1100 bus, which got me to Gubbio in time for lunch.

I had done some investigation the night before, and chose Taverna del Lupo. It was a great experience, one of the best!.

It has an old-fashioned ambiance and charm, excellent service, and really good tasty food. I am fairly sure I was looked after by the owner, a very well-dressed and distinguished gentleman, who founded it in 1968, and he was extremely attentive and charming to all the guests. It has the feel of a very well-run family restaurant that attends to every detail, and that adds a lot to the experience. However, it is not in the least pretentious – it is what it is, and proud of it.


As a starter, I ordered the ‘soft egg with fresh seasonal truffles’, and I had no idea what to expect, but you can’t come to Umbria and NOT eat truffles. After pouring my glass of Montefalco Umbrian red, my distinguished gentleman apologised, the starter was taking a bit of time. He came back with a plate of bruschetta on fluffy puffed up bread, with sides of basil pesto and tomatoes in oil. I cannot describe it, but it was heaven.

The egg starter was unexpected – I expected a boil egg with shaved truffles. What arrived was this massive fluffy meringue EVENT that filled the plate. He stood over me and encouraged me to cut into it, and in the middle was a perfectly runny egg yoke. I was delighted, and he was delighted that I was delighted. It is not just a dish, it is a performance! It was part savoury and part sweet, incredibly light, and utterly strange and delicious. I used the incredible fresh bread to lap up every morsel. I could have left right then, completely satisfied.

I ordered the rack of lamb as the main. I am extremely fussy about my lamb, and only order it when I am sure it is real lamb, and not bloody hogget, which stinks like mutton. They delivered 6 perfectly cooked tiny chops, fat seared, and pink inside. Luckily, they gave me a good shape knife so I could peel the meat off the bone.

I had an expresso, but there was no room for dessert (I have no sweet tooth anyway). I had to decline the kind offer of a free digestif, as I had already had two large glasses of the Montelfalco, and I was now two hours in Gubbio and I had seen nothing, and I had mountains to climb in the afternoon heat.

The bill for this unexpected feast on a Tuesday afternoon was a very reasonable 56 Euro. Days later in Florence, I would look back on this dining experience with longing. Clearly, I highly recommend this dining experience.

I love the way you are eating your way round Northern Italy, Ger - you are definitely a woman after my own heart - or should I say stomach? Except that I find it difficult to resist the dessert - as my waist line testifies.

Ann, I make up for the dessert calories in the WINE calories :)

Wednesday 27th September: Lunch in Assisi: Trattoria Pallotta

http://www.trattoriapallotta.it/en/

This was NOT my first choice of restaurant in Assisi (the one I chose was not open for lunch that day, my second choice was booked out), but it is just off the lovely Piazza del Comune, so it was convenient. Nice restaurant, with OK food. I had the Milanese Cutlet, where they beat a piece of veal or chicken into a wafer, dip it in egg and breadcrumbs and fry it. I have not had this dish for about 20 years, clearly for a good reason! It is SOO retro!

The restaurant generally gets good reviews, so I think I ordered badly. There was nothing wrong with the food. Bill for the main, with wine and water was about 25 Euros. There are better options in Assisi. Anyway, you don’t go to Assisi for the food. You go on a pilgrimage of either faith or art, or perhaps both, and you will not be disappointed with either choice.


Thursday 28th September: Lunch in Perugia: Trattoria Lorenzo

http://anticatrattoriasanlorenzo.com/

I rose very very early, to take the 0730 bus to Todi. I took the 1230 bus back from Todi to Perugia, so by the time I arrived back in Perugia, I was so hungry, I could have eaten the tires off the bus!

I had hoped to dine again in Da Cesarino, for something simple, but it was closed.

I wandered across the square and found Trattoria Lorenzo. I just liked the look of it. It was fairly empty, but open. An American couple was paying their bill, and clearly had loved the food. This is an expensive restaurant, but I wanted just ONE lovely dish.

I ordered just the main course, the rabbit. It was spectacularly delicious. This was a Top Posh Nosh dish. I would love to return for dinner. If you find yourself in Perugia, and want Posh Nosh, then check this restaurant out for a perfect (fairly expensive) diner.

The bill, for the main course, two glasses of excellent wine and litre of water was a very reasonable 35 Euros.

As I write this, I think back on the fabulous food experiences I had in the Veneto and in Umbria, and wonder what possessed me to leave this, and go to Florence?

Ann, I make up for the dessert calories in the WINE calories>>

oh I'm there with you with the wine too, Ger.

Should I not be looking forward to Florence, Ger? I seem to remember eating reasonably well there on my last visit but possibly because having found what I considered to be a good restaurant the first night, I ended up going back to the same restaurant the second night.

Having just returned from Switzerland, I was feeling the 'melancholy..' you describe, so it's been a nice distraction reading your report.
I have never travelled alone, nor been very focussed on food, but I can't help think that Italy is the perfect destination for that type of trip.

Ger we found a restaurant in Assisi the name of which escapes me at present but I had the loveliest lemon pasta with juniper berries -- quite the surprising combo (to me).

So enjoying your foray into Umbrian cuisine....

One of my fondest food memories is in Perugia, La Taverna. A few years ago but still has good reviews. Such good prices too...and the wine!

Chicken Diavolo, fluffy meringue with truffle and Milanese Cutlet are all new to me. Added to bucket list. Waiting for more ^^

FuryFluffy: I would suggest not going out of your way to taste the Milanese Cutlet .. it is VERY 1970s. You were probably not even born then :)

Ann: You gave me good recommendations for my visit in 2014, but this time I did no research. Also, I had eaten really good food before arriving in Florence, and less than same in Florence was twice the price.

Adelaidean: I love travelling alone - nobody would want to travel with me, given my pace :). Yes, Italy is certainly a wonderful destination for food.

annw: I wonder if it was THIS one, which looked 'avant-garde', but was booked out:
http://www.osterialapiazzetta.it/

Sundried: I did not check that out. Wish I had.


Regards .. Ger

Friday 29th September: Lunch in Spello: Ristorante Porta Venere

http://www.ristoranteportavenere.it/

I took the bus from Perugia to Spello at 0750, on a glorious sunny morning. What gorgeous little town it is.

I had chosen four possible restaurants, and checked out all during my ramblings. All were perfect options.

I chose Porto Venere, simply because I happened to be there at 1230, as I explored its winding street of the town. It is a very nicely appointed restaurant, inside and out. I dined outside, under shelter of umbrellas. It has a wonderful view over the Umbrian planes.

I started with the vegetarian Mille-feuille, which was refreshing and delicious. I ordered the Rabbit Ragu for the main course, which was excellent. The bill for starter and pasta courses, 1.5 litres of bottled water, two glasses of local red wine and coffee was 33 Euros.

Spello is awash with excellent restaurants. You will be spoiled for choice!

Being judgemental again massimop? Such a pity because I remember your first posts that I read were somehow helpful.