I recall a set menu at Antich Sapori - has that changed or is there also an ala carte menu?

Yestravel, they do have a set menu as well for a very reasonable price (do not recall the exact charge).

Wonderful dinner tonight, second dinner in Vieste,, at Vecchia Vieste. HIghly recommended!!!
Will post details tomorrow. Vieste Centro is gorgeous!

Now ensconced in our lovely hotel In Vieste, IL CASTELLINO RELAIS, facing the beach.



https://www.turismovieste.it/spiaggia-di-san-lorenzo/





Just received an e-mail from the agriturismo we had booked in inland Molise, outside Larino. Unfortunately, the owner had to leave the country and they will not be serving dinner on the two nights we had booked. We were so happy to be able to have a traditional Molisani dinner, without having to drive in the dark at this highly rated agriturismo. I tried to book a nearby agritusimo but they have no room for us on our dates. So looks like we will be in the countryside and have to drive into Larino for dinner, unless I can find another place to spend the two nights after 3 days in Termoli.

So far we have had two EXCEPTIONAL dinners in or near Vieste:

First night, about 1 half an hour inland and even so close to the coast, no fish on the menu--based on meat from their wood burning oven. Will describe later but my goat was succulent, sweet,, and highly recommended!!! (We had a lovely interaction with the goats penned out front; tried not to think of their future!)

https://www.facebook.com/Mazzarone10/?locale=it_IT

Last night's dinner was in the historic centre off Vieste, which I imagine had the feel of what Amalfi must have been like 50 years ago...glorious architecture, narrow alleyway jutting off less-narrow streets....stone streets and stone walls.......so picturesque and everyone so warm...."Salve!" "Buona sera!!" So different from what the Amalfi Coast has become (with the exception of my beloved Cetara!)


Spectacular series of sculptures by the son of Actor Anthony Quinn are a centerpiece of the Mrina Piccola in historic Vieste:


https://www.turismovieste.it/buildin...iganti-vieste/







Restaurant was LA VECCHIA VIESTE..highly recommended..more about these meals later on....suffice to say that they were both well worth the drive (we took a taxi to the masseria=40 euro, expensive but well worth the price.....more about the taxi driver who failed to return for us after we waited a half an hour......). later on....

https://vecchiavieste.com/



https://vecchiavieste.com/




Gargano has its own food specialties,, different from the rest of Puglia. among these are dishes representative of la cucina paver, similar to much of the Mezzogiorno. Perhaps the most famous typical dish of Vieste is the PAPOSCIA, a type of "sandwich" with the ingredients set between two hunks of bread made from pizza dough; we plan to try this tonight at a place recommended by our lovely hotel waiter, Giuseppe:


https://www.turismovieste.it/paposcia/

I had a great dinner at La Ripa in Vieste last month. Well-thought dishes without trying too hard being gourmet, and a highly picturesque location in an alley. Other meals were less remarkable, although I did enjoy a paposcia.

Very much enjoying your adventures!

Arrived in Termoli yesterday from Vieste. Some scary curvy dirt roads! I drove the entire 2.5 hours. Staying at Residenza Sveva in old city near castle!!!

Major problem with brand new MacBook as Bb Geek Squad put a lick in password and I have no idea what it is and told them I did not want one. Could not open after restart. Three hours wasted tring to contact both Apple And Best Buy. More than mildly annoyed. Now hard to write freely on my iphone.

Dinner last night was the famous brodetto. For one person. 39 euro. Sauce amazing. Distinct serving process. First arrives bowl of broken spaghetti. Plain. Then toasted bread: Bruschetta (burned bread). Then arrives bib!!! Large and small spoons. And huge round terra cotta vessel brimming with 10 kinds of seafood. Whole small fish including mullet and scumgiñli, clams, scampi, mussels. Etc. Fish served whole so quite a few bones gave me some trouble. Sauce heavy with tomatoes was divine!! Hearty but not heavy. You spoon sauce on pasta and eat that first while terra cotta pot is stll smoking hot!! Just fantastic and also bread dunked in the sauce from vessel.

By that time I am nearly full but have to dive in for the experience!!!! Had to leave much on plate (three plates in the setting. One bowl for spaghetti and one for saucy fish and one for bones. Glad I wore that brodetto bib!!!!

Partner could not be tempted so had, and seemed to enjoy, his spaghetti with tomato sauce. Sounds like we ordered one dinner off the menu per bambini!!!!

The restaurant is DA NICOLINO and is on the edge of the very small historic core. I cannot post links on phone so will do so after getting home when I hope I can open my new laptop and type further. With dessert ( mediocre iced lemon cake) water and 1/2 bottle Falanghina the bill was 60 euro-plus.

Pouring rain now. After walk on pedestrian street in new town (surprisingly deserted) returned to the new room of our (diffuse hotel,) meaning spread out in many buildings. We left our first room which had terrace but was tiny and rain precludes use of terrace and , unfortunately time on beach right below old town. So for second night will be in room 12 and dine at well regarded hotel restaurant.

sorry for typos. Much more difficult for me to write on phone than on laptop and phone keyboard is in Spanish. At least I think I can change that!!

would like to write more on Termoli and our hotel and the hard for me to understand the accents of the Molisani. But MOLISE SURELY DOES EXIST!!! ( Cannot link here but Molise is considered among many Italians as “the region that does not exist!!”

Continuing to love your TR and the food, OMG!

Yestravel that means a lot to me. Many thanks!

This morning we departed Termoli in the rain. First stretch if bad weather we have encountered so far.

Stopped at large supermarket. TIGRE which may be a fairly local chain. Picked up some water and lemon soda for lunch s a few cans of tuna belly that we eat often back home.

Could not resist local bucatini. Molisano brand. 500grams for less than $2 USD…about one heavy pound in countries using pounds.


Also bought some fresh ricotta and small emtire smoked caciocavallo which we know in NYC as scamorza

Continued on towards Campobasso and Larino on well signed roads to our next destination. Our first farm stay of the trip near olive-oil mecca of Larino. This is : AGRITURISMO RURALE ESSENTIA DIMORA and from our initial buongiorno from Owner Salvatore, we knew we had come upon a great spot!!!!

This was easy to discern, even on the drive to the main house. Will post this now for fear of losing this section. Be back soon as I can.

Caciocavallo is actually a type of provolone, made from a specific breed of cattle. Scamorza is similar to provolone, but generally not aged as long and not as stringy.

We are here at the Agriturismo outside Larino. Internet is not working in room so I have crept into dining area to send a few emails. Today is Monday and the owner has gone on vacation so no dinner here tonight so we will drive into hill town of Larino for a form of pizza I’ve never heard of. Only place open Monday. They specialize in, of all things, hamburgers!!!!


Last night we shared dining room with two lovely couples—one from Bari and another from Heidelburg traveling in a camper van.

The dinner was typical Molisano meal and the food kept coming. And coming!! And coming!!

Mixed antipasti of meats, cheeses, bread-based meatballs doused in superb tomato sauce—you could be a vegetarian if you could eat those every night—example of cucina povera typical of some southern kitchens.

New to me was meat characteristic of Molise: pampanella Name derives from “pampini” vine leaves of grapes or figs once encasing meat to conserve its moisture. This is a tradition derived from the trails of the transhumance which cut a path through not only Molise but Abruzzo and Puglia as well. I hope we can spot one of these trails tomorrow. The meat is pork massaged with peperoncini and garlic and dalt, covered by the leaves or with wet straw and baked a minimum of four hours in a low oven with a bit of vinegar. This was so succulent and tasty….so great to discover regional dishes new to us while traveling!!!!



Dopo antipasti arrived another parade beginning with wide flat long pasta made from the ancient grains grown on this farm and which I have never heard of. They are low in gluten as the wheat is mixed with other flours to make the pasta which is cut with the prized bronze dies. The bread here is also made with mixed grain flour. I cannot see the names of the other grains on the dried pastas sold here and owner Salvatore is on vacation beginning this morning so cannot be more specific.

this farm serves mostly their own products including olive oil which has garnered them a mention in the SlowFood Olio guide. The Gentile di Larino olive is prized world wide Harvest begins in October. Alas. No new oil to carry home!!!!

dinner progressed to the pasta with porcini and, reputedly truffles, which I could not detect in the dish. Then a platter of sausage and pork meat with divine roasted potatoes. There was MUCH more that I could add but difficult to type on phone so will stop there.

Dessert was both tiramisu and a light cheesecake. Followed by two digestivi. The winner was one comprised of 3 citrus fruits incuding the very precious finger lime native to Australia and selling for EXTREMELY high prices elsewhere. Salvatore has one tree which produces fruit for this home made liquori. Exceptional!!!


Price of dinner with three wines including the red TINTILLA: 35 euro per person with unlimited wines.

I must try to buy one of those trees in an attempt to grow!!!!!

One more night here before driving on to Lazio and slowly making our way to fly home on Friday. How best to cart home the car-ton of Senise peppers????????

Ciao from the hinterland of Molise!!!!

Loving all your food explorations! Masseria San Salvatore looks like a wonder. Eating local is all about learning and appreciating what is special that's within reach if you take the time to look. Just like the rest of travel.

Dinner at the agriturismo sounds delectable. I have a mental picture of you carting your multitude of Senise peppers around and I have to say it's pretty amusing. Spero che gli ultimi giorni della tua vacanza siano rilassanti.

Leely your Italian leaves me in the dust!

drove from the Molise Masseria to lovely small hotel in Lazio just north of Montecassino. The name is VILLA EUCHELIA.

Truly lovely former private villa just off the highway in CASTROCIELO. The room we booked had water issues so they allotted us TWO adjacent rooms at no extra charge!!

I am so tired now!! Dinner here at hotel last night. I had only very good ravioli with eggplant and light tomato sauce before retiring to room.

Partner had a “white” meat sauce on fresh long pasta similar to linguine but wider. Adored it. Secondi of veal did not garner such great report.

I spent much of day lounging. Maybe just overdid all this driving and eating and drinking, but a little under weather and consumed with worry about herding my peppers into JFK.

Tomorrow we drive to airport to drop off car and taxi to Fiumicino town for last dinner. Flight home is Friday.

Brava Leely2—il congiuntivo!

Turns out that I miscalculated by a day so we have just spent Two nights instead of one at our favorite Fiumicino hotel, HOTEL SECCY. Fiumicino is a lovely seaside town at the mouth of the Tevere, the Tiber in English. A destination in its own right with a vibrant scene along the river, beaches and some superb restaurants in all categories including the BRILLIANT PASCIUCCI AL PORTO with two Michelin stars and (more important) three forks from GAMBERO ROSSO which far surpasses Michelin in Italy.

more on all this to come if I get laptop able to open!!!

Please consider Fiumicino either upon arrival or departure from nearby airport. Cost us 25euro for taxi to hotel after we dropped off car at SIXT. but I was in no mood to disagree and believe we were overcharged.

Yet the driver imparted some insightful info to me when he noticed that I had in my hand two small grey rocks with white veins taken from the sea of LA SECCA in Maratea. He put me in my place and explained that it was illegal to take natural resources out of Italy with no permit.

I am in awe about how seriously the Italians take environmental conservation and recycling. .
And yes, many will mention trash on the roadside
a topic I will return to if anyone is interested. Take a look at thread on TA about many will never visit Sicily again due to that trash!!!!?

There is a navette to the hotel from the airport which is either free or E6 depending on the hotel deal. The whole pricing is complicated by crossing two communes and Taxi driving in Italy is not entry level work

https://www.adr.it/web/aeroporti-di-...n/pax-fco-taxi

Yes, it's illegal to collect sand, rocks, or sea shells from beaches in Italy. There were two instances just this past August of tourists who were arrested leaving Sardegna with collections of sand. A few years ago, a tourist was arrested with a large quantity of sand which she was apparently going to sell.

It may sound trivial, but a little here, a little there, can have a deleterious effect on the coast. Some popular beaches are especially at risk. I think enforcement is lax in the vicinity of most beaches.

Leaving trash on the roadside is also illegal, but much more visible than sand or shells inside a suitcase.

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Wow, I have a small grey white veined rock from Camolgi that I brought home 4 or 5 years ago that sits on a window sill in my kitchen. Had no idea it was illegal. I have shells, rocks and driftwood from the beach near my house in Santa Barbara and I don’t think it’s illegal to pick that stuff up. My memory was cigarette butts everywhere on the beaches in Italy. Hopefully that has gotten better with the proliferation of vaping all over Europe!

I think it's perhaps a bit complex in California, where I also live--some places you can take small pebbles and shells, other places it's verboten such as state beaches?
From parks.ca.gov :

4307. Geological Features.
No person shall destroy, disturb, mutilate, or remove earth, sand, gravel, oil, minerals, rocks, paleontological features, or features of caves except rockhounding may be permitted as defined and delineated in Sections 4610 through 4610.10.

In any case, best to leave the environment as you have found it--unless you want to pick up those cigarette butts.

https://www.vcstar.com/story/news/lo...ing/302733002/

Glad eks didn't end up in the pokey!
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In any case, best to leave the environment as you have found it--unless you want to pick up those cigarette butts.

Ha! Santa Barbara has outlawed any smoking outside so no butts here (or very few and far between).I got the shells many many years ago. With our big storms this winter the beaches are littered with driftwood so I have a feeling a few people do pick that up as well as the city when it periodically cleans up on the beaches.