Eat Like Ushi

Around the corner from Trattoria Mario is Zaza. Within this quite busy piazza Mercato Centrale, the food options are plentiful. I generally try to avoid food recommendations from LP and RG, unless I have read online things about them that interest me. My brother really wanted to eat here countering that their recommendation in LP and RG might mean they are actually good and not just full of tourists. I suppose the other thing that deterred me was the enormous sign board menu outside.

Every single other food place in Italy was selected by me so I let him have this one. We trundled there for our final dinner in Florence.

The setting is actually quite nice, with a large outdoor area that is perfect for the July summer evenings. For that reason I didn't even see the inside other than to approach to get a table.

- Insalata Campagnola - salad with proscuitto, pear and cheese;
- Spaghetti allo scoglie;
- Fettuccine alla bolognese;
- Risotto zafferano, zucchine, gamberi e tartufo fresco - saffron risotto with fresh shaved black truffles.

Overall the food was excellent. I can't say that about every place I'm hesitant about, but I was wrong about this one.

I don't find that much to do in Florence. After visiting David, considering a trip inside Uffizi, seeing the street sculptures and roaming about Ponte Vecchio, there's only really outlet shopping left. Perhaps this will change on my next return after recently reading Dan Brown's Inferno. Crossing over to the other side of the bridges is probably something I should look more into. On this one occasion the journey over had the purpose of eating on the other side. Surprisingly not many places on the main cityside took my interest.

I wanted to eat bistecca alla Fiorentina. On my list Trattoria Sostanza sounded interesting because it had this dish but also a particularly well reputed buttered chicken. Unfortunately it is closed on weekends so I had to look elsewhere.

Trattoria Dante met the criteria for across the bridge, exploration and also reputation for pasta (for my brother) and steak (for me). I was surprised to find the name of the place Pizzeria Dante, although the official title still says ristorante trattoria pizzeria. It's a much more upmarket place than the standard trattorias or pizzerias, so be aware the clientele and setting is quieter.

- bread - we didn't order this but as is Italian restaurant tradition, it was served. Considering the pizzeria reputation, this was exceptional bread. I imagine their pizzas would be fantastic;
- Insalata di mare caldo (calamari, gamberetti) - seafood salad with squid, shrimps;
- Spaghetti ai frutti di mare (calamari, cozze, vongole e gamberetti) - rich with calamari, clams, mussells and shrimps;
- Pappardelle al sugo di cinghiale (wild boar sauce);
- Bistecca alla Fiorentina - Tuscan beef T-bone served perfectly seared into rare. The meat was lovely and tender but could have used extra seasoning.

Overall it was a little too much food for two people. But it didn't stop me from having impromptu gelato down the road at La Carraia.

Back in February 2005 I made my first trip to Florence. My mate and I stayed in a cheap twin room in a plaza somewhere. As this was my first overseas trip in years, I left all the planning to my mate and his Lonely Planet. Our accommodation host decided to recommend us a local place to eat - Trattoria Mario. It was on the corner of the same plaza we were staying and seemed quite busy. What impressed us was that we were the only non-Italians that were there (granted this was winter) but I'm certain also because it hadn't been discovered by the internet and others yet. I recall an exceptional pork chop bursting with flavour and grilled goodness, a jovial loud atmosphere and a pretty good pasta ragu.

Fast forward 7 years and I found myself in Florence again. My mate (who wasn't with me) and I often reminisced about this trattoria but neither of us could recall the name nor location. I was actually wandering around looking for Osteria Pepo (which has great reviews online) when I found a familiar face - it was Mario. Memories of the store front, the plaza corner location and the meat inside came flooding back.

What less impressed me was the clientele - all American. The loud accented voices filled the space outside of patrons waiting to go inside. All I could hear was how "awesome" it was, how everything was "awesome" and someone's friend had said it was "awesome" and after finally finishing and coming out it was all "awesome". I thought if it was worth the 20min or so wait amongst this crowd and decided I should pay homage.

The bustle inside had escalated now to loud English voices, the lack of old Italian families, but the familiar sight of huge steaks still remained.

- Penne al ragu - flavoursome simple dish enhanced with parmesan;
- Bistecca di maiale (pork chop) - not as tender as I remember but still juicy and packed with flavour;
- Disossata (boneless beef steak) - served rare (no exceptions, which makes me happy) and nicely charred.

The food is still great. The beef texture was better but the pork flavour was better. Meat remains my friend. Until next time Mario.

Italy and gelato. There aren't many other things to trawl through place after place in Italy. Everywhere you read online will point you in directions of favourites and the reality is all of the ones I visited are good, because they generally have to be;

If in doubt, look for somewhere that states Gelato Artigianale which translates to homemade gelato. Some say those in metal tins with closed lids are more authentic and retain flavour longer also. But with the quality and turnover, I don't think it makes too much difference.

My benchmark is pistachio flavour and generally the murkier green or lighter brown, the better. I tried pistachio nearly everywhere which ranged from light to intense, sweet to nutty. Each was slightly different and I can't say I didn't like any of them. There were no hints of ice or crystals. However trying to pick my favourite of the lot is indeed difficult. I think one of the best was in Vernazza - considering the location in the middle of a plaza, it was a pleasant surprise - check the light brown pistachio on the right of the photo.

- Gelato Passione (Rome) - great pistachio and tiramisu
- Fior di Luna (Rome) - no photo
- Giolitti (Rome) - known mainly for creamy flavours, but melon was very good
- Ciampini (Rome)
- Carabe (Florence)
- Gelateria Perche No! (Florence)
- La Carraia (Florence)
- Antica Gelateria Fiorentina (Florence)
- Slurp! (Monterosso, Cinque Terre)
- Gelateria Artigianale Vernazza (Vernazza, Cinque Terre)

I hit all these gelato places around Italy within 6 days. My list was still longer. Here's the ones I didn't make: Gelateria dei Neri, Vivoli, Gelateria Santa Trinita, Grom (all in Florence), Gelateria Il Porticciolo (Vernazza).

I flew to Turin (Fiorio) as the airport stopover to the white truffle festival. I had an extremely creamy version in Alba (Darios), where after I tried their delicious gelato pistachio and nocciola, the shopowner made me come back on the day it was made fresh. The texture was smooth and untouchable.