Enjoying the Food of Naples

Michele and I have been going to Naples since 1970. It is one of the most exciting cities in Italy and we look forward to visiting again soon.  We love the museums, the opera, and the street life, but most of all we love the food.

Trattoria San Ferdinando

Alici Grigliate–Grilled fresh anchovies

Pasta with eggplant, tomatoes, peppers and provolone

La Taverna di Santa Chiara

Pasta with Zucchini

Pasta with potatoes and provolone

Hosteria Toledo

Pasta with fish, tomatoes and capers

Paccheri pasta with ragu and ricotta

Mimi alla Ferrovia

Spaghetti con Ricci — sea urchin sauce

Mixed fried fish

Da Ettore

Fried Pizza stuffed with pork ragu

Caffe Gambrinus

Sfogliatella with cappuccino

 

Outside Naples

Zia Pasqualina in Artipalda (AV)

Buffalo Milk Ricotta- this alone was worth the trip,  so  light  and  fresh

Pasta Fagioli — mixed pasta shapes with beans

Haccademia –Via Panoramica 8 in Terzigno less than half an hour outside Naples on the way to Pompeii

Pizza Margherita with antichi pomodori di Napoli, fiore di latte di Tramonti, basilico, olio evo del Vesuvio. My favorite pizza.  Pizza Margarita at its best.

Pizza fritta with ricotta and ciccoli di maiale. This was so light it was difficult to tell it was fried, and the filling was creamy and well seasoned.

Le Parúle near Herculaneum (Ercolano)

Frittatina, fried macaroni  with ham,  cheese  and  bechamel

Pizza Margherita-Fantastic

A dessert at the home of a wine producer. Baba au rhum with pastry cream and strawberries,  topped with mini baba

 

 

 

 

Eating around Naples

Michele and I visit Naples and the Campania region of Italy often because they have so much to offer.  This time we went to the San Carlo Opera House and saw a unique version of the opera Pagliacci, visited Herculaneum, saw the painting “The Seven Works of Mercy” and others by Michelangelo Merisi, aka Caravaggio, and enjoyed many fine restaurants and cafes of Naples. We arrived in the afternoon and could not resist the fried pizza at

The customers put in their order and leave a small tip on the paper 

This is the fried pizza we had for lunch

Restaurant Ciro a Santa Brigida is one of our favorites.  We went there the first night and I had a fantastic seafood stew.

We wanted to go to Nannella but when we got there it was closed so Michele remembered another restaurant nearby, Hosteria Toledo. We had the assorted vegetable antipasto, which included sauteed mushrooms, several kinds of eggplant, escarole with olives and capers, friarielli with garlic and hot pepper, roasted peppers, marinated zucchini and numerous other things.  Neapolitans really know how to make vegetables.

Michele and I had  pasta patane, pasta and potatoes cooked until creamy with scamorza cheese.

Our friend Ernie had the rigatoni with ragu and ricotta

Another day we went to La Taverna di Santa Chiara, a restaurant known for using local ingredients, and I had the  pasta Genovese, pasta cooked with a meat and onion sauce.

 

At Da Ettore, we had pizza, and then the owner suggested we try his fried pizza stuffed with pork ragu.  We couldn’t resist.

At Le Parùle near Herculaneum, we had a fantastic fritto misto which included fried onion rings, a nice touch

Then the frittatina,  fried macaroni 

 

Followed by Pizza Margherita 

Friends joined us for lunch at Europea Mattozzi in Naples

Michele has the Sausages and Friarielli (a type of broccoli rabe)

At Da Umberto we had this pasta with seafood, friarielli and little tomatoes.

Another day we enjoyed this gorgeous Baba cake  with Massimo Alois, Talita de Rosa  of Alois Winery, Ilaria Petitto and Francesco de Rienzo of Donnachiara Winery

We stopped in at Gambrinus cafe at least once a day, for breakfast, snacks or cocktails.  They make excellent coffee, which we enjoyed with sfogliatelle.

Naples is not just Pizza

When people think of Naples the first food they think of is pizza. While it is true that the best pizza is in Naples, there are many other culinary  delights in the city. Here are some of the dishes Michele and I ate in Naples recently.

 

Bufala mozzarella

Fish in acqua pazza

Grilled calamari

Fried fish and shell fish

Pasta with baby octopus

Fried anchovies and seaweed

Grilled octopus

Spaghetti pomodoro and basil

Grilled pork sausages

Grilled scamorza

Pasta and potatoes

Pasta with eggplant

Fusilli with tomato and ricotta

Paccheri pasta with piennolo tomatoes

Linguine with colatura and tomatoes

Sausages topped with friarielli and scamorza

Sfogliatelle and taralli with almonds

Penne with swordfish and eggplant

Fiocco di Neve.  On the weekends there are very long lines for this dessert, a cream filled bun

Baba 

Ricotta with berries and honey-fantastic

Sfogliatella and Cappuccino at Gambrinus

Gambrinus, we stopped here often

The last Sfogliatella before leaving Naples.

Food from restaurants Da Donato, Ciro a Santa Brigida, da Nennella, La Taverna Santa Chiara, Osteria La Chitarra and Haccademia

Carnival Lasagna and Carnival Pizza in Naples

 

We arrived in Naples but our luggage did not. When we arrived at the hotel, the room was not ready. No room and no luggage. So, naturally, we went for pizza at da Ettore, Via Santa Lucia 56.   We had not been here for a number of years but Michele had always liked the pizza and it was not far from the hotel.

Although there is a lot of buzz in Naples now about all the hot new pizza places, Da Ettore is traditional Neapolitan pizza at it best. We started with fried zucchini flowers, which were batter fried and unstuffed. Delicious. Then I had the pizza margarita.

Michele had the margarita with bufala mozzarella. Both were light and judiciously sauced with tasty tomatoes and good cheese.

Osteria Della Mattonella Via G. Nicotera 13. Since it was Carnevale in Naples, every restaurant was serving Lasagna di Carnevale, a Neapolitan interpretation of the classic pasta, layered with sausages, tiny meatballs, ricotta, hard cooked eggs and cheese.

Michele said it was just like the one her grandmother use to make. A very old fashioned restaurant, the walls here are covered in tiles and photos of Neapolitan film stars, such as Toto and Sofia Loren. To reach it, you must take an elevator from the street below, Via Chiaia.

Da Nennella 103 Vico LungoTeatro Nuovo. This is a very popular restaurant because the food is very good and the prices are very low.

I started with Alici Fritti, and then Mezzi Paccheri al Pomodoro Fresco which was wonderful Michele had Palline di Ricotta Fritte and Mezzi Paccheri con Zucca and Provola, pasta rings with squash and smoked mozzarella. On the way out, we were given small plastic chips that we could exchange for caffe and baba. Noisy, busy and a lot of fun, plus the food was very good.

MUU_ Muuzzarella Lounge, Vico 2 Alabardieri This restaurant was around the corner from our hotel and they served mozzarella with meat, vegetables or fish. We had Mozzarella E Soppressata, Fiori di Zucca con Ricotta, and Mozzarella in Carrozza, but the highlight was the Ricotta di latte di bufala with honey, pine nuts and raisins.   I could not stop eating it, slathered on good bread. 

La Taverna a Santa Chiara 6  We started with Fried Provola and an assortment of local Cheeses and Salumi. Then I had Fusilli Pasta with Tomato and Ricotta di Fuscella, what is often sold in the US as “basket cheese”, a drier form of fresh ricotta (to die for). Michele had Maccheroncini with Eggplant, Zucchini and Small Tomatoes. Then we shared Grilled Sausages and Friarielli (the local broccoli rabe), and a half liter of Gragnano.

Da Attilio in Spaccanapoli, via Pignasecca 17 In the colorful Pignasecca Market, this small pizzeria filled up quickly at lunchtime. I had the Carnival pizza, star shaped pizza with the points of the crust filled with ricotta. We also shared a Pizza Margarita and Pizza Fresca with arugula and prosciutto.

Ciro a Santa Brigida, Via Santa Brigida 71/73  Our last meal in Naples was particularly memorable. This is a place we return to often. We began with Fried zucchini flowers, which were crisp and flavorful. Then I had the Octopus alla Luciana, with lemon and olive oil and Ziti alle Genovese, ziti with an onion and meat sauce, a Neapolitan classic.

Michele had Linguine with Moscardini (baby octopus) and tiny tomatoes, followed by a Frittura Misto di Pesce, little fish, calamari and shrimp fried in a crispy crust. With it we drank Pallagrello Bianco.

For dessert I had a classic crème caramel.

 

Pizza Tour of Naples

 

New York City winters can be brutal, and this one was no exception.  Michele and I wanted to get away, but where to go?  Florida, Mexico, the Caribbean? We have tried them all and found them lacking. Not because of the weather, which was great, but lacking because of the food and wine! So we decided to go where the weather would be better than in NYC and still find great food and wine:  Naples and Rome.

Naples is the most unique of the Italian cities.  It is like one big street fair, there is so much going on all the time. Naples also has a natural beauty.   Mt.Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples are breathtaking.  The Neapolitans are theatrical and dramatic, and of course there is the food. The best pizza is Neapolitan pizza and the best place to have it is, of course, Naples.

It was a beautiful sunny day when we arrived and we decided to go for pizza by the waterfront.  One cannot think of Naples without thinking of pizza.

Gino Sorbillo Pizzeria

 

We went to Gino Sorbillo-AKA Lievito Madre al Mare, they have 3 locations in Naples.  This one is on Via Partenope overlooking the Bay of Naples. They have a large outside dining area and it was very crowded, everyone wanted to sit outside.  Here is a sample of the menu:

A big trend in Naples is for the pizzerias to list the source for their ingredients, many of which are organic and artisanally made.  On the menu, a green leaf  showed that the product was Biologica and a snail if it was recognized by “Slow Food”.

Michele had the MargheriTTa Gialla Massimo Bottura, made with tiny yellow tomatoes and bufala milk cheese. These deep yellow tomatoes had a honey-like flavor and were among the sweetest I have ever tasted.

The next day on the way back from our tour of Naples Underground we stopped at Palazzo Petrucci Pizzeria- San Domenico Maggiore Piazza. They also give the source of the products they use and even the name of their pizzaiolo, Maestro Michele Leo, is listed on the menu.  Next door, they also have an elegant Michelin-starred restaurant, which we did not visit.

This place was recommended by Maurizio de Rosa, who was born in Naples and is a partner in Prova Pizzeria in NYC.

Michele had a pizza Margherita and I had a fried pizza stuffed with ricotta and cicoli, which are the little crispy bits left after rendering out the lard from pork fat.  

Before we left NYC we went to Don Antonia by Starita and spoke with Roberto Caporuscio, the owner and pizzaiolo. We have known Roberto for a number of years ever since he opened Keste. Roberto said we must go to Pizzeria Starita a Materdei dal 1901.  The owner, Antonio Starita is his mentor and partner in the New York restaurant.  

Our friend food writer Arthur Schwartz, who spends part of each year in Salerno, decided to come to Naples to join us. It turned out there were five of us, Arthur, his partner Bob Harned, and their friend Contessa Cecilia, who drove.

We ordered fried zucchini flowers, arancini and potato croquettes to start. Then we had Pizza Maradona, a fried rolled stuffed pizza, Pizza Mastanicola topped with lard, basil and pecorino, and a Sorrentina pizza made with sliced lemons and provola cheese.

We arrived at 12:30 and when we left there was a long line waiting for a table even though this is a large place.

50 Kalò di Ciro Salvo , Piazza Sannazzaro 201/B. This is the hottest pizza place in Naples right now, the one everyone is talking about.  The pizzaiolo, Ciro Salvo has researched pizza making techniques and insists on a very long slow rise for his dough which results in a tender and more digestible crust.  He uses only the finest ingredients for his toppings.  In Greek, the name Kalo means beautiful and good.

We started with a few fried foods, potato croquettes and frittatine, cheesy pasta shaped into disks and fried, which were excellent.  Then we had a Pizza Margherita and Pizza Porcini with sausages.

If you go here for dinner, it is best to get there early. It is a big place but if you arrive after 8:00 PM you will wait on a long line to get in.

 

For the most part the Neapolitans  drink, beer, soda and acqua minerale with their pizza.The wine lists at the pizza places are  for the most part short and the price for a  bottle of wine produced in Campania  is about 18 to 20 euros, about what you would pay retail in the US for the same wine. Among the wines we drank which went very well with where a Coda di Volpe “Amineo” 2013 Cantina del Taburno, Lettere della Penisola Sorrentina 2013  Grotta del Sole, a red sparkling wine and Falanghina Sant’ Agata Dei Gotti 2013 Mustilli.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unique Red Grapes From Campania

Campania has a few unique red grapes that are not very well known. Along with the white wines of Campania that I tasted last week at SD26 in NYC with Franco Bengazi and Marco Melzi from the Wine Emporium, there were three red wines.   One of them I discovered when I went to visit the winery in Tramonti, high above the Amalfi Coast. Another, also from Tramonti, I first tasted at a restaurant nearby and the third I discovered many years ago when I was in Naples and needed a red wine to drink with pizza.

The wines

Cantina Federiciane Montelone di Napoli Gragnano DOC Sorrento Peninsula 2010, made from Piedirossa and Sciascinoso. Fermentation with selected yeast takes place in temperature controlled autoclaves.  This is a fizzy red wine that when poured has a lot of foam that quickly disappears in the glass. It is fruity with red fruit aromas and flavors, hints of raspberries and strawberries, and easy to drink. In Naples they often drink sparkling beverages with pizza and Gragnano goes very well with pizza margarita. Marco said it is the authentic companion to all Neapolitan street food. $16

Sciascinoso, also know as Olivella, is used as a blending grape. The clusters and berries are large and it is a late ripener. I do not believe that I have ever tasted a wine made from 100% Sciascinoso.
Az. Agr. Apicella Colli di Salerno Piedirosso IGT 2011, made from 85% Piedirosso from ungrafted vines and 15% other red grapes. There are 3,000 vines per hectare and the training system is mostly pergola. Harvest takes place the third week of October. The stalks are removed and the grapes are pressed. Temperature controlled fermentation in stainless steel tanks for 10 to 12 days. Piedirosso is used mostly as a blending grape.  (It is one of the grapes in the blend for Lacryma Chrisit del Vesuvio.) It is difficult to find wine made from 100% Piedirosso but worth the effort.
The wine has fresh red fruit flavors and aromas with hints of black pepper and spice a long finish and nice after taste. The wine should be drunk young. It goes extremely well with dishes made with tomato sauce. It is a steal at $15

The Brasciole at SD26

“The name (Piedirosso) translates as “red foot” and the grape is also known as Palombina or Pre’e Palummo meaning respectively little dove and dove’s foot in dialect, the latter because of its red-colored triple-branched stem like a three-taloned bird’s foot”, according to Nicholas Belfage in Brunello to Zibibbo.

Piedirosso is an ancient black skinned grape that does well in volcanic soil. It may be identical to the Colombina, the grape that Pliny the Elder d.79AD mentions in his Natural History.

Az. Agr. Monte de Grazie Biological Winery Rosso 2008
The wine is made from 90% Tintore di Tramonti from very old ungrafted vines and 10% Piedirosso. The Tintore di Tramonti gowns almost exclusively in the Monte Lattari Valley. The grape is harvested at the end of September, which makes it an early ripener for this area. This indigenous red grape variety belongs to the Tienturier family. Tienturier means dyed or stained in French. The flesh and the juice of these grapes are red in color. The anthocyanin pigments accumulate in the grape berry itself. The free run juice is therefore red.
This is a complex wine with earthly aromas, red fruit and a slight hint of black pepper and spice with good acidity that makes it a very good food wine. This wine has ageing potential. I had the 2009 with the owner of the winery, Dr. Alfonso Arpino, on the Amalfi coast last year and it may be the best wine he has made so far! $28.

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