Dear Diary,
What a find today! Who knew you could have lunch in a horse stall? Today, on our way to Assisi, we have made reservations at an adorable little restaurant that used to be old animal stables back in the day. Thank goodness we arrived early, because the restaurant filled up quickly with hungry folks looking for great food cooked over an open flame. Most of us had grilled meats; sausages, pigeons, pork and also grilled vegetables. The onions had been grilled until they melted in your mouth, and the potatoes having been cooked in the ashes were soft and fluffy on the inside and crispy and charred on the outside. La Stalla was rustic, loud, and delicious.
What a find today! Who knew you could have lunch in a horse stall? Today, on our way to Assisi, we have made reservations at an adorable little restaurant that used to be old animal stables back in the day. Thank goodness we arrived early, because the restaurant filled up quickly with hungry folks looking for great food cooked over an open flame. Most of us had grilled meats; sausages, pigeons, pork and also grilled vegetables. The onions had been grilled until they melted in your mouth, and the potatoes having been cooked in the ashes were soft and fluffy on the inside and crispy and charred on the outside. La Stalla was rustic, loud, and delicious.
Now that our hunger has been sated, we move on to Assisi to stroll this beautiful hill top village. While there, we see sweet shops galore. Federico, the driver spies a chocolate concoction he has to try and Bruce goes for yet another gelato as does Luca, the son of our translator Holly who has joined us for the day along with Holly’s husband, Giovanni. (Maybe our hunger wasn’t completely sated afterall?) We work off our lunch and treats by wandering the beautiful streets and admiring the Basilica of St. Francis.
The hills of Assisi have done their magic and made us hungry enough to tackle a nice dinner. We’ve moved on to Todi for the next two nights and are dining tonight at Pane e Vino, one of my favorite little spots. Fabio and Loredana have prepared a wonderful meal for us. We start with an assortment of crostini and a beautiful bottle of Sagrantino. We move on to a risotto with saffron and pumpkin and continue with a stew made with Sagrantino wine. Whew! Barely able to move, but still we can’t resist the dessert: A lovely piece of cake smothered in pastry custard and garnished with blackberry sauce. Time for a digestivo! What’s that, you ask? Well, we weren’t sure to be honest, so we asked Fabio to show us just what he had brewing in that giant vat of alcohol. Turns out, it was a massive wad of thyme. Highly unattractive, but when he filters it and refrigerates it, it becomes a “digestive”; a drink consumed in small quantity which is to help you digest your food. “When in Rome!” (Well, actually, we’re in Todi, but still…)
And what's with the Christmas decorations, you might ask? Well, we were equally bewildered. Turns out, the previous weekend a film was being shot in town and they needed the town to look like it was Christmas time. All the shopkeepers decorated their windows as if it were Christmas. Christmas trees were hauled in, and lights were strung everywhere. Then, kind of jokingly, the restaurants thought to go ahead and serve Christmas menus. So after our delicious dessert, we got Christmas cookies (in October)! Merry Christmas from Todi!
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