A quick review of lists of the “top 10 reasons to go
to Italy” reveals a rather conspicuous constant: the cuisine. Of course, Genoa (above) features hundreds of delightful ristorantes, trattorias, pizzerias and cafes, and literally dozens
within walking distance of the Hotel Columbo in Old Town near the Porta Soprana
and Porto Antico.
Let’s be frank: food is the primary reason to
visit Italy. But don’t expect meals like those at five-star
Italian restaurants in America. They're nice, but many are "merigan." We have a tendency here to overdo everything, probably the key reason
for the difference. The best Italian dishes are simple, and honed over
generations.
Naturally,
I consider myself something of an expert in Italian food. My siblings and I practically
lived in our Gramma’s house.
When we would visit, the scent of her cooking
would suck our nostrils through the front door like airborne cartoon characters floating into her kitchen.
My buddies would fall all over themselves for an
invite for lunch.
At
Christmas, my Gramma would bake cookies that, simply put, were out of this
world. They were your basic pie crust leftovers molded into diamond shapes and
sprinkled with sugar.
We would beg, borrow or steal these
cookies. They were duly portioned out by Gramma (left, seated). After that, you were on your own. Because of her accent, she called them “cooks”
(pronounced “kooks”), so -- naturally -- we did as well.
Yes, Emilia Brichetto Cargni was a master chef,
perfecting dishes like spaghetti and meatballs, ravioli, ping (a delicious
stuffing composed of breadcrumbs, eggs, spinach, Parmesan cheese, green onions,
and salt and pepper), polenta and more. She baked a mean pumpkin pie, as well
as picture-perfect lemon and chocolate meringue pies.
Italians
may have borrowed noodles from China and tomatoes from South America, but boy,
they know how to put it all together. A common refrain: “Has anything ever
tasted this good? Ever?” Probably not. Credit Italians, who make it all look
easy, even though it’s not; they balance the right ingredients in exactly the
right proportions.
Breakfast, or collazioni, is at
least a good excuse to get out of bed for many. On the rooftop terrace at the
Hotel Columbo, we enjoyed eggs, prosciutto, fruit, quiche and pastries of all
varieties, along with orange and pineapple juice and all the cappuccinos we
could drink. Breakfast was factored into the cost of the hotel room.
Rarely
ate lunch, but when we did it was usually a slice of pizza. For dinner, we tried eateries near our hotel and the old port. Our favorites: La Mama’s, Trattoria Alle 2 Torri, Trattoria del Galfino and Trattoria Ugo. Even
the Italian “Chinese” food was great, as we found out one Sunday evening, when
everything else was closed.
Being a port city, seafood (pesci) of all kinds was the
predominant protein in Genoa, and it’s virtually impossible to avoid “pesto
Genovese” made of basil, garlic, Parmesan, olive oil and pine nuts. After
apertivos, its off to “primi” (first course) and “secondi” (second course),
followed by “dolci” (dessert).
So when it’s time to eat, Italians like to say:
“tutti a tavola” (everyone to the table). For a command like that to go
unheeded would be reprehensible. Around Gramma’s house, all she would have to
say was simply this: “querstu’ guy a chi, mangia chi!” We knew what she meant.
And she never had to say it twice, either.
