La Consigne

Every once in awhile, we find ourselves staying near Gare de Lyon in Paris at the Palym Hotel. The hotel serves breakfast for 9 euro per person and although I've never tried it, I still prefer to eat at restaurants, if the breakfast doesn't automatically come with the room price. On our first stay we found La Consigne just around the corner, well, around two corners to be precise.

It's hard to go wrong with a croissant for breakfast when in France, in fact, most hotels serve them with juice, a hot drink of your choice, and occasionally they'll even throw in a small baguette to sweeten the deal. This deal was sweet enough for 5 euro and 20 cents, and filling too. There were two of us, so don't get over excited by seeing two croissant; we had to share them.

 

Not having tried a meal there, I can only recommend it for breakfast or a light snack. Their Nutella crepe compares favoribly with any other we've eaten on the streets of Paris. My partner in crime liked his Dame Blanche.

2 bis rue de Lyon

75012 Paris France

01 43 43 2107

 

Metro: Gare de Lyon or Ledru-Rollin

Osteria Al Bomba

 

While on our honeymoon, my husband and I were wandering the Cannaregio neighborhood one evening and noticed people lining up in a very small doorway. Our curiosity got the better of us and we decided to go inside to see what was attracting so many people. It was a cichetti bar with a small osteria in the back room. At that time we were only vaguely familiar with the Venetian custom of having small plates of appetizers with an "ombra" (small glass) of wine.

       

All the cichetti were lined up behind the bar like regiments of toy soldiers, one company of vegetables, the next of fish, the next of meats and so on. So we stayed and have gone back several times since. There is always a list of wines by the glass and I encourage everyone who drinks dessert wines to try the Fragolino, a wine made from grapes of the same name. It seems it is only available in Venice and Naples. It tastes like strawberries and one sip brings me back to the first time I entered Al Bomba. I never leave Venice without a bottle to bring home.

The bar itself is as long as the room, but people flow through quickly and many stay on for dinner in the dining room to the left of the bar. On our first visit the bar was filled almost exclusively with locals and that was an important part of its charm for us. The owners spoke very little English, but were happy to try, so in my worst Berlitz Italian I pointed to a cichetto and said, "due, per favore". The owner placed the small meatballs on a plate and handed it to us. I asked what it was called and he responded "polpette". I asked if he knew the English word for it and he leaned close, as if divulging a state secret and said in a hushed tone, "special meat". It wasn't until I got home and was reading one of my Italian cookbooks that I realized that polpette was the Italian word for meatballs. The business was sold to the chef by the original owners within the last two years. There are more tourists there now and fewer locals. The new owner's wife attends to the cichetti customers and speaks English. While we can still order polpette there, we will never again be served "special meat".

 

On my 2nd to the last trip to Venice I spent the day showing off my favorite places to my nephew, in hopes of encouraging him to go back on his own one day. We stopped by Al Bomba in the early afternoon for a glass of Fragolino and a zucchini fritter. We were going to Trattoria Ca D'Oro for lunch, so we limited ourselves to only one cichetto, a pity. On my last trip, his sister was in tow and we made Al Bomba one of several cichetti bars we visited that night. It was an all cichetti dinner and we had a variety of items including cod fritters, tuna fritters, ricotta cakes, and a chicory patty, all fried, all delicious.

As you can see by the photos in this post, there were many temptations in this bar's assortment of cichetti. Of all the cichetti I have tried over the years, I would recommend that anyone interested in them should try the mantecato, cod (baccala), whipped into a frenzy with olive oil, into a very fluffy spread that is placed on toasted rustic bread. this was not in the case, but the osteria was willing to make it for us, at a price of 3 euros. If you look carefully at the cichetti photos you will see a range of prices starting at 1 1/2 euros and going to 3 euros. This is not a range of current pricing, but a chronological look at the pricing over a period of 4 years. Most other cichetti bars charge 1 euro per cichetto. I see a major correlation between the increase in tourists and the decrease in locals as patrons.

Calle di Oca 4297/4298

Cannaregio Neighborhood, Venice, Italy

Telephone +39 041 520 5175

Vaporetto stop: CaD'Oro

Walk up to Strada nova, turn left and look for Ca D'Oca on the far side of the street to your right.

Restaurante Tulhas

I went to Sintra on a sentimental journey, since having been there many years earlier, I had a distinct memory of this romantic little hideaway. It was a journey to see how the memory held up. Nothing was recognizable, but it was still a charming and romantic village. Surrounded by two palaces, it must have been a place of great importance at one time. Currently, it's a day trip from Lisbon, so it has become a big tourist destination. If you're looking for atmosphere while dining in Sintra, you'd be hard pressed to find a more cozy place than Restaurante Tulhas. With its Portuguese glazed tiles and hewed timber ceiling it oozes old world charm. 

 

 

It also reminds one that "We are not in Kansas anymore." The lack of a green vegetable on this plate did not go without notice. The restaurant specializes in grilling, so this pork steak had good flavor, it just needed less carbohydrates to surround it and a little color on the plate for eye appeal.

Their portion of the grilled lamb was as generous as their portion of the pork, but again no vegetable. Perhaps they wanted to encourage side orders, but there was entirely too much food to order more. However, the French fries were very tasty, but not so the rice, as it was bland. From my experience, Portuguese food in general is simply prepared and not very adventuresome, so I can't fault the restaurant, but the service was good and the waiter very accommodating.

Rua Gil Vicente 4
Sintra 2710-568 Portugal

+351 21 923 23 78

La Perla Pizzeria

Venice has never been my favorite Italian city for dining. Prices seem higher than in most other Italian cities and bargains, as well as creative recipes, are few and far between. La Perla is an exception and provides a wide and creative selection of pizze at a fair price of 8 euro each. 



 






It is located across the street from the Giorgione movie theater that most tourists never get to see. Set blocks away from the main thoroughfares, it takes some effort to find, but that in itself is a nice thing, as it brings you into a neighborhood where you might better imagine how the Venetians live.

 

Cannaregio is filled with "off the beaten track" enclaves and La Perla is located in one of them to serve the community. I had read about it in Chow! Venice and was delighted to have actually found it in 2008, as I made my way from the Jesuit Church on Fondamenta Nuove down toward Campo dei Santi Apostoli on the Strada Nova.

After reading the descriptions of 99 pizza on the menu, I settled for a non traditional recipe made with pureed zucca, mozzarella, Gorgonzola and arugula. It was a nice departure from more traditional recipes. The menu also includes antipasti, pasta and main courses. The Spaghetti Carbonara was decent, but not a great version of the classic dish. Regional food in Italy really should be tried in the region of origin first, so you have a point of comparison. All in all, this restaurant is a good choice for pizza and a moderately priced meal. I left knowing I'd be happy to go back one day.

That day came in 2012 when I brought my niece to Italy for a graduation from college trip. Neither of us were shy about ordering a whole pizza. I had told her about the pizza I had already tried and she liked the zucca option so well, she ordered her pizza with squash, fresh tomatoes, and riccota salata. It was a novelty for her to see a pizza with no tomato sauce or mozzarella. With a newly developed allergy to blue cheese, I could no longer order the zucca pizza so I decided to see what they could do with a classic like mushroom. 
 

Neither of us was disappointed with our choice and I was happy to see porcini on a pizza, something I can never find at home. We decided to cap them off with an Aperol. That was a mistake for me, since Aperol is every bit as bitter as Compari, which I loath. They're pretty to look at, but not everyone's cup of tea.  

Rio Terra dei Franceschi 4615
Cannaregio, Venezia
(041)528-5175

Closed Sunday

Delfina

For years I've been hearing good things about this restaurant, but a photo contest is what finally brought me through the threshold. I was on a mission to photograph a specific menu item and luckily it was a wonderful selection. Even at 6 p.m. the restaurant was lively and filled with enthusiastic diners. An industrial styled space greeted me when I walked in and so did the hostess who escorted me to a table and handed me off to the very efficient and friendly waitress. A review should not be based on one menu item, and this one won't be, but I'm not waiting to start it until my return visit. I'm starting it now and will add to it as I try more and more items. i see many visits to this restaurant in my future.

Lightly grilled calamari over canellini beans was my photo subject and has become an object of desire.

It looked dynamic on the plate with a good contrast in colors and textures, and it tasted as good as it looked. The beans were cooked fully enough to become buttery tasting against the drizzled vinaigrette from the salad.

The coil shaped sausage was presented in a fun way on a cast iron frying pan. Sauteed fennel complimented the flavor of fennel present in the sausage.

While the mussels were nicely prepared, there could have been a few more on the plate. The polenta side, seemed more generous than the main course, and inappropriately placed front and center on the plate.

My closest Italian friend always ordered gnocchi when we dined at an Italian restaurant. I finally asked why he ordered it so often, and he told me that you can tell if the restaurant is good, based on how light the gnocchi were. these were flavorful without a doubt, but not the lightest I have ever tried.

Great, we have a winner in the pasta section. The pappardelle with guanciale and baby fave was perfectly executed and tasty. It's nice to know that the pasta is house made.

Mama Mia, the spaghetti with fresh tomato and basil sauce is best left to children under five years of age. It was unremarkable at best.

The agnolotti was truly the worst pasta of the evening. It was cooked al dente bordering on raw. The pasta was still stiff as though it had been dragged through hot water in a sieve to warm it up. Herbs, grated lemon and balsamic vinegar almost reduced this to an antipasti, as did the fact that there was little heat. I walked away eating less than half of this meager portion. Thankfully I had also ordered the calamari salad, so not all was lost.

In defense of Delfina, I must say that their fine reputation is based primarily on pizza and I am assured that it is very good, but this meal left me cold enough to not return for a pizza anytime soon.

Delfina Menu

3621 - 18th St

San Francisco CA 

1 415 437-6800