Happy Memorial Day everyone!!

              With many having the day off today, and back yard BBQ season coming into full swing please let us not forget what we are observing and pause for a moment to honor those who have fought and died for our country.

     I can only hope that everyone is as blessed as I am with the weather, because today is an absolutely perfect day. The weather finally broke and it appears that summer is here. All of the flowers are off the orange tree(a complete shame because they smell amazing) and I can see little oranges forming. I can also see tiny grapes on the vines and olives starting to appear on the olive trees. I can't wait until harvest time!

     Another weekend went smoothly. Saturday night was the Coppa Italia(championship for italian soccer)  so we listened to the game on the radio while we worked. It was a great game with Roma defeating Inter Milan 2-1.(hooray Roma!!)  We had a couple of parties, and I was fortunate enough to be able to work with some fresh porcini mushrooms even though they are hard to get ahold of now. These porcini came in from Romania and were so very tasty. I was informed that they do grow here now, but the true season of abundance for porcini is fall.

     I included a pic of a view of the valley and part of the church that is up the street from my place. I hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday. Ciao!!!

     

     

La Cucina

     The kitchen at L'Osteria is probably the kitchen that many cooks dream about. The kitchen is filled with most of the toys, tools and appliances that make life easier and more enjoyable, along with plenty of space to move and operate.

     There are two Rational Ovens which are amazing. These ovens are capable of roasting, braising and steaming. They can be used to proof dough for bread and then bake the bread on humidity controlled setting. The ovens come with probe thermometers that are attached to the internal computer that goes off when the cooked item has reacher the set internal temp. They are self cleaning and function in celsius, fahrenheit and 8 languages... This not an advertisement.

     Then, naturally there is the fresh pasta machine, the pasta roller, two pasta wells, the two fry wells, the PACOJET(for ice creams and sorbets) an abundance of range space, and the wood fired grill. Rounding out the large amount of lowboy cooler space are two half sized coolers that can rapidly cool food, or blast freeze food, and have a soft semi-hard and solid settings.

      In the other building, where there servants quarters used to be, there is now a large dry storage room, a walk in freezer, and 3 walk in coolers-one for meat, one for produce and one for dairy and salumi.

     Accompanying the inside kitchen is an outdoor wood fired grill and wood fired oven for making pizzas. To say the least I am feeling a bit spoiled.

     We are gearing up for a big weekend, but the weather has been really gloomy over the past couple of weeks. I'm starting to think that mother nature received notice that I left Rochester and moved to Perugia and decided to move the Rochester weather with me. Hopefully the sun will come out soon though. Ciao a presto!

The view from inside.

     Things are picking up again this week as we prepare for more parties.

     Last week was slow with no catered events, and it was a nice change of pace since I have been working for almost three week's straight. I have been refusing my one day off a week in hopes of putting all my free days together for when my girlfriend Niki comes to visit for the first week in June.(I can't wait) It's not bad at all due to the four hour break between shifts.

     With things having been slower, it has made the learning experience more enjoyable. Instead of having to make something specific for a party, Chef asks me what I would like make, or what would I like to see. It's awesome. I've been learning tons about fresh pasta this week.

     I've been doing mainly prep for service and parties. Lots of desserts and appetizers, and I've also been training on the dolce/antipasta station. Good times.

     The pics that I have included are of two of the four dinning rooms, and of the lobby. Ciao!

About L'Osteria dell Olmo

                              The group of buildings that now makes up the Osteria dell Olmo was originally the house of the owner of all the surrounding lands. 

     Built in 1642, the structures consist of the main building, or the actual house. The servents quarters, including a tap room to store wine, and a small church, and a storage room for all of the dry goods and other foods.

     Constructed primarily with stone and wood, the buildings have withstood the test of time, and have a warm character about them. 

     The property changed hands over the years until, in 1980, it was sold to a business man who turned it into a restaurant. 

     Three years ago, the current owner purchased the restaurant and made some renovations to the kitchen, mainly new equipment and a new floor.

     The restaurant is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner, as well as catered events on premises and off. I'll hopefully be adding another post with some pics of the inside of the building which is amazing.

     

     

Cose un po diverso

     Well, today marks 2 weeks in Italy for me so I just wanted to go over some things that I have found to be a bit different to me. I love this place, but the fact remains that I am a foreigner and I am bound to find things that are strange to me.

     Aside from the fact that everything shuts down in the afternoon for nap time, and everyone is driving like they have a burn victim in their car and they are on their way to the trauma unit, there are a couple of little things that will take some getting used to.

    Of course, there is the whole hugging and kissing on both cheeks thing. It's really not that bad, but since I am an American, I'm not ready for the whole invasion of personal space when I first meet somebody. I'll come around. They are a very affectionate people. It's a European thing, I get it.

     One thing that I am still in the dark about is cell phones. I think that the average Italian has about two to four cell phones. Some how it is cheeper than having one. Even after it was explained to me in english I still don't get it.

     Also, everyone seems to be crazy about The Simpsons and Full Metal Jacket. The majority of the people that I have met and talked with have brought up one or both of the subjects up in conversation. I must say that hearing quotes from Full Metal Jacket recited in Italian is very entertaining.

     I know that this next one can't possibly be true, but I have paid close attention. It seems to me that they don't go to the bathroom ever. They must though. I mean there are bathrooms hear right? My point is, that during work I'll go probably twice, which I think is about average considering the amount of water I drink. But no one else ever goes. I don't know if everyone here has large bladders or if mine is small, but if I drank as much espresso as they did I would be going every 15 minutes. It's probably all in my head.

     The last thing that I found interesting is that to cover up the smell of cigarette smoke in a room, they use tobacco scented air spray. I really have nothing to say about that.

     Things are still going really well. Our busy weekend went smoothly and this week is a bit slower. The weather has been cloudy with a bit of rain but still warm. I'm still learning lots of new stuff, and my Italian is improving every day. 

     This morning I was finally able to get my permesso di soggiorno. Thank goodness that's out of the way. I've included a pic of "The Panda" which is my current mode of transportation. Ciao!!!

Oh the humanity.

     This picture was taken as a joke. Months ago, when I was still trying to get the documents that I needed to get my visa, Chef emailed me stating that among other things, he needed a copy of my diploma from culinary school. So I had Niki take this picture of me, and then I took a picture of just the diploma close up and sent them both to Chef just to show him that I am a total dork.

     Flash forward to today. I am still trying to get my "permesso di soggiorno" or my residence permit. This morning Antonio(the manager) and I went to the office that had drafted the documents that I received in the US in hopes that they would be able to shed some light on the subject.

     After waiting around for a little bit we went into the office where they pulled out my file. In my file, along with the documents, was an 8" by 10" copy of this picture. I just remember the words "What the..?" coming out of my mouth, followed by the feeling of a blush washing over my face.

     There was lots of looking at me, looking back at the picture, head shaking, muttering in Italian and then passing the photo to the next person so they could enjoy in my humiliation. It really got bad for me when they took out their cell phones to take a picture of the picture. I tried to explain that it was a joke for Chef, but it did no good.

     When I returned to the restaurant I asked why in the world he sent that picture and not the other, he just laughed and said that they all probably think that I am an "ubriacone" or a drunkard. I'm still laughing. Needless to say I accomplished nothing and I will have to return to the office soon. Welcome to Italy.

Mother's Day

     Happy Mother's day everyone. Mother's day is in Italy too and is celebrated in the same manner, but I've been told that is not as big of a deal as it is in the U.S. On the way to work I saw mothers with flowers and children giving hugs. It makes me miss home. This time last year I was spending three and a half hours digging a hole for a tiny weeping cherry tree(the rocks were giving me a hard time). Any way, this one goes out to my mom, and all the other moms out there. Have a great day!!!!

The Significance of family meal.

Twice a day everyone at the restaurant gathers together to sit down and eat. Our lunch lasts about a half an hour and is always a pasta of some kind.Dinner is of the same length of time and can consist of salad, salumi, bread, vegetable, and meat or fish. We some times have wine or fresh made pizza and beer. We never speak of buisness. We only sit and enjoy each others company.

     Today for lunch we also had some out standing pastries and some Asti along with our meal because it is Antonio's birthday. Antonio is the gardner at L'Osteria and he turned 62 today. He invited me to go play Texas Hold em at a tournament his son was hosting, but I had to explain to him that I did not want to end up broken down and destitute in this country, and I kindly thanked him. He is a wonderful man, very kind. Auguri Antonio!!!(best wishes) In the other picture is Marta and the world famous Enrico Spera, with Chef tho the left.

     Things are going well. We are getting ready for a very busy weekend. We have 9 parties in 3 days along with regular service.

     The scenic view is of my back yard. More on that later. Time to get back to work. Ciao.

      

Italian Drivers Continued....3

     Upon completing our tasks we set out on the road again for the hour drive back to Perugia. Chef Barbanera had to take a different rout to attend to business at another restaurant, and Andrea (The owner of Osteria dell Olmo) would drive the refrigerated catering truck back to Spoleto. Enrico Spera and I drove through the winding hill side roads of Norcia and back onto the highway. Were were to return to the restaurant the help with a busy dinner service that had recently begun. I was surprised to see that we were traveling the speed limit, and that there were far fewer cars on the road making for a very relaxing ride. I thought perhaps that the head cold had gotten the best of Spera and he needed tranquility. Realizing that we were taking a different way home, I thought perhaps that we were taking the scenic route back to reduce the amount of work we would have to do when we got back. After all, we had worked all day, and were on our way to work some more and young Spera looked like he was about to die.

     Soon enough Enrico explained to me that we had taken an alternate route because he had noticed construction on the highway on the way there. 

     It was dark now and we were on a winding narrow mountainous road with our speed increasing rapidly. I asked Spera if he had taken this road before and with a hearty laugh he replied "No mai, mai,mai"(no, never,never,never)

     Again we were 4 inches from another cars bumper, only this time it was dark and the road was far more treacherous. I was holding onto the "Oh shit" handle for dear life when we  come speeding around a curve to find two pedestrians in the road whom we narrowly missed. "Cazzo, Cazzo"!!! (#$ck, #$ck) 

     Continuing to speed through the hills we were now very late and Enrico was sweating. Long story short (or long story long). We almost killed a dog, two people, and an owl. The ride was insane and I was screaming a lot, but also laughing alot. I was able to see Assisi at night for about 45 seconds (absolute gorgeous). And the highlite fom me was when Spera passed a car on a part of the road where only one car can fit down. "Brovo Spera, Bravo" (I still have no idea how he did it). 

     We made it back to the restaurant in time to help with a bit of service and clean up with a great story. Enrico Spera is a fantastic driver and the ride was the most fun I've had since I' ve  been here. Thank god I'm alive! 

Italian Drivers Continued....

                   Needless to say, with all of my unnecessary fear and mistrust of Signore Spera's driving ability, We made it safe and sound to our destination. 

     The name of the villa is Madonna Di Costantinopoli and it is located in Cerreto Di Spoleto, a beautiful small provence of the city of Spoletto. The villa was built in the early 15oo's and is currently a working restaurant and location for wedding receptions and other parties. The photos that I have included really don't do it justice. I was humbled by the age and beauty of such a place. The photo to the left is the old kitchen. I wish that I had more time to take pics of the villa and the surrounding country side because it was a fantastic place, but we were very busy and it was close to dark when we finished. Things went off without a hitch and everyone had a  wonderful time. Next post will be for the ride home.

     

Italian Drivers

     This story is going to have to be two or three parts

because there is a lot to write and a little time to do it in.

     Anyway this past saturday we had a catered Wedding in a villa outside the city of Spoleto near Norcia a town famous for Their salumi. 

     At 7:30 am I jumped into an old Fiat Panda Cargo with Enrico Spera, a fellow worker and culinary student at the school in Assisi. I had just met Enrico and had become aware of the fact that he was developing a bad head cold. 

     We set off on our journey on the highway in a hurry. When I say in a hurry I mean vary fast. At 8 in the morning you would not believe how many people the are careening down the highway at high speeds nearly rubbing bumpers. To be traveling at 155 kmh while only 4 inches away from another cars bumper makes me feel a little uneasy to say the least. In such a small car it was hard for me not to imagine how easily the vehicle would wrap around my fragile body, and how much I would miss my legs when they were gone. Don't worry sir, just look out the window, enjoy the beautiful country side and pretend that you are not going to die. Who needs espresso when you have adrenaline? 

Ciao da Italia!!!!!

     I mad it, I made it. Finally here. I am very tired and jet lagged, but very excited at the same time. This is such a beautiful place. The restaurant is incredible and all of the people are so nice. It is crazy being emersed in the language and the culture. We work from 10 in the morning till 3 in the afternoon then everyone goes home for a nap (not me ) and we return to work at 7 at night to get ready for service at 8:30. We have family meal before each service and then at the and of the night witch is usually around 11:30 0r midnight. Here is a pic of Benni the house mascot.

Ciao tutti!

A dream fulfilled

     My journey is off to a rough start due to the fact that my flight in Rochester was delayed for three hours, and thats three hours of sitting on the plane looking out the window at the runway mind you. This delay caused a domino affect of missing flights, leading to me having to spend the night in Dublin. 

     The upside to the story is that The good people at Aer Lingus put me up at the 200 Euro per night Radisson hotel, and hooked me up with free food and drinks. So I was at least able to fulfill the dream of having a pint of Guinness in Dublin. And after all of the craziness of delayed flights and not making it to Italy when I was supposed to, it was a very delicious and well deserved pint. The Guinness also went perfectly with the bangers and mashed that I devoured.