Two of Lynn's friends (and, now of course, my) came to visit us for a week. Jan and Bill from Austin are two of the sweetest and most down-to-earth people that you would ever hope to meet. They arrived on a Saturday and so we kept it simple that night. I made a home cooked meal of veal, potatoes with caramelized onions and roasted asparagus with Parmesan.
However, on Sunday, they were ready to go and explore. We decided to head over to Spello. Spello is about an hours drive to the north west. Sadly, it was raining, but that did little to dampen our mood. After much research (ok, it was more like 15 minutes) on Trip Advisor, I decided that lunch at La Cantina would be it for us. So, we got there and parked. And walked up hill. And walked up hill some more. After all the walking, I decided that I had burned off enough calories so that I could eat a lot. I am glad I made that decision.
I thought La Cantina would be a large place, but it isn't. We had to wait about 10 minutes for a table which has never happened since I have been here. Straight off I am enamored with the place because of this...
I was somewhat tempted to try and steal it, but I thought they might have noticed their light fixture missing.
We were finally seated and the owner came over. We ordered two bottles of wine and some fantastic food. We asked what he would recommend and he said everything since it all comes from either his family farm or from local sources. Can't beat that. Both Bill and I opted for the paparadelle with wild boar ragu to start with. Lynn and Jan ordered the gnocchi with butter sauce and truffles.
Both were fantastic. The pasta was homemade and the wild boar...heavenly. The gnocchi with truffles...rich yet light at the same time (somehow). For my main course, I opted for the Chicken Cacciatore.
The verdict...drool worthy. Of course, when I think of chicken cacciatore, I think of something with a thicker sauce. This was light and flavorful. You could taste the freshness of the herbs and the tomatoes. The chicken was fall off the bone tender. I am making myself even more hungry than I am by thinking about it.
Of course, as I said, we had two bottles of wine. A red and a white. If I haven't said it before, when in Italy, get a local wine with your meal. It won't (usually) cost an arm and a leg. Plus, it compliments the food better, in my opinion.
In case you can't make it out, the one on the left is a Montefalco Rosso (red) wine. The one on the right is a Sportoletti white. Both of these went very well with our meal. We started out with the white and then moved on the the red. Neither of them were very heavy or overpowering. I would recommend either of these wines in a second. Then again, since I have been here, I would recommend any wine that I have had for the most part.
We did get a dessert- a custard with saffron in it. Wow. Just wow. There was only the slightest bit of saffron in it, but it changed the dessert entirely. The otherwise sweet dessert was cut through by the slight spice from the saffron. Mixed with the vanilla in the custard...it was the perfect for dessert for a day that was wet and somewhat cold.
Before we left, the fantastic owner gave us some grappa. That stuff will put hair on your chest.
The only thing that I can say about La Cantina is that I might just move to Spello so that I can eat there...everyday.
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