Food Waste & Composting from Leah Li on Vimeo.
Pipero Al Rex *
Pipero Al Rex
at The Rex Hotel
via Torino 149 I
00184 Rome, Italy
39 06 481 5702
Official Site
Before I left for Rome, I spent much of my fall New York nights doing a lot of research of where to dine. One of the gems that I came across is a popular local called Pipero Al Rex. Finding out it was indeed a gem came much later after experiencing the real deal. Its home page offers no detailed information about the place, but a lot of the online reviews were favorable. In addition, Rome’s food community has been talking about how good this restaurant is and how it was a “must-try”. So, I had to try it.
The dual ownership of Alessandro Pipero and a young chef named Luciano Moncelino is behind this hidden restaurant in the lobby of Hotel Rex. Its location is in a heavy populated tourist area, within walking distance from Roma Termini station. Much like a restaurant close to public transportation, I expected the place to be littered with tourists—and yet it seemed like I was the only out-of-towner during my visit.
From the get go, Alessandro himself was there to greet me with his big smile when I walked in to the restaurant. He continued the warm welcome by ushering me to my table, and we even talked a little about Rome and how I liked the city so far.
The dining room is diminutive; there are only six tables for twelve covers a night. The space is elegant with minimalist designed. It has high ceilings which had two Taraxcum chandaliers hanging above. To add to the motif, there were half circled red leather seats, wood floorings, and an artisanal crafted fire place that display luxurious bottle of liquors. There’s also a painting of Alessandro on the wall that was very reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock.
Alessandro’s presence in the dining room allowed his guests to have a more personal experience with the restaurant. He visits every table numerous times to reassure guests are well taken care off. The staff mimics his quality of hospitality. They were attentive but unobtrusive.
There was a slight misunderstanding on what I wanted from the menu when I first made the reservation, so Alessandro, like the good host that he is, made me an offer on the tasting menu that I just couldn’t refuse.
Before dinner began, Alessandro made sure that I didn’t have any food restrictions. When I nearly scoffed at the idea, the dishes started to come out of the kitchen. First up is a fried chip with mayonnaise and yogurt, a palate awakener for more to come. Then came the small bites like Marshmallow with Parmesan cheese and orange; Waffles with chicken liver pate and sweet wine jelly; Blue cheese balls (should have ask why it was green) with fried potato, all hit the taste buds with a burst of flavor. Each dish was complimented with an Austrian sweet wine Cuvée Auslese 2010 Weingut Kracher.
The Mushroom porcini with turnips and shrimp were so fresh that when combined with the vegetables broth served in a lab test tube container, it gives a veggie and earthy taste. Scallops ravioli with anchovies was my favorite dish. Mixing anchovies with cheese was a cleaver technique to neutralize the saltiness and enough flavor to blend in with the ravioli. The al dente Linguini pasta with oyster sauce and fish roe was lovely and with the artisan genius of Alessandro’s excellent bread I was able to drain the sauce from the plate. The small plates were paired with an excellent Il Guardiano 2010 Montecucco Sangiovese red wine.
They fed me until I was stuffed. My gluttonous desire caught up to me that I had to raise the white flag early and agreed to an early offering of dessert. I complied even though the meat dish was not served yet. White chocolate cream with sorbet was the dessert. It serves as a period to end of an excellent dinner that night.
The only regret that I had with this place was that I never had a chance to sample their daunted Spaghetti Carbonara. I was lost in the moment of Chef Moncelino dishes that it totally slipped out of my mind as one of the key dishes to try.
Chef Moncelino’s contemporary approach to Roman cuisine combined with his technique and creativity earned Pipero Al Rex a Michelin star after a year it opened and held on to it this year. In just almost three years of existence this restaurant has become one of the Eternal City’s top restaurants.
The combination of Alessandro’s personality and Chef Moncelino culinary magic makes dining at Pipero Al Rex an experience that I will never forget. It is truly an excellent restaurant that needs to be visited when in Rome.
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The Deli
The Deli from Benjamin Chew on Vimeo.
Innocenti Evasioni *
Innconeti Evasioni
Via Privata della Bindellina
20155 Milan, Italy
02 33001882
Official Website
Innocenti Evasioni in Milan was the first Michelin starred restaurant I visited on my week long trip in Italy last month. Located about 15 minutes taxi ride from the city center, this restaurant is situated in a quiet and small residential street.
Two chefs Tommaso Arrigoni and Eros Picco took over Innocenti Evasionin back in 1998, and turned it to a Michelin starred dining establishment. The menu changes monthly and the chefs take on Italian cuisine is an incorporation of their own modern twist. It’s best described as “playful cooking” (in a 2011 article High End Dining in Italy.) by former NY Times food critic Frank Bruni.
Once my dining companion and I arrived for our 8 pm reservation, we were the only ones in the dining room along with sommelier and the two servers. Unlike in the U.S., dinner in Europe usually starts at 9 pm, so for the first hour we had the place all to ourselves.
The dining room is quiet and serene. It overlooks a Japanese garden that serves as back drop. The space is full of round tables covered in white table cloth and red-cushioned old wooden chairs. The walls looked like they needed to be repainted, and red tiled flooring seemed like it was there on their opening night. Though outdated, the décor added to charm of Innocenti Evasioni.
Our dinner started well with an amuse-bouche of fried pasta, with vegetable puree and thinly sliced raw fish. We were both eager to savor our very first meal in Italy, that we decided to forgo the bread basket despite of the aroma and appeal it exuded.
For starters, we had the Octopus and the Cardi or Cardoon, the only vegetarian dish in the menu.Cardoon’s similar texture to a half boiled potato is seasoned accordingly. The octopus meat on the other hand was firm and tender, breaks easily using minimal force. The dish is plated with tomatoes, cheese and powdered dehydrated olives sprinkled throughout the plate. It’s one messy plate of goodness. Both dishes were quite palatable.
Our pasta dishes were the freshly made Ravioli and Gnocchi. I liked the ravioli and it stuffing of mushroom, which was topped with cream sauce and beans. But the gnocchi, with its fish cheek confit and shell fish sauce, also packed a lot flavor.
The Fillet of Beef for the main course is a lovely piece of flavorful beef. The beef’s outer layer was gloriously roasted, creating a crusty texture while the inside is soft and juicy. The sauce added a touch of sweetness to the meat. The other main course was The Swordfish. Presented with pieces of thinly sliced mushroom, it blankets a nice cut of sword fish meat that is moist and clean. In addition, this was drizzled with puree’s of spinach and nutmeg, which provided another level to its multiple layers of flavor.
We let the sommelier pick a bottle of white. We gave her our budget and wanted something fruity with some acidity. She came through with an excellent bottle of Sauvignon Blanc that paired well with our meal.
To cap off an excellent meal, we had the dessert sampler which was more than enough for two. It consisted of four dessert items from the dessert menu that the kitchen handpicks for the table. My dining companion, who is a devout dessert enthusiast, enjoyed the sampler very much.
We were tempted to go for the tasting menu priced at 68 Euro’s. but instead decided to go a la carte. Tasting menu is usually more economical way to go when dining in Europe, but at Innocenti Evasioni, a la carte prices are reasonable. Between the two of us, we both had three courses each and shared a dessert sampler and a bottle of wine for 157 euros (212 US dollars).
The service was top notch, attentive and polite. Language barrier was never an issue and that night, one of the chefs, Eros Piccos, was present. He introduced himself to us, explained the menu and took our orders. He even brought some dishes to our table. A gesture in which I was unaccustomed to back in the US since I have never had a chef introduce himself/herself before the start of the dinner in my years of dining out. It’s usually during or at the end of the meal, the chef decides to show up in the dining room.
My visit at Innocenti Evasioni gave me an idea what the dining culture is like in Italy. It’s a slow paced where diners can take their time and not be rushed unlike in places such as New York. In between courses takes a little longer than what I’m used to. The restaurant allows you to digest your previous dish before the next one arrives.
Innocenti Evasioni delivers high quality food with hospitality to match at a reasonable price. A top notched restaurant that is worth the cab ride outside the city center.
Before I went on this trip, I did my homework on the best places to dine in Milan, and yet I was still undecided up until that morning. I guess some things are just better left to the last minute because my experience at this restaurant was nothing short of phenomenal. I was glad that I had my first dinner ever in Milan at the Innocenti Evasioni.
For individuals who are ordering medicines online, there are several significant factors that must be elaborate. Internet is an ideal practice to get medicaments. Several medicaments are antifungal medicines. There are at least some medicaments for each sicknesses. Levitra is a treatment prescribed to treat few ailments. What do you have to regard about cialis vs viagra? When you buy remedies like Levitra you should ask your pharmacist about viagra vs cialis. Many drugstores describe it as viagra or cialis. Many probably sure the forcefulness of Levitra is well documented. In supplement, there are some of explanations and pharmacists are ordinarily able to pinpoint your problem through biological tests. Ordinarily the treatment options may turn on erectile dysfunction medicaments or counseling. Your generic is for you only. Never give your drugs to other folk even if their state appears to be the same as yours.
Foodies: The Culinary Jetset
Foodies Promo from B-Reel on Vimeo.
The interest in haute cuisine has grown exponentially. Now, we enter the world of one of the most influential people on the food scene – the foodie. A subculture of blogging food critics with a mission to eat at the best restaurants on earth. Through our close study, we get access to the world’s most exclusive restaurants and get to know a group of slightly bizarre but charming food maniacs. (B-REEL.COM)
New York Pizza is Magic
Cheese Powder
Yo Bloomberg – Things Go Better With Coke
Shalezeh
*This venue is now closed.
When the Michelin guide awarded Shalazeh on the Upper East Side a star in 2010 and 2011 it was not enough for the dining public to travel north of Manhattan. Except for the people that live in the neighborhood, no one has heard of this Persian restaurant. Nevertheless, the few people I know that have dined at the place all have nothing but good things to say.
Located in the Yorkville section of the Upper East Side, Shalazeh is a neighborhood restaurant where the locals are the majority of the patrons. Regulars are greeted like family members, while new comers are welcomed with opened arms.
The interior of Shalazeh is simple, the spacious front space is dominated by tables covered with white cloth and chic French windows that open up on good weather; a portion of walls are exposed bricks while the rest are purposely colored in rust. A large 19th century map of Persia and its regions are on display next to marble bar; and a curtain in the middle of the restaurant serves as an entrance to a more intimate space in the back.
When I first visited this restaurant and I must admit that I have very little knowledge about Persian cuisine. The menu, however, listed dishes that looked very similar to that of other nations in the Middle East.
My entrée was the Saffron Chicken breast meat. Marinated in saffron and onion, the scent was unforgivably delightful. The chicken was soft and tender, and with each bite the saffron-marinate comes to life creating a nice flavor profile.
I started with the Yogurt Trio which consists of individual yogurt with cucumber, shallots and beet. It’s addictive—especially when it is graciously given as a dip to the bottomless basket of bread that the restaurant provides. The yogurt was light and each individual has distinguishable flavors of the ingredients.
I was impressed with my previous meal that on my most current visit I brought along three dining companions who were curious about trying Persian food.
Just like my first time at Shalazeh the staff was welcoming and pleasant. We started out with some appetizers that are mainly vegetarian like the Sambusa, Dolmeh and of course the Yogurt Trio which I recommend to them. The Sambusa is an appetizing chickpea puree stuffing and is very similar to what you use to stuff an Empanada. Along with the Dolmeh, these starters are more like an Amouse Bouche. My companions enjoyed the Yogurt Trio a little bit too much that I had to tell them to ease up on the unlimited bread to save room for the entrees.
Our entrée consisted of Salmon Kebab, which cooked so simple. The salmon was moist in the inside and nicely seasoned. We also had the Fesenjoon or chicken stew made with pomegranate juice. The juice provided the sweetness of tender pulled chicken meat. I’m not big fan of lamb but when one of my companions ordered the Lamb Stew I had to try it. The meat was soft, clean and has a lot flavors from the herbs and spices used in the stew. It was tasty but there just something about lamb meat that my taste bud rejected.
The Branzino on the other hand was the best dish I had at Shalazeh; whole fish excluding the head, deboned grilled and sits on a bed of sautéed spinach topped off with asparagus and creamy sauce. The fish was grilled to perfection; the cream sauce is absorbed into the meat of the fish creating a very rich buttery taste.
It is typical in Persian cuisine to have rice to be eaten along with other dishes. In Shalezeh there are two types of rice that compliments their dishes; the basmati rice with lentil, saffron and raisin, (which I prefer with the stews to soak up all its goodness) and the basmati with marinated cherry that goes well with kebabs.
The Roasted Pineapple with ice cream for dessert was to my liking topped off what was already a fantastic meal. The caramelization of the pineapple created a nice texture while the ice cream on top gives the sweetness.
Surprisingly, Shalezeh has a respectable six pages wine list that is mostly French and California. Never would I expect for this restaurant to have bottles that cost as much as $425 to as low $20.
At the end of this dinner, my companions and I were satisfied and in agreement that there were no dishes that we disliked.
My visit at Shalezeh has been no less than stellar. Their food is flavorsome, the staff is friendly and accommodating and the atmosphere is casual with a local vibe.
In a city that has over ten thousands plus restaurant it’s easy to overlook the likes of Shalezeh, but dining here is a wonderful way to experience the flavor of Persian cuisine.
Shalezeh
1420 3rd Ave
New York, NY 10028
(212) 288-0012
Official Site
For individuals who are ordering medicines online, there are several significant factors that must be considered. Internet is an ideal practice to get medicaments. Several medicaments are antifungal medicines. There are at least some medicaments for each sicknesses. Levitra is a curing set to treat few ailments. What do you have to consider about cialis vs viagra? When you buy remedies like Levitra you should ask your pharmacist about viagra vs cialis. Many drugstores describe it as viagra or cialis. Many probably sure the forcefulness of Levitra is well documented. In addition, there are some of explanations and pharmacists are ordinarily able to pinpoint your problem through biological tests. Ordinarily the treatment options may include erectile disfunction medicaments or counseling. Your generic is for you only. Never give your drugs to other humanity even if their state appears to be the same as yours.