Curious Appetite

Italy

The Last Supper (Before Pandemic): Enoteca Pinchiorri

/ fine dining, Florence, Italy, Where to Eat in Florence / 0 comment
Agnello (lamb) delle Dolomiti Lucane (Basilicata), polenta bianca d’Avenza croccante (crispy), date reduction and fagioli all’uccelletto (a quintessential cucina povera Tuscan pulse staple) To me, this was the most thoughtful dish of all

Ciao readers, I won’t bore you with another apology of why I haven’t updated the blog in ooooooo weeeee 6 months! Well, I gave a couple excuses in the last post, like giving more attention to my weekly newsletters (subscribe here!). But also, let’s be honest: we’re living during a soul crushing pandemic so I simply haven’t had the motivation.

Now I’m kinda back (? don’t hold me to this) and wanted to share a restaurant review I never shared: the last “normal” meal before the pandemic hit and ravaged the land, at 3 star Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence, which felt like it brought my Florence restaurant quest to full circle. Continue Reading →

Antipasto recipe: Burrata con i friggitelli (inspired by a pizzeria in Florence)

/ Cucina Lockdown (Recipes in the time of COVID-19), Florence, Italy, pizza / 0 comment
In case you were wondering what friggitelli were- they are these! Not spicy and extremely versatile! Although nothing wrong with a little spice 😉

Hello cari lettori (dear readers),

It’s been a hot minute since I wrote to you all. Again, I have a slew of excuses but more honestly, I’ve had a bit of bloggers block. But also, my priorities have shifted. The world has changed. And I’m not sure how many of you are truly interested in another fluff list of where to eat and drink in Florence. Nor sure how much it’s relevant. I sometimes struggle with expressing something joyful when there is so much strife around me. I try not to subscribe to these self-conscious fears, as I would from an objective place see someone with a good nature, would appreciate some enthusiasm and positivity- not see malice of gloat within it.

That being said, my energies have been focused elsewhere- like writing a weekly newsletter. If you’d like more frequent updates from Curious Appetite on what’s happening in Florence, around Italy, Italian ingredient deep dives and freebies like e-recipes, subscribe HERE Continue Reading →

Top Picks for Where to Eat & Drink in Florence August 15th (Ferragosto)

/ Florence, Italy, Where to Eat in Florence / 2 Comments
Pasta in Florence tomato pappa al pomodoro
All things summer tomatoes at Osteria de’ Pazzi- open all August

(updated July 2020)

Usually I write my where to eat guides geared to travelers, specifically American travelers perhaps because well- I’m American-born? This is one of the strangest years to be blogging, updating dining guides knowing this on-the-ground info will not be able to prove useful to my compatriots who usually roam my adopted home’s streets.

I’ll still update this guide to restaurants in Florence during August (specifically, for one of Italy’s most important national holidays, Ferragosto), This post is my top picks for where to eat in Florence on Ferragosto, the 15th of August (Assumption day) with the hopes someone will find it useful. Whether English speaking visitors/residents or a sneaky Italian-American (or who similarly won the European passport lottery) who like me lives and works with Italy.

In all transparency, I haven’t had the bandwidth to 100% edit this minus cleaning up some descriptions or sadly removing listings of addresses permanently closed due to the financial hardships brought upon by the pandemic, or for extended closures, etc.

So you may find some pre-covid (BC) nomenclature or an explain-y tone to newbies. If you know the Ferragosto cultural song and dance, feel free to scroll to the listicle juice. But rest assured, everyone here on this listicle (in no particular order) is respecting current regulations (some with stellar outdoor seating set-ups) around restaurant’ing in the time of coronavirus.

If you happen to be in Florence on this national holiday- bookmark this guide and I cannot stress enough- reserve in advance. Like now. Continue Reading →

Aperitivo in Florence in the time of corona (Summer 2020)

/ Aperitivo, Florence, Italy, Where to Drink in Florence / 0 comment

For those of you following my blog for some time, it’s no secret one of my favorite Italian past times is the Aperitivo while rejecting the Aperitivo buffet. The ‘rona has taken a lot of things away from us, including the aperitivo buffet. Looks like there is a bright side after all. This post is a round-up of my personal picks in Florence doing unique (and affordable) food and drink programs/formulas (mostly outdoors all’aperto) for Aperitivo hour during this abnormal pandemic summer 2020. Continue Reading →

Cooking in Florence: Pasta with zucchini flowers

/ First Courses, Florence, Italy, Recipes, What's in Season / 0 comment

 

note the mask over ear;)

“Life is unpredictable” was used in the last blog post entered before COVID-19 hit Italy on my then reflecting on having started to split time between San Francisco and Florence. Famous last words, you could say.

Long story short, I came to some difficult conclusions and here I am in Florence. C‘est la vie. I’m trying to roll with life’s punches while clasping to gratitude for what I do have. I’ll explain a little bit of what it feels like being back and conclude with a quick summer-themed pasta recipe. Continue Reading →

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