For over a year now we’ve wanted to try out
this osteria in Terni that my brother in-law told us about. I believe one of my wine rep’s also told me
about it too. Last weekend we finally
had the opportunity to experience it. I
made a reservation on Thursday for Saturday at 20:30. Upon entering from the
cold, into the warm tightly packed Osteria, we worked our way toward the host,
or “Oste” as they call the person who works the Osteria. With a smile “The Oste” guided us to our
little table on the back wall.
This sturdy little marble table was
basically shared with another couple.
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The Floor, I never got a chance to
read what this said...
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I
had a couple of shopping bags full of recent acquisitions, which the waitress
kindly offered to put in their storage closet for me, to allow for more elbow
room. At first I felt a little closed
in, but after the first glass of wine, the intimacy was kind of nice. Everyone seemed like locals, and was
genuinely enjoying the simplicity of drinking and eating with friends on a
Saturday night at the Osteria.
The menu was informal but interesting, the
wine menu more so. The waitress was ever
so nice and the food was good, and the wine even better. I felt like maybe, for the first time in all
13 years I’ve been in Italy that I was really in an Osteria.
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the Barbaresco
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Osteria translates into tavern, pub or
public house in English. I like the idea
of public house. The other concept of an
Osteria is that the tables are shared and the focus is more about the
wine. My kind of place. Granted the Osteria lacked all the things I
usually MUST have in my dining out atmosphere, like music, candles, lighting
and comfortable seating, the absence of all the aforementioned didn’t seem to
bother me. I actually didn’t even notice
these things until after the cheese plate. A true Osteria is based on
simplicity.
Back to the good stuff, wine &
food.
Wine, an excellent Barbaresco with a
selection of 10 cheeses,
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the cheese plate
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Graziano wanted the 14 but I put the brakes on that. One of the 10 cheeses was this really famous
Italian cheese that I have always wanted to try called Castelmagno.
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Castelmagno
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It was quite particular and went well with
the wine.
For desert I saw these big chocolate wafers arrive
to the table in front of us, so I asked the waitress what they were, and she
said they are canestrelli. Shortly after
the same plate of canestrelli with a zabaglione cream was brought to our table
too. Absolute heaven! I’m still thinking
about those canestrelli to this day.
At the bar on the way out “The Oste” offered
us a digestive drink, which we accepted.
Graziano got his usual grappa of the moment and I got a Czechoslovakian
cinnamon amaro.
I wish this place were just a little bit
closer to us so we could enjoy it more often.
