16 Oct 2013, "da Felicin" in Monforte d'Alba

Have I mentioned the bread sticks? Called grissini in Italian. They are made by hand and quite long.  Fourteen to eighteen inches of thin, light as air, delicate crispness that call out to be picked up from their pile and eaten inch by inch. The crumbs fall onto the tablecloth and, here, that is not a problem, bread plates are foreign. When the grissini arrive on the table the meal begins.

And so it was on Thursday night when we arrived at the hilly village of Monforte d'Alba. From the small piazza, in the flats of the town, cobblestoned streets begin a steep, curving ascent to a three-cornered, grassy, terraced, intimate piazza called the Auditorium Horszowski, named in 1986 for the Polish pianist who played until he was one hundred years old.  The buildings in that particular area are in an outstanding state of repair. Beautifully painted. Perfectly landscaped, with occasional passion fruit vines, kiwi and pomegranate trees, and not an ivy leaf out of place. And once back down the hill there is the ristorante, "da Felicin."

What a friendly bunch they are at "da Felicin."  They met us at the door all smiles and warmth. Inside, our table, with grissini, for seven was in a long room. Intricate carpets lay on the floor. Large wooden tables held sprays of orchids in large vases and cyclamen in delicate bowls.  And it was quiet. Imagine, a restaurant where you can hear across the table.

"da Felicin's" wine cellar is famous. We were happy to be asked to see it. Even happier when it's door was opened and we were immersed in essence of white truffle. I swooned. The truffles are stored there in the cool and damp cellar. There was a lot of wine, too. Bottles of the most esteemed local wines from the greatest years. The best of Barolo.

Back at the table we settled on our menu choices. The waiter, though, had other plans so, instead, we put ourselves in his hands and this is what we had.

First up, Merluzzo, a white fish over puréed root vegetables, sprinkled with pumpkin seeds.

Next was, "Rotonda di reale di Fassone marinato con crema al Gorgonzola, favette e profumi," which was thin slices of raw Fassone beef, bright red, strewn with raw porcini mushroom slices, fava beans fresh out of their shells and drizzled with a purée of Gorgonzola dolce and anchovy.

Then came, "Zabajone di Parmigiano, verdure di stagione e top in ambour (?) crocanti", otherwise known as endive leaves with florets of broccoli and cauliflower, crisp fried fingerling potato chips drizzled with a zabaglione of golden egg yolks, lemon and mascarpone cheese.

Finally, the main course, "Faraona disossata, verdure au tunnali (?), funghi porcini e tartuffo nero". Crisp skinned guinea hen, deboned, then rolled up with black truffle and porcini mushrooms, and sliced into discs.

A member of our dining party is passionate about wine. He chose for our dinner two wines. First, a Barbera D'Alba by G.D. Vajra from 2007. It was an excellent opening act for the star, our second wine, a Barolo by Sandrone, "Le Vigne," from 1999.  It was outstanding. Love at first sip.

Marlow and Wes
Monforte d'Alba
16 October 2013