Last year, when my world became small, I craved bigness. In cinematic terms, I fantasised about a blockbuster of a European city break, with dazzling special effects, a big-budget set, a melodramatic script and an improbably glamorous cast. On what felt like the 7000th dreary, identikit day in a row, I promised myself that my first post-lockdown international trip would be Rome.
Rome, to my intense embarrassment as a travel writer, is the one big European city I have never visited, and I had two long years to ponder this bad decision. Sure, Rome is not cheap, with none of the legendary gastronomic bang-for-buck as Naples, for example. Rome is not cool; in fact, Rome was at its coolest 2000 years ago, so a weekend in Rome doesn’t have the hipster kudos of Helsinki or Tel Aviv. Rome is not particularly international, something the sizeable international community is blissfully united in whining about. The United Nations World Food Programme and other UN bodies are headquartered here, yet Rome has historically not been particularly interested in other cultures or cuisines. If you’re Rome, why would you be?
Esta historia es de la edición April 2022 de Gourmet Traveller.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición April 2022 de Gourmet Traveller.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
A taste of refuge
Fleeing war and persecution, Australia's new arrivals push our food culture forward. DANI VALENT explores the contributions of the country's refugee communities.
BE OUR GUEST
Inspired by the sense of place conjured by Europe's Michelin-star restaurants, local restaurateurs are expanding their hospitality remit to include accommodation
HEATHCOTE BOUND
MICHAEL HARDEN hits the road to explore regional Victoria's Heathcote, home to this year's Best Destination Dining and a host of other delights.
The art of...relishing restaurants
Does working in hospitality make someone a better or worse diner
HEART AND SOUL
Not a vegetable but rather a flower bud that rises on a thistle, the artichoke is a complex delight. Its rewards are hard won; first you must get past the armour of petals and remove the hairy choke. Those who step up are rewarded with sweet and savoury creaminess and the elusive flavour of spring. Many of the recipes here begin with the same Provençal braise. Others call on the nuttiness of artichokes in their raw form. The results make pasta lighter and chicken brighter or can be fried to become a vessel for bold flavours all of which capture the levity of the season.
48 HOURS IN LUCCA
By the Serchio river within Renaissance-era walls, Lucca's gastronomic treasures are set to delight, as ANASTASIA MIARI discovers.
POSTCARDS FROM UDINE
Off the radar in northeastern Italy, the provincial city is rich with la dolce vita.
BERGAMO OR BUST
Concealed between sophisticated Milan and glamorous Lake Como, beautiful Bergamo is Lombardy's hidden gem, discovers ANNA HART.
Coast with the most
Food writer AMBER GUINNESS transports us to the shores of Italy's Tyrrhenian Sea by way of delicious helpings of pasta, fish and limoncello.
SALUTE
Explore the warm Mediterranean waters and fresh flavours of Sardinia with these recipes from Brisbane's Pilloni by chef PIETRO SEGALINI.
