I know this is a chain, but quite frankly when I'm in Venice, I at least know the quality of food is going to be good and it is going to be for good value... unlike the place that Dustin Hoffman is apparently a spokesman for! Close to where we were staying, I decided I needed at least one nice meal in Venice before I'm disappointed.
On my previous stays, my colleagues had spotted this place, so I had tried the Disco Volante (a calzone that is very delicious with artichokes, ham, and much more) and a pizza that had asparagus and I believe an egg... it was also delicious. They are known for their pizzas, but I decided I wanted pasta.
I was seated across from a bar that you can't sit at... otherwise I would have been sitting at the bar. They had an NBA game on, but I think I had a pretty good spot to people watch. Anyway, I scanned the menu... and found it: Paccheri with Pumpkin Sauce and Sausage... I wasn't actually sure what Paccheri was, no wifi, and it wasn't in my small Italian dictionary, but I had to believe it was another type of pasta. Otherwise this was going to be an adventure!
I had to decide on another dish though because, when in Italy, you have multiple courses... also because the courses are small enough that you should have another, just to make sure you don't leave the table hungry. So I went with Bresaola with Rocket and Parmesan. One of my favourite salads is a simple Rocket, Parmesan, and Olive Oil salad, so I figured a bit of cured meat would make it that much better... although I'm not sure that I had ever had Bresaola before.
I had another 1/4 litre of house wine... red this time... enough for two glasses... two courses. As I was waiting, in the Italian I recognized because I took French, I saw that they are now delivering pizzas! In fact, I watch one of the staff members put a backpack on with a couple of bottles of wine and pick up an insulated bag with pizzas and took off. That's pretty cool, mostly because I was looking for delivery tonight, but I don't think there is an Ae Oche in Florence.
Anyway, out came my salad. Wow it was a work of art and yes, I forgot to take a picture of it before I destroyed it. There were little rosettes on the corners of this triangular plate made out of Bresaola. And they used a bed of Rocket, to lay the other thin red pieces on, then there were bits of Parmesan...enough for every bite! It was delicious and I think I really like Bresaola (I thought it was a cured ham, but it is actually salted beef.
Then for the real winner! Out came my pasta with Pumpkin Sauce and Sausage. Paccheri is a short tubular pasta... looks almost like thicker rings of Calamari. The dish was a beautiful creamy orange color with bits of ground pork scattered throughout. The pasta was al dente, the sauce was creamy and lovely, and the bits of pork added the savory and salty bits to the dish. I seriously will be looking for a recipe for that dish so I can recreate it! All that lovely food and wine... 24 euro. I didn't eat the bread (I don't want to fill up on stale bread and then get charged for it), so no cover charge. read more