You know you have no worries when a 2 and 1/4 hour drive brings you to Venice and you have five good friends with which to share the experience.
Of course being students at the world famous La Scuola Internazionale di Cucina Italiana, aka Alma has some benefits in addition to the amazing culinary school experience. Alma has contacts within the culinary industry all over Italy. As a part of the program, each student will participate in a Stage or internship in an extremely high quality restaurant somewhere in Italy.
One of these fabulous places is the Ristorante De Pisis at the Bauer IL Palazzo in Venice, which has an outdoor dining room literally overlooking the Grand Canal.
So prior to leaving for Venice we, and when I say we I mean Kristin, spoke to the Italian Culinary Academy representative at Alma about getting us a reservation at De Pisis. Before I go further, it is important to note that when I say “fabulous place” I mean it. This is a 5 Star Hotel which is a member of the “Leading Small Hotels of the World” group and having been an Attorney for the past 25 years and traveled quite a bit with my wife, we have stayed at these hotels before, in Italy even, and all I can say is wow!
So we, I mean Kristin, spoke to Francesca who hooked us up with the Executive Chef of De Pisis, Giovanni Ciresa, who has been a Guest Chef at Alma and has sponsored Stage students in his restaurant and who has hired Alma graduates on a regular basis.
Anyway, all I can say is that we all had one of the best food experiences of our lives. In addition, we received an amazing price for a 9-10-11; we lost count, course-tasting menu created by the Chef especially for us. In addition, we all received a “bottomless glass of wine” which I think they forgot to charge us for.
Anyway, we spent about 3.5 hours at the De Pisis, which included, along with the food and wine a very interesting conversation with Chef Ciresa and a kitchen tour lead by the Chef. Of course, there was a photo opportunity.
So what about the food? Well on the ride back to Colorno I did a sort of poll of what we thought were the best of the dishes. One favorite was a Tuna Tartare served in a round form over red beet with dots of balsamic vinegar and a fried tartar sauce nugget, which is hard to describe in words but was delicious and unique in my experience, as were the dots, I will call them, of balsamic. We asked the Chef how they were made and he said the balsamic was dripped into hot oil to form the dots. Amazing. I think we will be trying to replicate this dish. Another favorite was an amazingly simple Chicken Cacciatore. While the chicken was perfectly cooked, tender, moist and tasty it was the way, the chicken was served in a very basic sauce, which was a reduction of fresh tomatoes into a paste with very little seasoning. This would be very hard to replicate in the States because of the difference in the taste and quality of our tomatoes but I expect we will try this one as well.
Another favorite was fresh pasta made with pea cream and flour. No eggs were used and the pasta had a very unique, soft texture. The green pasta was served with bits of a great ham and cold ham flavored foam, which you stir into the hot pasta just before eating. In addition, another favorite was a 2-3 bite sized portion of fresh, moist perfectly cooked, Monkfish served over a round of vegetable couscous. I cannot describe the seasoning of the couscous – vegetable mixture except to say…. I am running out of adjectives. Let us just say the entire experience was awesome.
No review is complete without a criticism, even be it minor as this one is. Before the minor criticism let me say that, the service was also amazing. One dish right after another. Prosecco, followed by three different wines. Two white wines of the same type and from the same producer but different years. A red with our final course and then two desserts. A starter dessert followed by a dish named “After Eights”. The dish was named after the famous after dinner mint chocolates. This dish was served with three different types of chocolate and a sauce-foam made with fresh mint. Again totally unique and delicious.
The only criticism was one that we all agreed on and that was one of the bread items served in the basket selection of bread and bread sticks. It was very thin and crunchy bread and was probably a traditional Venetian item but while fresh, crispy and flat; we felt it was tasteless. I suspect it was prepared exactly how it is supposed to be prepared and tasted like it was supposed to taste but we did not care for it.
Anyway, it was an amazing evening. The food, the service, the attention the Chef gave to us and the tour of the kitchen and the great price. First class all the way. Thanks Chef Ciresa and thanks Francesca.
For more on Venice click on this link for a video from the hotel website. VENICE VIDEO.
McDonalds it wasn’t!
Carl, you have such a way with the enlish language that we can taste the italian dishes you describe.
Mary was portrayed in a Post Journal article today OLEAN ROTARIANS SPEAK ABOUT WELL PROJECT IN NIGER.
This commendable work has provided villagers with the most precious gift on earth second only to the air we need and breathe.
Hi Joe: Thanks for your comment. It really means a lot to me that you are following this and that you are enjoying it. I am having a great time but it is really a great deal of hard work as well. Thanks so much.
Would anyone sponsor me on a trip to Alma?…….