Italy Dish by Dish: A Comprehensive Guide to Eating in Italy.  Monica Sartoni Cesari.  Translated from the Italian by Susan Simon.  The Little Bookroom.  $24.95.  (378p)  ISBN: 978-1-892145-90-1

Having lived and traveled in France repeatedly over the years I know pretty well the regional differences when it comes to food.  Like what the specialty of a region is, or where a specific dish hails from.  Italy is another matter completely.  I have a general sense of the regional differences, north versus south, Tuscan, Roman and Sicilian.   Those differences also vary widely from village to village and province to province.  The longest stretch of continuous time I’ve spent in Italia was two and half months.  I spent that time in the region of Umbria — smack, dab in the middle of the country.  Food there was unfamiliar, and I could easily have used the wonderful book “Italy Dish by Dish” to guide me and answer unending questions I had about the region’s food.

“Italy Dish by Dish” is here to answer travelers’ (both armchair and mobile) questions about what is what when it comes to food, eating, cooking and dining in Italy.  The book describes more than 3,000 dishes found throughout every region of Italy.  Broken down by region each chapter is organized alphabetically by course then by ingredient and ends with an iconic recipe that represents that area; for example the chapter on Umbria ends with a recipe for Pizza di Pasqua al formaggio – a dish I remember fondly.  There are also listings for the region’s cheeses and wines as well as food and wine pairing suggestions.  A detailed glossary describes the bounty of the land and sea that makes up la cucina italiana while an index easily puts menu items close at hand.

The book is small enough to fit into a day bag.  Using it will allow the traveler a deeper, more connected experience to the foods of Italy by knowing exactly what is on a menu, what ingredients a dish contains and how it’s cooked.  Not only is this book handy for the tourist on a short visit but also for anyone staying longer: renting a summer house, studying, or living for an extended period, or even moving to la Repubblica Italiana permanently.  If the book had been available when I lived in Umbria I would have taken it to the local grocery store, referred to it for recipes to cook at home, and used it when eating in restaurants.  It will definitely be in my pocket the next time I travel to Italy.

Buon viaggio e buon appetito!

100 Miles Shout Outs! Local events, mini-reviews, and mentions of things happening in the world of food:

#1 – Monday, February 28, 2011 ~ 5:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. ~ Street Food Mondays with ‘Antojitos de Mi Abuelita’ Food Truck ~ hosted by Bill Esparza and Evan Kleiman at Angeli Caffe, 7274 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, 323-936-9086

My Status:  Still enjoying winter in So Cal and the lovely winter produce: amazing citrus, kale, broccoli, collard greens, beets and fennel.  Trying to bone up my citrus knowledge so bought a pomelo and some Sumo mandarins (aka the Dekopan in Japan), a new crossbreed of citrus recently introduced to the U.S.  Loved the Sumo, haven’t tried the pomelo yet.  Continuing to blog, cook, and eat.

I’m published!! My recipe “Chef Wally’s Baked Papaya” was selected to be in the cookbook: “Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices.”  You may order it here.

Upcoming Posts: More on my great-grandmother’s garden, and my California childhood.  A visit and tour of Ojai Valley citrus grower Friend’s Ranch. More The Local Reports coming soon. Cookbook Reviews: “The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook” by Rachel Saunders, “Grilled Cheese, Please! by Laura Werlin.

Eataly New York, 23rd St. & 5th Ave. Photo via midtownlunch.com

I have fervently been following the opening of the food emporium, Eataly, in New York City.  The reason for my interest is that I was involved in the opening of another Italian food emporium in the early ’80s: DDL Foodshow.  I was hired by film producer, Dino de Laurentiis, to work with the general manager to open the store.  The flagship store was located at 82nd Street and Columbus Avenue, across the street from the Natural History Museum.  It took up the ornate, marble lobby of the Endicott Hotel building which by this time was no longer a hotel but had gone co-op.  The store was quite large for its time.  Much like what Eataly is doing now there were stations spread out around the store: gastronomica, (prepared hot and cold foods), rosticceria (roasted meats and chickens), baked goods, produce, cheese, salumeria, chocolate, coffee and so on.  It was meant to be 1-stop shopping for the upscale neighborhood.  Dino and his team of Italians spared no expense; he brought chefs and managers over from Italy.  Adam Tihany was the designer.  The store had a full on kitchen with an Italian head chef.  Dino wanted it to be like the stores of its kind that he knew in Italy.  Peck in Milan is one such store.  After opening I became manager of the cheese department.  As manager I did all the cheese buying, was responsible for the counter displays, and oversaw a staff.

The Endicott Hotel Building, 82nd & Columbus, NYC where DDL Foodshow was located.

It was an exciting project to be involved in as a twenty two-year old.  The job brought me from San Francisco to New York.  It was my first time living there.  My interview with Dino (who is Giada De Laurentiis’ grandfather) at his film offices in the Gulf & Western Building on Columbus Circle was my first visit to New York.  I was very excited to be working with Dino, and living in Manhattan.  New York was a food mecca then and still is now.  Unfortunately, the store and its satellites (one in Trump Tower on 5th Avenue, and one in Beverly Hills) didn’t last more than a few years.  It never really caught on with New Yorkers.  Zabar’s, Balduccis, and Fairway pretty much had the corner on the gourmet food market.  A lot of people came into the store to look when it first opened but rarely returned more than a few times.  Sadly, Dino was ahead of his time.

The bread counter in Eataly New York.

Eataly is an Italian company with five stores in Italy, three in Japan and now one in New York.  Eataly New York is owned by chef Mario Battali and restaurateur Joe Bastianich, and Joe’s mother chef Lidia Bastianich.  The New York store while similar in concept is much larger than DDL Foodshow, and includes several sit down restaurants.  It is broken up in to a series of ‘eateries’: pizza, pasta, fish, produce, salumi and cheese, deli, rosticceria (with a butcher), bread, pasticceria and gelateria, as well as areas for cookbooks and housewares, and finally a wine shop. All of these are pay as you go.  DDL was more like an old-fashioned grocer.  You took a grocery cart from counter to counter and went through a check out line when you were done shopping.  DDL had no sit down restaurants; it did have the rosticceria where you could pick up a roasted chicken, or piece of meat, while the gastronomica had hot and cold prepared foods.  It was possible to buy a completely cooked meal.

Inside Eataly New York.

I have not yet been to Eatlay but I am anxious to go.  Definitely on my next trip to New York.  A good friend who actually worked with me at DDL has been and her report is that the food is very good, the store nice but that it is massively confusing as to what one is supposed to do where and when.  She and a friend bought things to eat then sat down at an empty table in one of the many eating points and were promptly told they needed to see the hostess to be seated.  A hostess and a host stand that were not readily visible.  As she described it to me: “Right now it’s an uneasy compromise between a food hall and an eatery.  What you have are various specialty shopping departments spotted with seating areas that have table or counter service.”  That does sound confusing.  Another friend ate dinner at one of the sit down restaurants where the prices were not inexpensive.  He said it was the oddest experience eating a nice meal while people were shopping all around him.  This begs the question: is it a sit-down restaurant, a take-out joint, or a high-end grocery store?  It’s trying to be all three.  Will hard-to-please New Yorkers be okay with this?  Only time will tell.  It does however sound like they have a few kinks to work out.

I have very fond memories of DDL Foodshow despite the many difficulties of getting a store of its size and kind open.  Dino’s heart was in the right place.  He wanted to share his joy of food and food culture with New Yorkers and Americans.  New Yorkers are a very tough audience; very set in their ways.  Sadly, they weren’t willing or interested enough to make it viable.  I still think Dino was ahead of his time.  This was before the Food Network, and the new Internet-based food movement.  Giada, his granddaughter, has managed to carve out a place for herself.  Time will tell if Eataly is a success.  I’d venture to guess that now is a better time in American food culture to give it a try than twenty-eight years ago when Dino and a group of us attempted it first.

Shout Outs! Fun, Cool, Interesting, Worthy Things Going on Around Town…

Pink Ribbon Cupcake from Magnolia Bakery

Magnolia Bakery (Los Angeles) ~ Purchase a Pink Ribbon Cupcake, (or several!) from Magnolia Bakery during the month of October.  Proceeds go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation for Breast Cancer Research.  www.magnoliabakery.com

Los Angeles Magazine ~ The Food Event: From the Vine 2010 ~ Sunday, October 24, 2010, 1 pm to 4 pm, Saddlerock Ranch, Malibu, California.  The 5th annual culinary extravaganza hosted by Los Angeles Magazine featuring celebrity chefs, top restaurants and wine tasting.  I’ll be there.  Hope to see you.  www.losangelesmagazine/thefoodevent

Artisanal L.A. ~ A weekend of shopping, tasting, workshops, and hanging out with local artisans.  A celebration of L.A.’s finest local handmade artisanal edibles.  October 23 & 24, 11 am to 4 pm.   I’ll be there (Saturday, 10/23), will you?  http://artisanalla.com/

Out of the Box Collective (Los Angeles) ~ A brand new business that home-delivers boxes of local, sustainably produced groceries.  The food items used in the boxes are sourced from artisans and farmers in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties.  Boxes contain meat, dairy, produce, bread, conserves, and regional specialties.  They have a Thanksgiving Feast Box available for the upcoming holiday that will supply you with all the ingredients and a few suggested recipes if you don’t have the time to shop but still want to cook.  Come check them out the Artisan L.A. event on 10/23 & 24 (see above for info).  www.outoftheboxcollective.com

My Status:  Fall weather has arrived to SoCal.  Cool, wet even rainy.  More cooking, eating and blogging on the horizon as always.

News! I am now published!! My recipe ‘Chef Wally’s Baked Papaya’ was selected to be in the upcoming cookbook: ‘Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices,’ publish date is October 19, 2010.  You may pre-order it here.  I am thrilled.

Upcoming Posts: Cookbook Reviews ~ Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller; Mary Mac’s Tea Room: 65 Years of Recipes from Atlanta’s Favorite Dining Room by John Ferrell; The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook by Rachel Saunders.

Italian, Mexican, a cafe and bakery, Korean BBQ, a gelateria, and Lucifers Pizza are just a few of the eating options along a four or five block stretch of Hillhurst Avenue in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles.  The stretch that is becoming a sort of neighborhood food mecca runs between Franklin Avenue and Los Feliz Boulevard.  To the south at Franklin Avenue sits the Loz Feliz Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library (the corner it sits on was once the childhood home of Leonardo DiCaprio).  As you move north you will come across the very popular Alcove Cafe & Bakery, across the street from the Alcove is the newly owned and re-opened Gelato Bar, the sister store to one in Studio City owned by Gail Silverton, Nancy Silverton of Mozza fame’s sister.  Further up from Gelato Bar is the subject of today’s post: Lucifers Pizza.

I recently attended a pizza tasting at Lucifers as a new menu was about to be introduced, and I have to say I really liked this pizza.  Not only does founder and owner, Adam Borich, make a point of using locally sourced produce and ingredients, he also makes the eating experience fun by adding a little heat to his pizzas — hence the name Lucifers.  When you order a Lucifers pizza you have the option of requesting spice level ranges of ‘Zero,’ ‘Medium,’ ‘Fiery,’ and ‘Blazing’.  The new menu includes five new pizzas: the Sopressata (Sopressata, fresh basil, fresh mozzarella), Tradizionale (Sliced fresh plum tomato, fresh basil, fresh mozzarella), Prosciutto-Pollo (Prosciutto, chicken, fresh basil, caramelized onion, fresh mozzarella), Quattro Formaggio (Fresh parmesan cheese, romano cheese, fresh mozzarella, feta and garlic), and the Spagnolo (Jumbo shrimp, chorizo, fresh spinach, chili, garlic).

A large pizza, 'medium' heat, half Roast Pumpkin & Prosciutto (left side), half Spagnolo.

We tasted the new five plus some of those already on the menu.  One from the original menu that stood out for me was Roast Pumpkin & Prosciutto (Pumpkin, prosciutto, roast garlic & spinach) — a genius idea to put pumpkin on a pizza and to combine it with prosciutto, garlic and spinach.  A sweet and savory pie all rolled into one.  Another off the original menu that caught my attention was the Greek Lamb & Rosemary (Lamb, caramelized onions, feta cheese, kalamata olives, rosemary, garlic, lemon pepper & chopped parsley).  I thought, ah ha, Adam is showing his Auckland, New Zealand roots in this pie as New Zealand is known for its lamb, and for its large Greek community.   I like lamb, Greek food and this pizza.  The Spagnolo off the new menu was another favorite.  Seafood and cured meats together on a pizza are a wonderful thing, and a little heat’s not bad too.

This was my first time eating Lucifers pizza; I pass by the shop often as I spend a good deal of time on this stretch of Hillhurst but I’d never made it in.  I am glad I finally ate Lucifers pizza.  I will definitely go again, or order for delivery.  I might even consider the Ringburner (Pepperoni, jalapenos, black pepper, bell pepper & hot chili sauce) but then again I might be too much of a wimp for that much heat.

Lucifers Pizza, 1958 Hillhurst Avenue, Los Angeles, CA  90027, 323-906-8603, www.luciferspizza.com

*The Local Report(s): are occasional blog posts on restaurants, and/or businesses that either support the idea of one-hundred miles, and ‘living life locally’; or are small, localized businesses in my neighborhood, and/or within one-hundred miles of my residence, that I prefer to support over the larger, national, corporate chains. For other The Local Report(s) please go the Archives section of this blog. Also, I’d love to hear from my readers about businesses that they support in their neighborhoods: write to me at charlesgthompson@100miles.com, or leave a comment here.

Follow The Local Report on Twitter: @TheLocalReport

Recommendation:  Let Me Cook For You ~ for my Marin County, and Bay Area readers.  My sister, Traci Thompson, has started a personal cooking service.  She’ll devise menus, do the shopping, come to your house, and cook for you and your family.  She’s an amazing cook and prepares ‘healthy homemade meals for everyone’.

Coming Up: International Food Bloggers Conference (IFBC), August 27 – 29, 2010, Seattle Washington.  So much fun last year that I’ll be attending again this year.  Are you?

Upcoming Posts: Cochon 555 Napa, a write up of the amazing pork festival that I attended this spring. Cookbook Reviews: Steak and Friends: At Home with Rick Tramonto by Rick Tramonto, Spice Dreams by Sara Engram and Katie Luber, Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller.