Friday, May 6

Italian Cooking? Fugheddaboutit.

Leave it to the Americans to take a wonderful, unadulterated sublime thing like Italian cuisine - pasta & prosecco included - and turn it into a 21st century update of Tuna Helper.  After all, I am in the land of spam.  So, landing in Detroit, the urban landscape and every place in between is boasting their 'italian-ness' - from biscotti (pronounced: bis-kaht-ee) at Starbucks to heaping plates of gnocchi (pronounced: ga-knockee by most everyone) served up hot and as gooey as Chinese pot-stickers.

A friend posted this terrific Ad Fail for a great pasta place on his facebook page, which took a few of us awhile to even figure out the play on words...try & see if you can manage the pun.  Driving around, I've run into Johnny Pomodoro's (originally called, Nino Salvaggio's).  Nearby was Cheesy Luigi's and Tomatoes Apizza (spoken with your best Godfather impression).  When you leave, you can go home and turn on Jersey Shore*.  Pretty soon, we'll have Frankie Avalon & Louis Prima playing the Palace.

My dad loved to quip how, when he was growing up, Cornmeal Polenta was a sure sign of poor, near-starving immigrants.  Now it goes for $15 a dish - grilled, of course.  But at least back in the '50s, Italian-Americans took their food seriously - and you could go to Gino's Pizza or La Traviata ristorante -- and eat serious Italian cooking without the gimmicks.

*Advisory Warning:  The Italian govt has issued a warning for students coming to New York as they are filming in the student dorms - suggesting they shouldn't sign off on any documents nor get filmed.  Too bad the govt neglects to remember that it's an Italian dream to rise to Reality Show stardom.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

you got that right Babe! Brava :)

Dave514 said...

Francesca:
That's why two friends of mine used to call me an, Italian Food Snob. I won't eat Italian Depression food, like spaghetti and meatballs. I've yet to find an Italian restaurant run by an Italian that makes regional specific or even multi-regional specific Italian food.

I have found the best Italian prosecco sold in the US---Mionetto Brut, Valdobbiadene Casa Vincola established in 1887. It's the driest of all that I've tasted so far. It's the closest to the real Fizz.

My favourite Italian restaurant is still, Olio e Convivium on the Via Santo Spirito, Frienze.


Davide

Flavor of Italy said...

I love your posts as they strike such a chord with me, and usually provided me with a little bit of much needed humor in my days!
I love the name of this restaurant chain in the U.K.: Scoozi! Where do people come up with these things and what the "fugh" are they trying to communicate?