DECEMBER 1 2008
AMERICANWAY 29
R O M E
Parmigiano-Reggiano,andballsofother
Italiancheeses.Igetlostbrieflyinthedense
winelist—parforthecoursetonight.Final-
ly,IsettleonabottleofAglianicodelVul-
ture.Aglianicoistheso-calledBaroloofthe
South,andthe2001VignaCaselleRiserva
thatI’veselectedfromtheD’Angelowinery
isfull-bodied,dry,andtasteslikedirtina
delicioussortofway.Thewineisratedtre
bicchiere
(threeglasses),akintoexceptional,byGamberoRosso,thepublisherofItaly’s
topwineguide.Andat30euros,orabout$44,it’sabargaincomparedwithwhat
you’dpayforthiswineintheUnitedStates,assumingyoucouldevenfinditthere.Enoteca Trastevere (Via della Lungaretta,
86; 011-39-06-588-5659)
,alittlewinebar
onthewestbankoftheTiber,inanewly
popularmedievalneighborhood,isatradi-
tionalvino e olio
shop.Backsomewherein
thedaysofyore,“wineandoil”shopssold
justthoseitemsandonastrictlyretailbasis.Overtime,somealsobeganofferingcheeses
andsalamifortakeout.Atsomepoint,din-
inginjoinedtakeout.Andtoday,mostof
thecity’swinebars—enoteche
inItalian—stillfollowthatformula.AtEnotecaTrastevere,Ienjoyacheap
glassofProsecco—morespecifically,a
three-euro,orabout$4,glassofProsec-
co,anItaliansparklerfromthehillsides
nearVenice
.
(Priceslikethatcanbefound
throughoutRome.Irarelypaidmorethan
sixeuros,orabout$8,foraglass.)Withits
dark-woodwallsandtables,smalloutdoor
patio,andfoodslikemarinatedartichokes,thisrusticspotisalmostthestereotypeof
Romanenoteche;therearedozensoflook-
alikesalloverthecity.Soit’sonlynatural
thatastereotypicalelderlywomanissearch-
ingtheshelveswhenIwalkin.She’sdressed
inablue-and-red-patternedhousecoatand
lookslikeshejuststeppedoffthesetofa
Ragúcommercial.Herchoice?Abottleof
redLacrymaChristidelVesuvio,asimple
winewhosegrapesaregrowninsoilthat’s
enrichedwithVesuviusvolcanicfallout.I
imagineshe’llserveitwithatypicalRoman
pastadishlikebucatiniall'amatriciana.About thAt buCAtINI …
Itisomnipres-
entinRomanrestaurants.Actually,there’s
anoldjokeaboutrestaurantsinNewOr-
leansthatcouldeasilyapplytotheeater-
iesandthewinebarsofRome:Thereare
hundredsofdifferentrestaurantsbutonly
The last of the
great independents.
The owner/operators
who give not only fine
beef but their hearts
aswell.
The Independent Retail
Cattleman’s Association
557Mt. Pleasant Road
Kingston Springs, TN 37082
Visit:
Rainwater’s onKettner
SANDIEGO, CA ......................619.233.5757
Proprietors:
Laurel &PaddyRainwater
St. ElmoSteakHouse
INDIANAPOLIS, IN ..................317.635.0636
Proprietors:
SteveHuse&CraigHuse
III Forks
DALLAS, TX .............................972.267.1776
Proprietor:
Chris Vogeli
PALMBEACHGARDENS, FL... 561-630-3660
Proprietor:
DanaBorders
Manny’s
MINNEAPOLIS,MN...................612.339.9900
MIAMI, FL..................................305.938.9000
Proprietors:
Phil Roberts, PeterMihajlov
&KevinKuester
Grill 225
CHARLESTON, SC ..................843.266.4222
Proprietor:
NickPalassis
ExecutiveChef:
DemetreCastanas
McKendrick’s SteakHouse
ATLANTA, GA .........................770.512.8888
Proprietors:
Claudia&DougMcKendrick,
RickCrowe
Malone’s
LEXINGTON, KY......................859.335.6500
Proprietors:
BrianMcCarty &BruceDrake
MetropolitanGrill
SEATTLE, WA ..........................206.624.3287
Proprietor:
RonCohn
Gene&Georgetti
CHICAGO, IL ...........................312.527.3718
Proprietors:
Tony &MarionDurpetti
