gigina's, bologna

I can't believe I haven't finished posting about our trip to Italy this summer, especially when I have been excited to tell you about Gigina's since the beginning planning stages of the trip! You know a restaurant is good when a fine group of gentlemen go out of their way to tell you that this restaurant is as good as it gets; the best. Who am I to argue? If there is one place you have to eat in Italy, it must be somewhere in the province of Emilia-Romagna. I will never even think of going to Italy without at least one stop somewhere in Emilia-Romagna... we spent 5 nights, which meant 5 very rich and memorable meals. Perhaps I should say that if you travel to Italy, ok when you travel to Italy, you must go to Bologna, Parma, or Modena. This is not a choice. You must go! I dare say, it just might be close to impossible to eat this well any place else in the world. Ok, it might be possible, but not made and lovingly served by ma and pa with heart-on-their-sleeve hospitality. Oh, and you are absolutely, not allowed to leave without being the most full of the best stuff you've ever imagined. It's Mama's food of your dreams. I have been to Gigina's before, but I had to go back. I knew Gigina's was famous for their fettucine bolognese, but I didn't order it. And I'll admit, that seeing Heston Blumenthal travel to Gigina's In Search of Perfection, I knew I had to hurry back. Fast. At Gigina's you start with chunks of mortadella, gnocco fritto, and salame. Gnocco fritto are literally fried pieces of dough, a little salty, a little sweet, but delicious melt in your mouth pillows of dough. In Emilia-Romagna, it is also obligatory to drink lambrusco, the wine of the locals. Bubbly red wine sounds terrible to most, but it is not sweet, and honestly helps with all the fat. The food is gloriously fatty... sigh. Spuma di mortadella e gelatina di balsamico is like mortadella in a whipped pâté-like consistency, accented by the sweet richness of balsamic vinegar. The accompanying greens are valeriana, a popular easy-to-find green in Italy. It is impossible to eat enough culatello in Italy. The meat so rich, but so very sweet and tender. Parmigiano-reggiano is another Emilia-Romagna specialty. This looks like an excessive amount of cream and butter, but it is not possible here. The only thing that is near to impossible is trying to finish all of these gnocchi con spinaci in fonduta di parmigiano e tartufo. Yes, those brown specks are truffles, and irresistible. I had been to Gigina's in 2007, and ordered the gnocchi and not their infamous fettuccine bolognese. I nearly leapt into the air when I saw Heston Blumenthal travel to Gigina's, In Search of Perfection. I knew I had to go back. This fettuccine was well worth the wait, and the journey. The golden fettuccine are rich and delicious, with the perfect consistency one only dreams of. The bolognese is nearly sauceless, it is meaty, and hearty, and the most delicious meat sauce imaginable. Definitely perfection. There is no room for anyone to have a full tummy in Bologna; it is simply not allowed. Cotoletta alla petroniana con tartufo davvero, also seems to be on nearly the plate of every single diner, and for good reason. It is breaded veal, then wrapped in prosciutto with a rich and creamy parmigiano-truffle sauce. It is one of the best dishes I have ever enjoyed, even as I burst at the seams. We also enjoyed a few side dishes. The spinach was flavourful, and well seasoned. Roast potatoes and tomatoes with parmigiano were also equally delightful. Dessert needed to be washed down. This moscato did just the trick. Although I vehemently wanted to refuse dessert, but, I could not. This cherry sorbetto in a citrus sauce was sweet and tart, and of course, it was to-die-for. Stunning. Waving goodbye to Gigina's. Gigina's is closer to the outskirts of Bologna, rather than the city centre. But well worth the trek. via Stendhal 1 40128 Bologna tel. 051322300 - fax 0514189865 info@trattoriagigina.it
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a la gigina = a la really great!

I wish Trattoria della Gigina was down the street from my house. Problem is, my house is not in Bologna....I would eat there every night, and it seems that many locals do. It is an elegant, but casual restaurant on the outskirts of Bologna where everything is just like mama would make - or at least you really wish your mama made. When we were there at the end of July, it was catering to businessmen and families with small children. Some of the businessmen engaged in a short conversation with us as they were leaving; they asked if we liked the food and told us this is the best place. Jeff said "like Ferrari", and they said like "Jacques Villeneuve!" They were very proud of the food at Gigina, and rightfully so. Now I don't know any mama's that make a balsamic flavoured gelee, but at Gigina the food is elegant as well as hearty. Our waitress was very excited to have us visit her restaurant....it was pretty obvious that we didn't live around the corner, but my Italian wasn't too shabby either. She took our order, and helped to make some suggestions which I feel were just and right on target. How can anyone go wrong with an order of truffled mashed potatoes? I can't complain with any place that serves gnocco fritto, the salty little fried pieces of soft dough, which are incredibly addicting although very rich. This was brought to the table a few minutes after she took our order. Every time we ordered a bottle of lambrusco in Emilia-Romagna; our servers eyes lit-up. Either they think we are crazy, or are excited that we recognize this wine is indigenous to the region... I cannot imagine enjoying this cuisine without it. It is a red wine with bubbles and this helps to cut the fattiness of the food perfectly. We've tried a few bottles here at home, but they were often too sweet and virtually undrinkable. As Italians say, everything (not just art) is better in situ. I had to try to the "Roast-beef della “Gigina” con la sua salsa di cottura", and it was really wonderful. Salty, and tender. Jeff ordered the "carpaccio di filetto con grana e rucola". The grana cheese was actually a little grainy; the crystallized salt would crunch in contrast with the butteriness of the beef. Melts in your mouth. We both ordered gnocchi con spinaci in fonduta di parmigiano e tartufo davvero. (Spinach gnocchi in a truffled-cream sauce) After Jeff ordered the world's best gnocchi at Arnaldo's we thought we might be let down. Although the gnocchi were a little less al dente in texture, this was the richest, creamiest sauce I could ever imagine for a gnocchi. It was not only rich with cream, but the amount of truffles made it all the more satisfying. Truffled mashed potatoes - need I say more? And there was a lot of truffle flavour too, no skimping here. Cotoletta alla petroniana con tartufo davvero. Just in case we hadn't consumed enough truffles yet, and although we were exceedingly full already - I devoured this dish. It makes me dream of the day I can eat it again, no matter how full my tummy thinks it is. It is lightly breaded and fried veal, which is then wrapped in prosciutto, and truffles and parmigiano-reggiano. These flavours seemed to layer themselves in your mouth, which was heightened by the silkiness of the sauce. The dish was incredibly salty from the prosciutto and the parmigiano, but certainly not in a salt shaker kind of way. It is one of the specialties of the house. Nearly every table had ordered it. Fabulous. While we would have loved dessert, there was no way that on an eating trip of Italy we could have handled another bite. Next time..... Trattoria della Gigina - via Stendhal 1, 40128 Bologna http://www.trattoriagigina.it/ tel. 051322300 fax 0514189865 | p.iva e c.f 02230100378 | info@trattoriagigina.it
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