Monday, August 02, 2010

LUNCH WITH A SHEPHERD

Those of you who also read Italy Magazine may remember my interview with Father Russell Ruffino, the "Shepherd of Orvieto", whose father was from Modica.

Russ and his wife Barbara were in Modica at the weekend and it was a real pleasure to meet them for a pasta lunch at the Osteria dei Sapori Perduti yesterday:



Russ had pasta with cauliflower and sausage



whilst Barbara had pasta with tomatoes and aubergine



and I had traditional sweet ravioli with a pork sauce:




Then it was gel al limone for dessert:



This traditional restaurant is excellent and has a delightful family atmosphere. In fact, the family were showing off their newborn granddaughter to customers as they arrived. As the menu is in dialect, they provide a booklet with photos of all the food. There are interesting artefacts on display, including this cradle hanging from the ceiling:









This musician translated his dialect songs into Italian for us and finished with a rendition of New York, New York for Russ and Barbara:





It was great to meet you, Russ and Barbara. Do come back to Modica!

11 comments:

Anne in Oxfordshire said...

What a lovely quaint restaurant ..:-)

I have never had pasta with cauliflower ... very odd, but I am sure it was tasty.

Claude said...

What a delightful, atmospheric post! The people look so warm hearted, and the food, delicious. You really lead a great life in Sicily, Pat. But you welcome everyday, and everyone as a gift. And people cannot but appreciate your smile and return it. Your joie de vivre is reaching me right across the ocean, and is brightening my life. Thanks for sharing.

Liz Hinds said...

Sounds lovely.

CherryPie said...

I think I would have picked the ravioli too.

Rosaria Williams said...

What an interesting idea, to have native dishes with music in the local dialect. Certainly an experience not easily duplicated. We in the States have lost a lot of local cuisine with all the big chain restaurants and food channels pushing certain products, processes and standardized sizes and recipes.

fabiorizza said...

Hi Patricia!
How are you? Hope all is ok! I'm Fabio a your ex-student at Catherine school years ago, do you remember? We often spoke about celtic music, books and novels. I read you had a good lunch yesterday! ^ ^
I really like your blog and it is always a pleasure to read it when I can.
Hope the best for you.
Fabio.

LindyLouMac said...

Thanks for your recent visits and comments over at News From Italy. With all our visitors now departed I am catching up on my Blog reading.

Looks like a real find, a restaurant for the locals.

J. M. P. said...

The name of the restaurant is simply brilliant. The pasta with tomatoes and aubergine left me breathless, yumm!

Ellee Seymour said...

I would loved to have heard the accordian player.

Welshcakes Limoncello said...

Hi, Anne. I don't like cauliflower myself but Modicans love it. Thank you so much, Claude. I am glad you liked the post. However, my life here is not without its troubles, just like anywhere else and I have a few at the moment. I do love it here, though. It was, Liz. Hi, Cherie. I love this type of ravioli. Hi, lakeviewer. I think the Slow Food Movement has saved a lot of traditional food in Italy. In sicily people still eat seasonally but even that is slowly changing. I think restaurants like this must be celebrated. Hi, Fabio. Yes, I remember you very well and it's lovely to hear from you. I am so pleased that you read my blog sometimes and now we can keep in touch on facebook. How is your Dad? Hi, LindyLouMac. It's always a pleasure to visit you. Yes, it's a real restaurant for the locals. Hi, fullet. Yes, it's a great name. I was torn between that pasta and the ravioli! Hi, Ellee. He was wonderful.

Unknown said...

Good choice, I love Modican traditional food.. especially scacce!

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