Markets & Grocers – Page 11

Alsace – Exploring Colmar, Dinner at Winstub de la Petit Venise, and a Kinda Creepy Coincidence

August 20, 2019 mmm-yoso Alsace, France, French Restaurants, Markets & Grocers, Travel

While planning our trip to France, I told the Missus that I really wanted to head back to Alsace. I had really enjoyed our time in Strasbourg the year before. And though we'd be a week early for the Christmas Market, I thought having a short break in Colmar would be great! And so, we headed from Reims to Colmar, arriving at around 330 in the afternoon. As we headed to our apartment crossing Rue Turenne we understood why this area was called "Le Petit Venise"; not that it looked anything like Venice, not by a long shot.

But there are lovely little canals and wonderful half-timbered houses, and lovely bridges, like the Pont de Rue de Turenne. Which someone told me was called the "fanny bridge" because at certain times of the day folks would be lining up for photos and selfies with their backs against the railing, so looking from along the way, all you saw was a line of folk's backs and backsides lining the railing!

And to make things even better; we had a wonderful apartment with a balcony that overlooked the bridge. We'd entertain ourselves by heading out onto the balcony several times of the day just to watch folks on the bridge….or even just watch the water flowing by.

This was our view.

Budapest – More Buda, the Great Market Hall, Hold Utca Food Market, and Kacha Belvárosi Piac

July 27, 2019 mmm-yoso Budapest, Hungarian Food and Restaurants, Hungary, Markets & Grocers, Travel

Following a nice break Budavari Retesvar we walked back the half block to the striking Matthias Church. Originally founded in the eleventh century, the current church was built in the thirteenth century by Bela IV after the Mongols destroyed the original structure. The official name of the church is "Church of Our Lady", but the ever popular King Matthias renovated the structure and even got married in the church twice and so the church is called by most, Matthias Church.

While we often spend a good amount of time exploring churches, we decided to just admire this one from the exterior.

Right past the church is the Statue of Saint István (St Stephen) who was the first Christian King of Hungary.

Right past the statue is the Fisherman's Bastion; which was one of the many structures and improvements made for the 1896 Hungarian Millennium Celebration.

While it's normal for folks to enjoy the views from the structure, we really kind of just wandered around and took it all in.

We headed down the stairs, back to the Danube when we ran into one of the sites I had on my list. It's the Péter Mansfeld Monument, the rather disturbing sculpture of a young man hurtling headfirst toward the ground. Péter Mansfeld was one of; if not the youngest victim of the Hungarian uprising of 1956. Mansfield joined the fight for independence at the age of 16. After his arrest by the Soviets, it was determined that he was one of the leaders of a group that were stealing weapons and cars. He was tortured and sentenced to death. In order to look better in the eyes of the world; they imprisoned Péter until he was 18. He was hanged eleven days after his 18th birthday on March 21, 1959.

I told the Missus the story…..it was quite sobering and we walked down the steps to the riverfront in silence.

We walked along the Danube; passing Várkert Bazár, the Buda Castle Park, where we had started up to Catle Hill in the morning.

We were getting a bit hungry; so we decided to check out the Great Market Hall. So, we walked over to the Elisabeth Bridge which we had crossed over on the previous evening.

And of course, in a park near the bridge, is a statue of Queen Elisabeth. There are statues and sculptures everywhere in Budapest.

Instead of crossing on the Elisabeth Bridge, we walked one bridge over and crossed the Danube on the Liberty Bridge.

The Great Market Hall is located steps from the end of the bridge on the Pest side. I'd head a lot of mixed reviews from folks who had been to Budapest. Everything from "it's amazing and fun" to "it's over run with people and tourist traps".

The hall is quite grand; like so many places in Budapest, it was built for the 1896 Millennial Celebration.

So, what did we think?

Well yes, there were quite a few tourists and most of the second floor is full of tourist type shops. But, much like Pike Place Market; there's still much to be seen and bought even for locals.

It's vibrant, alive, with both tourists and locals.

With lots of things to buy. But in terms of food options; we just didn't see anything that appealed to us.

Instead we decided to take the mile-and-a-half walk to a place we had passed on the previous day; the Hold Utca Market Hall. To get there we walked up Vaci Utca which seemed like tourist central…..which we then avoided for the rest of the trip. Up to rather sedate Hold Utca and the market hall.

We both enjoyed the vibe of this market hall. Yes, there are tourists; in fact there seemed to be a group of tourists on a food tour. Still, there were even more locals; quite a few business folks and such eating at some of the shops on the second level.

We had dinner reservations and wanted something small and we found just what we wanted at this shop on the second level.

The shop specializes in duck…..

And so we decided to share a salad and some duck liver.

The duck liver came in a glass; completely submerged in duck fat. It had been slowly cooked in fat at a low temp; think confit. It was rich, not overly livery….and man; dipping the bread into the fat was quite rich and decadent.

The salad was refreshing; the strawberries were sweet; the greens crisp, the light vinaigrette perfect for this salad. Good ingredients; obviously from downstairs.

It was just what we needed to hold us over until dinner. And the woman working in this shop was very warm and friendly

Kacha Belvárosi Piac
(In the Hold Street Market Hall – second floor)
Hold utca 13
Budapest 1112 1054 Hungary

We'd put in a decent amount of mileage and it was just past 2pm! It was time for a nap as I was sure we'd be doing some walking before and after dinner!

Anchorage – New Sagaya’s City Market, Anchorage Market & Festival, and the International House of Hotdogs

May 3, 2019 mmm-yoso Alaska, Hot Dogs, Markets & Grocers, Travel

It's been almost a year since we visited Alaska; I'd better get these posts done!

I had a rather fitful night of sleep in Anchorage. I guess bars close at 4am; which by the way, is when the sun was rising during our visit. Folks got back to the hotel with much banging and noise…no it wasn't the ghosts. So, after a couple more hours of restlessness, we headed downstairs. The breakfast set-up looked rather dismal, so we just grabbed some coffee and headed out. Not sure where. Past schools and houses…I believe on A Street.

We then cut westward and somehow ended up at New Sagaya's City Market, where there is a location of Kaladi Brothers Coffee.

So while the Missus stood in the queue for our caffeine fix.

It was interesting walking those aisles. I was rather surprised to see some of items being sold; like Aloha Shoyu!

We sat and enjoyed our coffee. It was interesting; you could tell who the visitors were; we still felt a bit chilly in the 50 degree weather; while we saw folks in the market walking around in shorts!

After our fix, we headed back out. But not before giving this friendly fella' a nice head scratch.

New Sagaya City Market
900 W 13th Ave.
Anchorage, AK 99501

We walked back up I Street, through the large Delaney Park; an eleven block strip that used to be the airfield. It's a now a vast looking green belt.

We stopped to take a look at the Anchorage Veterans Memorial.

Soon enough we were back in downtown. We did a bit of window shopping; heading down 4th Avenue. We decided to head on over to the Anchorage Market & Festival, which takes place on weekends from 10am to 6pm from Mid-May to Mid-September.

Right at the turn to the head down to the market, is the start of the Iditarod, and this mural.

right down the stairs and across the parking lot was the Market and Festival.

There was of course entertainment…

Tons of shopping…..

Don't you want some "chimes to irritate your neighbors"?

And of course food.

And while we didn't find anything we especially felt like eating; this was a fun little stop for us.

Anchorage Market & Festival
225 E 3rd Ave.
Anchorage, AK 99501
Sat – Sun 10am – 6pm
Mid-May thru Mid September
From May 11th to September 8 for 2019

The Missus had wanted to check out the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail. So we headed west on 4th Avenue. I had a stop in mind for lunch. A place called IHOH – the International House of Hotdogs. Basically a trailer set-up right behind the very popular Snow City Café.

They were doing some pretty good business at 11am.

Having enjoyed reindeer in various forms over the last couple of years; I had wanted to try a Reindeer Dog; in this case the McKinley Dog, a Reindeer Polish Sausage. We also got an order of the Cilantro Fries.

For some reason the split sausage had been pretty much griddled to death and was on the tough side, The roll did a nice job and was nice and soft, and the griddled onions did quite well. The chipotle based sauce was a bit much, as reindeer, at least in my experience has a rather delicate flavor.

Loved the seasoning on the fries; but these "crinkle-cuts" were also fried too long, the interior of the fries were dry.

It was enough food for the Missus and I to share and the service was very friendly.

International House of Hot Dogs
415 L Street
Anchorage, AK 99501
Hours:
Tues – Sun 11am – 7pm

Now it was time for me to burn off all those fries……

Monday Meanderings – Beer and Cheese (from Venissimo) Edition

April 1, 2019 mmm-yoso Beer, Markets & Grocers

I was going to do a post on a couple of soup places….but man; it's hitting the 80's today. Let's save that for tomorrow…..how about a couple of brews and getting cheesy.

I noticed that I tend to go with quite a few Belgian style beer when I'm at home and usually get something lighter when I'm out and about; unless there's something I'm really interested in.

The Duval Single Fermentation was quite light and the ABV is lower than the typical Duvel Golden which goes thru a double fermentation. I'll take the stuff in the bottle any day of the week.

I was thinking about our trip to Belgium recently. While the Missus no longer enjoys beer and really isn't into revisiting Belgium. I had a blast. When I saw the bottle of St Bernardus on the shelf, it brought me back to biking to Watou, after going to Westvleteren earlier in the day.

Even though a lot of the Belgian brews don't travel well, the memories last.

Did I mention that I've started keeping a cheese journal? Both the Missus and I love cheese…She especially loves the washed rind stuff like Epoisses (did you know that Epoisses is banned on the metro in Paris?) She actually went and requested Limburger from Whole Foods….they had to go into the back of the shop to get it for us.

Anyway, I hadn't been to Venissimo in a while; but dropped by while the Missus was at work yesterday. I went right when they opened and the Cheese Monger working was amazing! We got four definite winners!

From the left to right Brie Fermier, wonderfully rich, with an awesome mushroom-earthy flavor. It was amazing when served at room temp. Jeff's Select, a Gouda from Minnesota, with a bright annatto colored rind, was mildy nutty and easy to eat. My favorite, Monte Enebro, which Liz Thorpe in her wonderful book The Book of Cheese categorizes as a "misfit cheese", was just love at first bite for me. The cheese is ripened with Penicillium Roqueforti; the mold that is used for blue cheese. But while it does have that "spice" like a blue cheese; there's that definite creamy "barnyard" flavor of a goat cheese, along with a mild tanginess and buttery texture. Man, it was so good. The Missus's favorite, was something I just decided to taste on a whim after I had already picked three cheeses, the Ameribella, a washed rind cheese from Indiana. Oh man, this was so creamy, the mushroom funkiness and pungency turns in an almost buttery flavor at finish. Man, four for four, I can't remember the last time I brought home all winners! Thanks Venissimo!

Venissimo Cheese
754 W Washington St
San Diego, CA 92103

That duck salami I got from one of the vendors at the Little Italy Mercato was a winner as well. I add a couple of slices with the Missus's salad for lunch.

Speaking of the Little Italy Mercato. Ever see this interesting couple around?

On this day, they were both strutting their stuff, with "Wild Thing" blasting on the hand held speaker! You gotta love it!

And thanks so much for indulging me!

I'll be back with something more substantial tomorrow!

Bologna – AF Tamburini, San Petronio Basilica, and Other “Stuffs”

February 17, 2019 mmm-yoso Emilia-Romagna, Italy, Italy, Markets & Grocers, Travel

While we were sad at having to leave Modena, it was time to head back to Bologna, and what was to be the last leg of our trip to Emilia-Romagna.

Our apartment was located just north of the city center, which made it quite convenient for us. We'd arrived a bit early, but were able to drop off our bags and head on out to get some lunch. We headed into the area called Quadrilatero; a wonderful maze of streets and home to the oldest market in Bologna. There are tons of little shops and we walked into the Librerie.coop Ambasciatori, a bookstore and home to Eatlaly in Bologna….no not the crazy Eataly World, but an interesting food shop in the middle of a bookstore.

Where you could browse the aisles for the latest bestseller…..for some reason, I still love bookstores….aaah, the fragrance of new books in the air….and perhaps, like us, purchase some porcini cream.

Librerie.coop Ambasciatori
Via degli Orefici 19
Bologna, Italy

And just steps away, next to the plaque of Father Marella, whom I read used to collect money for the poor and homeless on this corner is AF Tamburini; a pretty well known deli and wine bar.

And walking through the door….well; I could smell heaven.

There an interesting mix of locals and tourists here. The tourist go for the Prosciutto and Mortadella and other stuffs; while I had a few other things on my mind.

And of course we got some mortadella…..

Tamburini
Via Caprarie 1
Bologna, Italy

And while we wondered around a bit more……

But in the end, we headed back to Piazza Maggiore.

To sit with the folks on the stairs of San Petronio Basilica and watch the crowds of Bologna pass by.

I gotta say; the ciccioli….all the wonderful parts of the pig was my favorite; like the best head cheese.

Such amazing diverse textures, so "swiney"….wonderful!

The Mortadella isn't your Mom's baloney….it was porky, but not salty.

The Culatello di Zebello was fine; cheesy,porky, slightly briney-sweet…..but perhaps by this time I was getting a bit jaded?

After our impromptu lunch; we decided to check out the Basilica.

And we're glad we did. As with so many of these historic religious structures there is so much to see and so many stories. For us; there was one thing that really stood out….it was on the floor.

It was a roped off interesting line that we tried to figure out.

In a roped out section of the Basilica is Cassini's meridian line. In which Cassini got permission to make a hole in the roof of the Basilica of San Petronio and put this strip on the floor.

Which is; in simple terms an astronomical calendar.

It was quite an interesting visit.

After our nice visit we headed back out and wouldn't you know…..we came across another church.

This one is the church of Santa Maria Della Vita.

As we wandered the city, we came to appreciate the vibrant youthful feel along with the history.

And soon enough, we came upon a bustling shop where the Missus grabbed a snack.

So, the Missus enjoyed Her snack….what is interesting is that Sfoglia refers to old style pasta made by hand in the region. So perhaps next time.

Sfoglia Rina
Via Castiglione 5A
Bologna, Italy

We were enjoying our time in Bologna!

Lana’i – Reacquainting Myself and Richard’s Market

February 12, 2019 mmm-yoso Lanai, Markets & Grocers, Poke, Travel

When planning our trip back "home", the Missus and I discussed maybe checking out a neighbor island. In my hearts of hearts I was thinking about Lana'i. It had been nearly seven years since we last visited. Since then Larry Ellison had bought the island. And while the rhetoric sounded right; turning the island into an " environmentally friendly, self sustaining, city", I had my doubts. While I don't visit the island very often, I have roots there, my dad is from the island. It turns out my in-laws were quite excited about visiting Lana'i as well. And so we decided to visit.

And while there were some changes; for instance, there's no more $35 unlimited shuttle use; with only 30 miles of paved road on the island, I really didn't think I'd be driving. But heck, I went ahead and looked for a rental car….turns out the only car rental company on the island, Dollar, had shut down. So maybe Lana'i is trying to minimize the carbon footprint? I did manage to track down a guy who rented out jeeps….no, I wasn't going to take my in-laws four-wheeling, but we'd have some freedom to check things out.

In typical Lana'i fashion; I found the jeep in the 72 hour parking, keys and paperwork under the front seat. And we were underway. We got in early, so we dropped our bags off at the Hotel Lana'i (more on that further down) and headed off.

I decided to first drive up Keomuku Road. While we wouldn't be visiting Shipwreck Beach. the Petroglyphs, or the abandoned town of Keomuku, where they took a small fishing village and turned it into a sugar plantation. Story goes, in building the infrastructure for the sugar business they destroyed sacred stones and the Gods got angry; which brought on a plague epidemic and turned all the available fresh water into salt water. It's now abandoned and quite a sight to see. I've been there twice….

We headed up Lanai Avenue, heeding the 15mph speed limit, taking a turn at Keomuku Highway, which leads up to the Lodge at Koele, which is under going some major renovations. I was told it's going to become some kind of "wellness retreat"?

Stopping across the construction; I stopped when I noticed the wonderful pastureland and some ponies.

I'm fairly certain my in-laws had never see this part of Hawai'i; the Cook Pines, the pastures…..the curious and friendly ponies…..

Who walked right on up to us.

This little fellow was especially curious and friendly.

Then it was the slow drive up the road.

Stopping often along the way for photo-ops….

Like the view of Moloka'i and the Shipwreck on Shipwreck Beach.

It was such a lovely day.

On the drive back; I stopped so we could take in the view of Lana'i City.

It was nearly time for lunch. Sadly, I'd read that Lana'i 'Ohana Poke Market and even more regretfully, Canoes Lana'i, which drew from the lineage of the Tanigawa family and S&T Properties, where I had my first hamburger, had closed. I'd read the Richard's Market, which was really run down the last time I saw the place….everyone used to go to Pine Isles, had been renovated, and now had poke.

Oh my goodness….I don't even recognize the place!

Very modern; lots of prepared foods……

And they did poke….so we got us (and the in-laws) poke bowls to share….on brown rice. Large bowl $9.99 and enough for two!

They even threw some kimchi on top for the Missus! The spicy mayo had too much mayo for me; but the limu poke had a good amount of ogo, wasn't too salty, the fish was decent quality. The shoyu poke wasn't drenched in shoyu and was quite good. Like I said, enough for the two of us. For some reason, the nutty brown rice goes pretty well with poke….ok, there; I've said it.

This sure wasn't the Richard's that I remembered! And good lord; the place is open until 10pm these days!

Richard's Market
434 8th St
Lanai City, HI 96763

After lunch, I drove down to Hulopo'e Beach to see the Puupehe – the "Sweetheart Rock", which I've written about before.

While walking up Puu Pehe, I heard one of the "bruddah's" complain about how crowded the beach was because it was a holiday.

It's all relative, right?

These folks were having a grand old time….that's a portable karaoke machine you see on the left.

When it was time to check in, we headed back to the Hotel Lana'i for a break before dinner. The exterior looks the same…..

But the hotel has undergone its first renovation since being built in 1923.

And oh my goodness; from the wood paneling, to the large screen television (remember when we had on the "only television on the property" back in 2012?), to Japanese toilets, to iPad controls.

Sarah, the amazingly friendly and wonderful front desk person was a joy; friendly, warm, I really enjoyed talking to her about old time Lana'i and the recent changes…..

And that cottage we stayed at on our last stay is being renovated. I'm wondering what that'll be like?

And…maybe not so strangely, I felt so relaxed, something that has been escaping me over the last couple of years.

It's the magic of Lana'i I guess.

Eating inside HMart

January 24, 2019 Cathy Korean Restaurants, Markets & Grocers, What Cathy Eats!

Here you are, reading mmm-yoso!!!, a blog about food, again. Welcome. Kirk is enjoying some time off and Cathy is writing.

We've had HMart in San Diego since 2012. There are only a few 'food court' selections inside the store, unlike at the Super H Mart in Diamond Bar (mentioned in the middle of that post). There is one "Enter" and one "Exit" door. To the right of the 'Enter" is a small kitchen, cooking and wrapping food for those who want to 'Grab and Go'. There is a small seating area (including two corner chairs which are useless). The kitchen prepared meals are pictured above the 'By the Pound' items. ($8.50/lb)(Hot or Cold)
The hot items are plentiful, protein based (other than rice) and kept fresh, since the cooking area is three steps behind the trays.
The cold area has a great selection, especially if you are thinking about buying something you've seen pre-packed in the refrigerated area of the store. There's also sliced sushi roll pieces, pork and tofu if you want cold protein.
We grabbed a few items on this visit before beginning to shop. Cold items were kimchi, seaweed salad and marinated mushrooms. All were good (nice flavor/mild heat of kimchi) and complimentary to the hot items- fried squid, fried head-on shrimp and breaded, fried pork in a sweet sauce. Total for these two boxes was $6. The item on the bottom right was just packed (still warm) and placed in the open refrigerated area.
Pan fried crab cake ($3.50). Fresh vegetables, plenty of crab, crispy fry. A good meal on its own.

There's a dispenser of hot water, cups, utensils and condiments in the eating area, so you can have a decent meal.

HMart 9440 Mira Mesa Boulevard San Diego 92126 (858)577-0060 Open 8 a.m.-10 p.m. daily Website

NEW LOCATION (opening in February): 7725 Balboa Avenue (SE corner at the 805) San Diego 92117 (same parking lot as the 24 Hour Fitness)

Saturday Stuffs – Scenes from the Little Italy Mercato, Tuna Harbor Dockside Market, and Other “stuffs”

January 5, 2019 mmm-yoso Exploring San Diego, Farmer's Markets/Night Market, Markets & Grocers, yoso-silly

I'll readily admit; my posts are mostly stream of consciousness. And sometimes; it's just better to just post photos. I needed to get my car serviced today. Instead of waiting around; I decided to catch the Trolley, something I used to enjoy, but haven't done in ages…..and just head out and take in San Diego. So; I headed off to the Little Italy Mercato, then walked down to the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market. Instead of some long-winded post; here are some photos of an overcast, yet fun day.

Because of some delays on the Green Line West; I decided to take a round about way; doing the Orange Line to Downtown; getting off at Civic Center and walking to Little Italy. Where I passed an iconic "name" in San Diego….whose commercials you couldn't miss if you lived here in the 90's and "aughts".

I'd heard that Mexican Fiesta; whose existence always reminded me of the Children's book, The Little House had closed. And yes, it has….

I think pooches outnumber children here……

I then walked on over to Seaport Village…..

Man, I haven't been around here in at least a decade….

Things looked a bit depressed; many closed businesses.

Though it's always fun to "pooch watch"……

The Dockside Market was close by; so I headed on over.

A somewhat interesting mix of folks…..

I decided to grab an Americano from here…..

And guess who I saw???

And even coming back around again while I finished my coffee.

Since it was close by; I decided to check out Unconditional Surrender by Seward Johnson.

It was an overcast day; with not too many tourists.

Just like I don't visit Waikiki when I'm back "home"; I really don't get down here to often.

I was glad to have some time on my hands to just reacquaint myself with this area.

And then of course…..it was time for lunch!

Happy New Year!

January 1, 2019 mmm-yoso French Restaurants, Markets & Grocers, yoso-silly

Happy New Year! It's another one in the books and it was a pretty chilly (by San Diego standards) and wet one as well.

It's been a busy year for me; but I still made it out yesterday, to do, as I've done since 2005, to check out the variety of Osechi set out by our local Japanese Markets. Like I noted from back in 2017 these markets have really scaled back and these days they ask folks to put in orders. I started with Mitsuwa….which might have been a mistake as there wasn't much of anything out at 9am.

Nijiya was bustling at 915.

And I ended getting a few items there.

Marukai didn't have much at all.

The Missus wanted something different for New Years Day this year; so I didn't do quite as much shopping….at least at these places as usual.

And, just like last year, we had the New Years Eve dinner at Et Voila! We brought along a bottle of Champagne from our favorite little Champagne House in Écueil. This was our favorite while doing tastings in Champagne. It's from a very small "house"; it's literally under a house and they do not ship or sell, via normal channels in the US.

I gotta say; even though some of the dishes were quite similar to last year; I think Et Voila has stepped up their game. There were a few things we didn't care for; the pheasant was too dry and the mushroom cream sauce too sweet, but as a whole this was a very nice meal.

The Lobster Bavarois with Périgord Truffle Caviar – just plain delici-yoso!!!

Dorade and Hamachi Crudo.

Grilled Blue Prawns and Snow Crab Raviolis – prawns were very tasty but a bit over-cooked.

Seared Maine Diver Scallops – seared perfectly, super tender. The uni espuma was quite interesting.

I'm usually not a big fan of the meat and poultry at ET; but this Beef Tenderloin was perfectly cooked and almost fork tender and that shaved black truffle didn't hurt things at all.

The afore mentioned Pheasant Breast Ballotine with Chestnut Gnocchi.

And of course dessert….which the Missus enjoyed.

Et Voilà!
3015 Adams Ave
San Diego, CA 92116

As for New Years; well, no Nishime this year….instead the Missus wanted Matzo Ball Soup??? Go figure…. So on Saturday I went to Wing Lee Poultry and bought a chicken and made the soup on Sunday. Skimmed and strained on Monday, made the Matzo Balls and let it soak in the goodness, ready for today.

As for me….well, I went fairly traditional.

We here at mmm-yoso would like to send out our best wishes for a wonderful 2019!

Thanks for stopping by!

Modena – Mercato Albinelli and Lunch at Trattoria Il Fantino

December 26, 2018 mmm-yoso Emilia-Romagna, Italy, Italian Restaurants, Italy, Markets & Grocers, Travel

In the end we were kind of sad that we only spent two evenings and one full day in Modena. We really enjoyed the relaxed and friendly vibe of the city.

We woke in the morning and decided just to take it rather easy. We'd visit the Mercato Albinelli, wander around and bit, have some lunch, then take a nap. Our location and the apartment was beyond awesome; modern, clean, and right around the corner from the main street in Modena, via Emilia. A just short walk; maybe a half mile or so down the street is Piazza Grande and the Duomo, Modena Cathedral.

Head down via Luigi Albinelli and you'll run into Mercato Albinelli.

Which is quite a traditional market. It was pretty quiet on this day as we browsed the aisles.

With all the standards. We really wanted to check out all the hand made pastas and weren't disappointed in the varieties…..

And we got a nice little treat when we were ogling the pasta at this stand.

The really nice woman saw us checking out the pasta and suddenly appeared with two tortellini on toothpicks for us to try. She smiled and passed it to us over the counter….the Missus and I looked at each other since the pasta wasn't cooked. But we couldn't turn down this kind gesture and ate it…..it was delici- yoso!!! Tender, cheesy, some nice savory-saltiness from the salumi…..man, it was good! The shop owner obviously knew we weren't going to buy anything, but just wanted us to try her product. It made our morning.

We ended our visit by having some espresso at a little shop around the corner from the mecato.

The name of which escapes me. But it was a nice little break.

We then walked back to Piazza Grande. The cathedral really stands out; as does Torre Dell'Orologio, the clock tower.

When you walk along the south end of Piazza Grande to the west and Corso Duomo; you pass through a really neat building that crosses over the street.

This will being you around to the front of the cathedral.

Right down the street is another Piazza. this one is the Piazza della Torre; the Torre Ghirlandina, the bell tower of Modena. Which rises 290 feet above the city. work started in 1167 and was completed in 1319. It is considered one of the symbols of Modena.

The cathedral, Piazza Grande, and the towers is considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We should have spent more time exploring; but I'm certain we'll return one day.

The statue in front of the tower is of Italian writer Alessandro Tassoni who was born in Modena.

At this point, the Missus was off shopping…….

She enjoyed exploring the shops in the area…… Meanwhile, I just took in the sights.

This is the Church of San Giovanni Battista.

This is the Monumento a Ludovico Antonio Muratori a famous historian.

This church is the Chiesa del Voto.

Before we knew it; it was almost past lunch time….well, at least lunchtime for us, it was edging past noon.

Where to go for lunch? Well, there was a place fairly close to the apartment I had on my list. I'm not sure where I first heard of the place. Located on a tiny side street, Via Donzi we found Trattoria Il Fantino.

The clock had just struck 1230 and the place had just opened.

The folks here were very friendly. I'd read that the ribs were a specialty, but we decided on just some pasta since we had major dinner reservations.

The Missus picked a real winner; the Strigoli con Funghi Porcini e Speck, only 9 Euros.

Strigoli, sometimes called stridoli….which I was told meant something like "fat worms", were noting of the sort……worms that is. This wonderfully toothsome and substantial pasta had an amazing chew. You weren't looking for anything stretchy here, the closest I've had in terms of texture is the Strozzapreti at Maestoso. Nice woody-earthy tones from the porcini; the speck added a touch of saltiness to the dish. Very nice.

You know what I got, right?

The Tortellini en Brodo of course! I just couldn't get enough of this dish. Bless the hen who gave her life….and by the deep chicken flavor of the broth her soul for my pleasure. The Tortellini had just the right amount of cheese and salumi. It was cooked perfectly.

And as a digestif…..well some Nocino – walnut liquor.

The place had totally filled up by the time we were half way though our meal. We'd lucked out as they had to turn people away……

This was a very nice meal; friendly service, priced right. I'd like to return to try out those ribs….and another bowl of tortellini en brodo of course!

Trattoria Il Fantino
Via Donzi 7
Modena, Italy

We were enjoying our time in Modena.