Sergio greeted us saying that they actually closed at 14:00, but a large table of 8 had just sat down, so if we ordered the same menu they had the chef would not complain. In his broken English he said that the menu would consist of a starter of cured meats followed by something else – all typical Ferrarese dishes. He also said that if we didn't like it he’d buy our lunch. Fair enough. The cured meats were nothing special – 3-4 slices each of four types of meats including prosciutto, mortadella, pancetta, and salami, plus a blob of soft cheese and the obligatory basket to Italian bread. The mystery course was a plate containing two small scoops of pasta. The first was a long ziti rigati in a light sauce of carrots, mushrooms, and pancetta. The second scoop, we later found out, was ciottoli. Ciottoli translates as “pebbles” and look like large gnocchi. The consistency is that of a dumpling, that is to say, heavy and bland. It’s made with potato and squash with a light tomato sauce. That was lunch. Very disappointing, especially since I don’t care for mushrooms or squash. The red wine Cinzia was given was just okay and they initially gave us water with gas rather than still water. I wasn't going to take him up on his offer and have him buy our lunch, but I decided €20 was sufficient for a poor meal that we didn't order. When I went to the register to pay he said that my total was €38,50. I told him that we didn't like the food and Cinzia didn't even eat the ciottoli. I took out a €20 and said I’d split the bill. After a short discussion he reluctantly accepted and we headed out to see Ferrara.
The castle is huge, so back to the tourist office we go to buy tickets. The same girl greets us and when we ask for 2 tickets she tells us that the castle, along with every museum and palazzo in Ferrara, is closed on Mondays. You’re kidding, right?!? We laugh it off and decide to walk around a bit, see the basilica and the famous ancient arches of Ferrara, and get some gelato. The basilica was old and in desperate need of repair. Nothing special. We locate the #1 gelateria on my list and it’s on the opposite side of the city center from the arches. At the end of Via Palestro we finally find Sorgente Del Gelato. You guessed it – closed. We backtrack on Via Palestro where we passed Gelateria La Romana. This is an impressive shop. They have an open laboratory where you can see 3 artisans making gelato. The counter is manned by 3 girls who are just keeping pace with the crowd. Keep in mind that it’s November 3rd, there are gelaterias all over Ferrara, and Italians are lining up to get gelato. The menu has many unusual combinations. I choose a scoop of dark cherry with praline bits, crunchy almonds, and bits of meringue and a scoop of zabaione with aged Marsala wine. Cinzia goes with a scoop of cream of chestnuts from Piemonte and a scoop of mascarpone with coffee and dark chocolate. Both are very good and only €2 each.
We’ll see what our 2nd month in Bologna has in store for us.