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| Miriam and Eric at the entrance to La Spiga |
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| Foggy weather spoiled the normally stunning views of the Wine country of La Morra |
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| photo by Gabriele Motta under Creative Commons attribution, non-comm, no remix |
La Spiga is a restaurant and hotel located in the Langhe region just south of Torino. Operated by a couple who built and run the restaurant since 2005. It has a small country hotel -8 rooms- attached to the restaurant. The dining room is not very large and was supported quite well by the small but attentive staff.
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| Amuse-bouche of pumpkin soup |
The restaurant was selected by Fabri and Dani when they discovered that we had never had white truffles in our travels. Apparently, this is quite a thing in Piedmonte and the region to be sure to enjoy the truffles. We were there at the time of the annual truffle fair, http://www.fieradeltartufo.org/2016/it/ but did not visit the fair itself. Instead opting for the simpler pleasures of fine food at La Spiga and a short tour of La Morra.
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| Miriam and Daniela |
The menu is seasonal and small. Thank goodness, without an overwhelming array of firsts and seconds to choose from. This way, you know you are getting the "specials" every time. With 3 of us we manage to cover an pretty broad swath of the menu (at least for the primi piatti, since for the main we were all about the truffles).
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| For SringGirls Primi we had the duck roulade with olive oil and a balsamic reduction |
Each of the dishes was an exercise in simplicity and restraint. No overwhelming melange of overlapping flavor notes and spices. Just simple fresh ingredients combined in elegant and straightforward fashion.
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| Roasted peppers with garlic (that is just garlic roasted in bath of cream until tender and spread on vegetables, Amazing |
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| Several families enjoying dinner |
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| lumache fritte, or fried snails with rosemary and onions. Also very good! |
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| Miriam waiting patiently for her pasta |
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| The main event, White Truffles with Taglierini |
The Truffles which can sell for hundreds of dollars, were here served sliced thinly over a bed of mild fresh pasta and hardly anything else, maybe a touch of butter and cheese. With such a simple background the woody, earthy taste of the truffle blooms above the pasta. Very much unlike what passes as "Italian-American" cuisine, this is subtlety and simplicity. Much more akin to the way I associate Japanese cuisine for crafting of dishes with singular flavors, this presentation was really just a punch in the face of truffle.
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| A bit woody, kind of "funky", like cheese cave aroma concentrate |
At ~30€ for the plate of pasta with white truffles I was told it was quite a bargain. I had to fight back my very American attitudes and notions about price, cost, value, and portions. Perhaps a little wasted on my simple palette, enjoyable for certain. Very tasty, but not something that one would do very often. I am glad that I did not walk away from the experience hating truffles (which I am told can happen as some people really have strong negative reactions to the taste). But I am not sure that they have created a truffle fanatic either. I like woody, earthy, musky mushroom flavors for sure. And I can't deny a yin for the umami kick that most fungi give simple dishes. However, the simple pasta without the costly truffles on top would have also made me very happy as well. I am a savage with simple tastes, after all.
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| Apple tart-tatin |
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| Fabri steals a bite of the apple tart |
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