Italian Inspiration
/One year ago, four M’tucci’s Chefs were busy comparing notes on their Tuscan eating and cooking experiences and making plans to adapt some of the things they tasted and applying some of the things they learned to the way our kitchens approach food. The trip definitely formed the foundation for some of the menu items at the new M’tucci’s Twenty-Five, which opened this past February.
I accompanied Chefs John Haas, Shawn Cronin, Cory Gray and Damian Lucero to photograph and write about their experiences. I had never traveled with Chefs for the sole purpose of cooking, and more importantly, eating. For that week, I didn’t order a single meal, but listened as the four of them looked over the menu, discussed the options, then ordered a selection of appetizers, primi and secondi. There were usually nine plates for the five of us and the selections were always amazing.
Damian, John, Cory and Shawn before dinner.
We had several meals arranged by our Italian importer, where we walked in and the menu was set for us. John remarked that those were probably the best meals, because the restaurants showed us what they did best and what was special for their town.
I sat down with John, Shawn & Damian this week to talk about how Tuscany influenced the menu at M’tucci’s Twenty-Five.
Lardarium Lard Rock Cafe in Colonnata: After a tour of the Marble Mines/Caves in Carrara, we arrived at the Lard Rock Cafe for lunch, which was arranged for us by Sogno Toscana, who imports much of our Italian products. After the bottles of still and sparkling water and bottles of red & white wine arrived at the table, so did the platters of food: four large platters to be exact. First came the lightly pickled vegetables:
Damian: “That plate changed the way I pickle vegetables. It was so light, so good and so perfect.”
John: “The pickled vegetables and the charcuterie were the show stoppers, but the ragu with the stinging nettle pasta was so good, and so local. We were sitting outside surrounded by a small garden and our server pointed out the nettles. She also pointed out that the plant (dock) that is a salve for nettles is growing right next to them.”
Colonnata is known for lardo, which is made by seasoning, pressing and aging pork fatback (the pigs are raised on forest acorns and chestnuts). Lardo has been made since Roman times and was a popular lunch for the workers toiling in the marble caves. Don’t let the name put you off, because the flavor is rich and sublime. We have had it on our menu in the past and it will make a comeback soon.
After the huge lunch, our next stop was L’Antico Mulino Pandolfo, an artisan bakery run by Francesco Luigi Carusi in Carrara. He teaches baking skills all over the world and the afternoon spent with him was loaded with baking techniques. Although we have a pretty strong baking program at M’tucci’s, a few things stuck with the chefs and one in particular ended up on the menu at Twenty-Five.
Damian: “He used a softer version of mozzarella on his pizza, almost like a burrata. We now add a softer mozzarella to two of our pizzas and use it as a garnish, topping the pizza when it comes out of the oven, instead of when it goes in the oven. Totally different flavor.”
Margherita pizza at L’Antico Mulino Pandolfo in Carrara, Italy
The next day was spent with Savini Tartufi in Montenelli. After a walk in the woods where their young dog has a successful truffle hunt, we had a truffle-themed lunch.
Shawn: “Going on the truffle hunt, smelling a truffle as it’s pulled from the ground and having the truffle lunch within an hour of digging the truffles reinforced why truffles are not a big part of our menu. They don’t travel well. Even going to the expense of overnighting truffles, the quality is not worth the cost. Eating them within 30 minutes of coming out of the ground really reinforced that”
John: “The only way to do truffles affordably is to use a by-product and those products just don’t do justice to the real thing. M’tucci’s is built on value and the truffles that we get in the U.S. don’t offer a good value, so we don’t use them, especially not as the center point of a meal. For what it costs to import a pound of truffles you could fly to Italy and have an amazing truffle meal.”
We still bought a few products in the shop after our lunch and I regret not bringing home more jars of lardo laced with black summer truffles.
Ristorante Il Molo - Livorno: Sunday lunch in the port city of Livorno brought lots of fresh seafood to the table, but the surprising part of the meal was the finish. While Shawn was looking at the amari selection to see if there was one he hadn’t tried, the server said: “We Livornese don’t finish our meal with amaro, we drink ponche.” We had never had it, so we ordered five.
Served in a small glass, it’s equal parts rum and espresso with some sugar and a lemon peel - a perfect way to end the meal. We served it last year for our anniversary meal and sometimes offer it at brunch.
Antica Macelleria Cecchini - Panzano in Chianti: Our last day in Tuscany was arranged by John while we were in Italy and we were pretty excited to be able to tour the farm, the meat cutting facility, and kitchens run by world-famous butcher, Dario Cecchini. It’s a popular spot for Italians and tourists alike, due to his numerous appearances on cooking/travel shows with Anthony Bourdain and “Somebody Feed Phil”. When you walk into the butcher shop you are greeted with a glass of Chianti, loud rock music and the maestro behind the butcher counter ready to perform by cutting the huge bisteca fiorentina, (t-bones that are usually 4 lbs. each) which is sourced from Chianina cattle. There are several restaurants, two of which are reservation only, where you can have your fill of meat, prepared in the traditional Tuscan styles. Some is served raw and a cut is roasted, but the bisteca is cooked over an open fire. The long family-style tables are laden with olive oil, bowls of vegetables, bowls of white beans, crusty Tuscan bread and carafes of Chianti.
The Chefs spent several hours learning about the workings of the kitchen and made a few dishes, one that was just for us for lunch (as if 5 different meat dishes weren’t enough). They worked with lardo, raw beef for tartare, and ground beef, each time taking the mixing bowl into the front of the shop for the maestro to add the seasoning. As I have written before, the heat from the open fire in the room and the huge amount of meat gave us all meat sweats and nearly put us into a food coma.
The Harris Ranch Roasted Bone Marrow Green Chile burger was inspired by their time in the kitchens of Tuscany, and it is now on the lunch menu at M’tucci’s Twenty-Five. Shawn says it’s pretty awesome, and if he says something is awesome, you better get your masked face in the door and get one.
Those were some of the results of our experiences, but our four Chefs came back with something more general - a sense of Italian style.
Shawn: We really learned why you do coursing, because you get to try different things and taste different plates. When Italians dine out they order an Aperol Spritz, maybe an appetizer for the table, a pasta dish (which will be much smaller than entree size), then follow it with meat, fish or chicken. Ordering a coffee and an amaro to complete the dining experience is how to finish a meal.
John: In Italy, so much of the food is sourced locally, it’s just part of the culture. Being exposed to that we’ve increased our efforts to build more relationships with local producers. M’tucci’s has several things in the works, but we are not quite ready to announce some of them yet. Stay tuned!
EDITORS NOTE: These photos were all shot in Italy in 2019, before the pandemic of Covid-19 occurred.
Please share your favorite restaurant/M’tucci’s memories with us. The best will be published in this space next Friday and will receive a M’tucci’s Gift Certificate.
Submit your memory by July 6 to: [email protected]
All M’tucci’s are closed on July 4. Enjoy a safe Independence Day. We’ll be back at 11:00am on Sunday, July 5.
Weekend (Friday & Sunday) Specials
M’tucci’s Italian
24 oz Hand Cut Bone In NY Strip - Salt Water Potatoes, Grilled Asparagus, Balsamic Reduction $32
Pan-Seared Sand Dabs - Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Grilled Artichokes, Sautéed Arugula, Lemon Cream Sauce $19
Sunday Only: Full Rack of Baby Back Ribs, Salt Water Potatoes, Sautéed Spinach and House BBQ Sauce for $27
M’tucci’s Moderno
16oz Hand Cut Black Angus Ribeye - Crispy Saltwater Potatoes, Grilled Asparagus and our Traditional Italian Salsa Verde Sauce $29
Pan Seared Rockfish - Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Marinated Artichokes, Sautéed Arugula with Lemon Butter Sauce and Capers $19
M'tucci's Pesto Ravioli - Homemade Ricotta + Pesto Ravioli, Roasted Artichoke, Shallots, Grape Tomato, Lemon + Pesto Cream Sauce, Shaved Parmesan $19
Sunday Only: House Made Lasagna with Herbed Ricotta, Five Pork Bolognese and Roasted Tomato Marinara. Single portion for $16 (it’s large) and a double portion with a salad for $30.
M’tucci’s Twenty-Five
Pan-Seared Amberjack - Grilled Escarole, Garlic Whipped Potatoes, Seared Artichokes, Prosciutto Powder, Lemon Caper Butter Sauce $24
M’tucci’s YouTube Channel
We will have a special Cooking with Cory video on our YouTube Channel next week. Chef Cory shows you how to pickle vegetables, cook squash blossoms, sauté summer greens and how to blister Shishito Peppers. He has some really great tips on how to use your excess garden or farmer’s market vegetables.
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See you next week. Ciao!
