Because my parents have been staying with us this past week, we have been trying to do different activities that will show them about life in Piemonte (northern Italy). For instance, last night was Serralunga’s annual Cena della Amiciza (Friendship Dinner).
I could see that the poster on the village bulletin board promised three appetizers, followed by two first courses, then a main course, all capped off with dessert and coffee. Not to mention, all you can drink beverages PLUS a magician. Heck yeah, count us in!!!!
We talked to our friends Nicolaas and Esmaralda, the Dutch couple who run the Antico Ansilo bed and breakfast down the street, and found out they were planning to attend as well. So, we all decided to go together.
When we walked up to the big tent on the piazza by the church, we saw that Bepe and his wife Theresa were among the official hosts. They appeared surprised, but happy to see us. As always, we exchanged lots of hugs and kisses, repeatedly saying “Ciao!, Ciao! Ciao!” to one another.
Serralunga’s Friendship Dinner
They enthusiastically pointed us out to others who were attending, saying “Americani e Olandesi” (Americans and Dutch). I guess our arrival had turned their local dinner into an international event!
As Bepe seated us all at one of the long rows of tables, he told us that they were expecting over 200 people. That’s not too shabby for a village of only 500. (Well ok, full disclosure, Nicolaas translated all of this because I had no idea what Bepe was saying.)
When we sat down in our creaky wooden folding chairs, we saw that our places were already set with crystal wine glasses and an open bottle of wine. Oh the excitement, what kind of wine will it be?
Remember, Serralunga is one of only 11 villages in the entire world that is able to produce Barolo wine. And, Serralunga has over 50 wineries producing this “king of wines.” AND……Serralunga is home to Gaja, the equivalent of Rothschild of France (or Franzia of box wines if that’s your pleasure).
So, what kind of wine did we get?????? Uh, hmmmmm…..let’s see….dolcetto (wonk-wonk). Nicolaas looks at the label and says, “This is the winery of the man who owns the Mondo rubber plant.”
Showing off our dolcetto
Oh man! What a letdown. They must be saving the good stuff for the Italians!
As we sip our rubberman wine, we see that they are starting the dinner with bread service. This consists of a boy holding a huge bag of rolls while a young woman dips her hand in, grabs up a handful, and then “thunk, thunk, thunk” throws them out on the table in front of each diner.
Soon after this, they begin bringing out our first appetizer. What will it be? What will it be?????
DANG! It’s carne cruda (chopped raw meat with salt and pepper). Russell and Esmaralda are happy, but Mom, Dad, and I are left shaking our heads, “No grazie” (no thank you).
carne cruda
Now for the second appetizer. I see that it’s vitello tonnato (veal with tuna sauce). Uh oh, I can’t let Mom and Dad know because they’re getting pretty hungry, so I just tell them, “It’s slices of veal in a sauce” (diplomatically leaving out the tuna). They eat it, but are underwhelmed to say the least.
Ok, bring on the third course. It’s roasted peppers topped with ricotta cheese. Not my favorite, but I’ll take it. At this point, I’m pretty darned hungry.
Hey, guess what? We actually finished the bottle of rubberman wine. Russell waves the empty bottle to get Bepe’s attention. He responds with a big smile and two thumbs up. And, YAY, he brings over a bottle of nebbiolo. NICE!
Now back to the food. Next up is the first – first course. SCORE! It’s risotto parmigana (a cheese rice dish). We all quickly eat this up. Then, we are on to the second – first course: agnolotti del plin a ragu (small pinched raviolis in meat sauce). Yummm, now we’re getting somewhere.
Uh, oh! Somehow or another between the risotto and the agnolotti, we polished off the bottle of nebbiolo. Before we can get Bepe’s attention, another man plops down a bottle of langhe rosso for us to enjoy. Nicolaas grabs the bottle and announces, “Look at this! A blend! We’re taking a big step back, people!” hahahaha!
Luckily, about this time they bring out the main course: beef braised in vegetable sauce along with carrots and potatoes. Mmmmmmm, it is mouth-watering good! (In reality, I’m not sure if it’s so tasty because I’m so hungry, or if I have had too much wine, or if it’s some sort of combination of the two.) In any event, I scarf it all up, saying, “Si, si grazie mille” (yes, yes, thank you very much) when they offer me more.
After finishing our apricot tart dessert, Esmaralda tells us about the raffle that is taking place in the church. You pay 1 euro and get a rolled up ticket with a number hidden inside. You hand the ticket to the lady behind the counter, she reads the hidden number, and gives you the wonderful prize that corresponds.
We decide to give it a try. Funny enough, I win an American prize – Paul Mitchell hair care products. Russell gets assorted Ferraro candies, Mom wins a bag of spaghetti (that’s probably worth about 50 cents), and Dad ends up with a bottle of red wine (yes, that’s what the label says, “red wine”….I suspect that it’s probably also worth about 50 cents!).
So now, as I end this particularly long post, I will tell you briefly about the magician that was the evening’s entertainment. Long story short, he was a middle-aged man in an Adidas t-shirt and jeans. (I thought magicians normally wear some sort of suit). His assistant was a woman with flaming red hair and matching red lips and red nails. Throughout their magic show, she changed outfits in a little pop-up camping tent that was placed on the stage. I think the best trick was that she never fell off the narrow stage as she climbed in and out.
Abracadabra!!!! It’s the magician and his assistant.
Only 364 more days until next year’s dinner. I can’t wait!!!
Living La Dolce Vita 