MIKE RICCETTI
  • The best of Houston dining
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  • The margherita pizza project
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  • Musings on Houston Dining
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2022
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  • Italian restaurant history
  • Italian & Italian-American
  • Entertaining tips
    • Booze basics
    • Styles of Cheeses
    • Handling Those Disruptive Guests
  • Wine
  • Beer
  • Cocktails and Spirits
  • Miscellaneous
  • Blog
  • The best of Houston dining
    • Guinness pours
    • Banh mi
    • Breakfast tacos
    • Chicken Fried Steak
    • French
    • French Fries
    • Fried Chicken
    • Greek
    • Italian
    • Italian-American
    • Mexican
    • Midtown Dining
    • Pizzerias
    • Pizza at Non-Pizzerias
    • Rice Village Dining
    • Sandwiches
    • To Take Visitors
    • Wine Bars
    • Wine Lists
  • The margherita pizza project
  • The martini project
  • Musings on Houston Dining
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2022
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2021
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2019
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2018
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2017
    • The top 10 new restaurants of 2016
    • The dozen best Inner Loop values
    • Dining recommendations for visitors to Houston
  • Italian restaurant history
  • Italian & Italian-American
  • Entertaining tips
    • Booze basics
    • Styles of Cheeses
    • Handling Those Disruptive Guests
  • Wine
  • Beer
  • Cocktails and Spirits
  • Miscellaneous
  • Blog
MIKE RICCETTI

Italian & 
Eye-talian

Articles about food here and there....

...And wine and travel

Here are a few articles that arose out of travel to Italy or just Italian or Italian-American-related.  
Food
  • When you are going out for Italian, you are usually not going out for Italian - Italian restaurants here have gotten more Italian, but still...
  • Pizza speaks to everyone - Some insight into one of America's favorite foods from legendary restaurateur Piero Selvaggio.
  • ​ Italian Regional Cooking by Ada Boni remains a very useful classic​​ - Published in 1969, this remains an excellent resource.  It is definitely worth tracking done a used copy if you are interested in preparing Italian fare at home.
  • Chicken Vesuvio, that classic Italian-American dish from Chicago - This dish has not really traveled far from Chicago, which is a shame.
  • Pasta in vodka sauce, a favorite from the 1980s that remains enjoyable - Just one example, the Houston Press recently wrote about it; well, soon after I posted this piece. This is only the second time that the local freebie has taken a cue from one of my obscure items.  I wonder which one is next.
Drink
  • James Bond’s very first cocktail was actually an Italian one (it’s not a martini) - Like staff at the very handsome bars in the grand hotels favored by well-heeled American visitors, this cocktail has some Italian flare.
  • When looking for a good white wine while traveling in Italy, simply look for Collio on the label
Travel
  • Le Marche, "Italy in miniature" - Off-the-radar for most American tourists, this region is one of the most beautiful in Italy and boasts terrific food (that's better than Tuscany).
  • That most famous of Roman pasta dishes seems to be found in just two restaurants these days - One of Americans most popular past dishes was found in scores of trattorias in Rome a few decades ago, now it might be just two.
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