Day 62 Sarzana to Massa.
An uphill walk to start and then a long walk to Luni where pilgrims used to set sail to Santiago de Compostela.
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For you VF foodies. My high expectations for the food in Italy have not only been met but exceeded. Our lunch today in Massa deserves a special mention.
IL Fatty is a little sandwich place near the very nice and comfortable Ostello Palazzo Nizza. We ordered a bottle of Sangiovese and then talked to the owner/chef Alessandro. He is an artist and so did not want us to order a roast beef sandwich which looked excellent as the waitress walked by. “You can get that anywhere”. “Ok Alessandro, what do you suggest?”
Following his advice we had a slow cooked pork shoulder in spices and a few carrots and onions. Outstanding! Then his signature Tuscan special Lampredotto (tripe with spices). Now neither of us wanted tripe but Alessandro was so passionate we went with it. If I wasn’t still full I would go back for another. The bread or roll used for the Pannini’s was equally good.
We then had a small dish of meatballs in a tomato sauce and a side of roasted potatoes. Last a pulpo(octopus) pannini that was every bit as good as any of the pulpo I have had in Galicia. It had wonderful spices and juice that soaked into the fresh roll enjancing the overall flavor.
At this point we were full and immensely satisfied when Alessandro’s Mamma came in with today’s desserts; little upside down cheesecakes with various sauces inside. We chose the passion fruit. Scrumptious!
Walking out we felt we had experienced a gourmet feast at this small unpretentious sandwich shop!
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