Italian Menu Trends: Q&A with Chef Jody Adams on Regional Italian Menus
Chef Jody Adams celebrates foods from Italy's varied regions, from tiny, mountainous Valle d'Aosta to the warm shores of Sicily.
By Kate Leahy, Senior Associate Editor -- Restaurants & Institutions, September 1, 2009
In December, R&I published Italian Lessons an article on the growing interest among American chefs in regional Italian cooking. But as 2009 marched on, we continued to encounter more great instances of regional Italian cooking in America.
For instance, when it came time for Chef Jody Adams of Rialto in Cambridge, Mass. to redesign her restaurant’s interior, she also took the opportunity to reexamine her Mediterranean-inspired menu. So when the restaurant put forth its new design in 2007, Adams also revealed a new focus on regional Italian cooking with bimonthly menus.
Currently, Rialto's regional menu takes inspiration from Sicily. In January and February, she celebrated Italy’s tiny northern region: Valle d’Aosta. Shethen moved south to Abruzzo, Molise,Basilicata and Calabria. Adams’drive to showcase lesser-known regions led R&I to ask:
When did you start featuring regional Italian menus at Rialto?
I started when I reopened Rialto two years ago. Italy is a very complex country. Each region has its own cuisine. Though the boundaries are being blurred, they still have a tremendous pride in their regional traditions. For example, I was in Sicily last May where I was leading a cooking class. [The host] very graciously let us use her kitchen. I was going to be cooking swordfish. I told her that I would be cooking the swordfish using basil. She looked at me and said, in Italian, “Basil? No. Parsley.” If you’re in Liguria, it’s fine to use basil with fish. In Sicily, it’s parsley.
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| Pan Roasted and Stuffed Veal Breast with Prosciutto and Fontina from Valle d’Aosta menu. |
What is it about developing regional Italian menus that interests you?
I have a real interest in digging deeper into the manifestations of a culture. It’s valuable; it’s to be preserved. We spend a lot of time talking about food and wine pairings and featuring both food and wine from the region. Our customers really enjoy it. And it puts a frame of reference around the restaurant. But I don’t claim that the food that we cook is traditional Italian. It’s a personal interpretation. We live in New England; we are limited to the ingredients we have here.
Some of the regions that you feature – such as Valle d’Aosta – are small and not that well known. How do you do your research?
You look at the fact that they are small regions – they’re influenced by the regions around theme. I play around with things and get the spirit of the region. It’s very difficult [to duplicate regional Italian cooking exactly]. And, I think, it doesn’t take into account where I am and who I am. It’s always very important to be true to who I am and what I think makes sense.
For example, Valle d’Aosta is influenced by France. It’s known for its veal, costolette di vitello. It’s a veal chop that is pounded, breaded and fried. That’s not my favorite way to handle meat. It changes the texture of the meat and the flavor. For a chop that is so wonderful and succulent, pounding it flat isn’t an approach I would take. We make a cut in the chop, stuff it with fontina, a piece of sage and some proscuitto and cook it in butter with capers. Rather than breadcrumb coating, we serve it with a succulent roasted onion stuffed with cabbage.
The gnocchi we have on the menu right now, it’s probably something you would find in Valle d’Aosta. There it is so simple. They aren’t pillow-like, they have a little more texture and the have cheese. They’re tossed with butter and we serve them with fonduta and truffles. It’s beautiful, simple.
Since you reopened Rialto and introduced the regional Italian menus, what has been the reaction from your guests?
We had feedback from both sides. My intention was to really clarify in many ways what Rialto was. And it had been a Mediterranean restaurant. I drew from all over the Mediterranean. But I wanted to clarify the restaurant and give it a framework. A lot of people responded positively. Italian cooking can be much more approachable and understandable. Other people missed the variety from the Mediterranean.
What were the reasons for the menu changes?
Rialto was 13 years old. The restaurant physically needed to be refreshed. I wanted to bring in a lighter feeling, more whimsy and fun. A feeling of movement and intimacy. That was one thing. And I wanted more simplicity. It is very clean and easy and the noise level is appropriate. At the same time it is not stuffy or formal. I wanted it to be an easy place for people to come in and have great food and want to come back to Rialto. Italian food has that reputation.
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