Dina’s Trip to Bologna

Hi everyone,

First, I owe you an apology. I missed the blog the last couple of months. The restaurant has been busy and I’ve been spending a lot of my time there while still trying to keep up with my kids. I’ll make it up to you with a couple extra blog entries this month.

I just got back from Vinitaly, the largest wine fair in Italy with over 45,000 wines. I’ll share more on that soon. There are some tasty wines I’m really excited about that you should start seeing on the Rossoblu list, and a few may even make their way into the supper club as add-ons. What’s stayed with me most are the four days I spent in Bologna before the conference with Chef Steve’s cousin, Maria Rita. She knows the city deeply, and we spent our time the best way possible, walking, eating, and drinking our way through it.

I had many versions of the dishes we make at Rossoblu (tagliatelle al ragù and tortellini in brodo) and while each had its own take on these dishes, I have to say I still come home loving ours the most. I sound like a Bolognese now… haha. That said, I have a few places I’d strongly recommend if Bologna is ever on your path.

What I found especially interesting is that there’s a younger group of chefs trying to move Bologna “forward,” not by abandoning tradition, but by translating it. On my last day, I had lunch at Ahimè. It’s worth visiting, but only after you’ve had the classics. Once you know those flavors, you start to recognize them in their interesting interpretations. One dish in particular stayed with me. Sheep-filled plin in a light cream sauce, finished with black tea dust. To me, it felt like a modern take on tortellini in panna, familiar, but reframed.

This trip made me think that Steve and I should curate something more intentional, a trip to Bologna and the surrounding regions. We’d love to show you our favorite places to eat. Who’s in?

A few places to keep on your radar:

Ahimè @ahime_bologna

Osteria Bottega @osteriabottega

Grassilli @ristorantegrassilli