I flew to Paris then to Milan, but made the earlier train I hoped to make, but still, after a change of train in Bologna, I arrived in Trieste at almost 7 pm. My early impression was that I had somehow put it out of my mind that this was a port city (my grandparents had married in Hungary and then split up so that my grandfather could avoid being drafted by Russians, and then met up in Trieste where they sailed for America), but the sea here is beautiful and it is also a real city. I did not get to spend enough time, and I think it is worth going back…I got sick the last day (am fine now), but didn’t eat anything that day at all!
My first night, I ate at Ristorante Menarosti. It was not in any way interesting, and actually all of the food I had there had little to no flavor (octopus starter, clam pasta, frittura–this the best of the lot, and a salad–I was hungry after travel). A bit stuffy, and could have been sublime, with a little attention. I would not go back.
My second night I ate at Trattoria NerodiSeppia. This was such a great meal.
My starter was scallops with an eggplant purée and semi-dried tomatoes:
Just delicious
Then I had a pasta with sea bass, sorry cannot remember all of the ingredients, but also quite delicious:
They opened a bottle of a fantastic Malvasia for me and then just charged me what I drank:
Finally, I had a semifreddo for dessert, I have an out-of-focus picture…but it also was delicious and I ate every bite. I was dining alone, and I could not have felt more welcome. Three people serving in the dining room (including the husband of the chef and owners) all checked in with me at various times. Just loved this restaurant and will definitely go back if/when in Trieste.
I had two lunches at Mangia E Fuggi. Again, the wife is in the kitchen (though this is just a tiny and very informal place) and her husband is front of house.
Possibly the best homemade pasta I’ve ever had. First day I had scallops and mushrooms with a wide noodle --also had a potato salad with beans and onions that I had to mostly take with me because the portions were huge, but this was also really good, if not exactly the antidote to carb loads I was imagining:
and the next day I had a shrimp busara that was the best such dish I have ever had. Excellent wine the second day particularly. Also the tiramisu was very good!
I loved Trieste and did not spend enough time there. Will go back! It’s not easy to get to from New York, but I could have done myself a favor and flown direct to Milan, but my roundtrip ticket was to Paris…Or, flying into Venice and taking the train from there would only involve one train! But I went to Venice next…
