‘Bar Trattoria da Maria’
Story kindly contributed by Sam
Tap into Google and you’ll see hundreds of restaurants in Italy with the name ‘Maria’ in them.
But the ‘Trattoria da Maria’ in the tiny lakeside village of Canetra, in the Lazio Region of Italy, would probably take quite a lot of scrolling to find because it doesn’t have a website.
‘Trattorias‘ are usually considered to be a step down from ‘ristorantes‘, and are small and family-run, serving traditional food and nothing fancy, which is why I like them.
This particular ‘Trattoria da Maria’ has been operating since 1983. Because its on the main road you can easily drive past it on your way to nearby Cittaducale.
When I first discovered it, I didn’t drive past though, because it was brightly coloured, and in the sun, there was parking space, and I was hungry.
It’s the kind of place you get worldwide if you look. Where people, (usually locals), go quiet and turn round and stare at you when you walk in. You can be almost sure that not one other foreigner will have stepped foot inside throughout the place’s entire history.
Yesterday – at the recommendation of Giovanni, the owner – I had home-made ravioli in homemade tomato sauce, a juicy pork chop, and some fresh chicory, saltata in padella (sautéed), along with a little glass bottle of sparkling mineral water. The menu was recited, not written down and the whole lot cost $NZ32.
And to top it off, Giovanni brought me an ‘espresso’ “on the house“. Perfection.
If you would like to find out more about the Lazio Region of Italy and/or Canetra, please contact janeco@mytravelroom.co.nz
