A day with the angel in ancient Piacenza, Part II

"We have been here since 1998, and the trattoria's current look is the result of a careful renovation that we carried out in 2011. Creating a welcoming, warm environment ideal for convivial moments, also recovering the spaces once reserved for the cellars, was my mum Silvana's dream, and having managed to realise it is for us also a lovely way to remember her every day," Matteo confides as we take a tour of the rooms that today harmoniously combine elegance and tradition. The characteristic brick vaults of the former cellar, as well as the eighteenth-century beams, form the ideal setting for savouring the typical dishes of the Piacenza tradition. With the management of the Castignoli family the trattoria has also taken back its original name, dedicated to the angel.

"Before us it was called Da Ottavio, after the name of the previous owner, but the name Trattoria dell'Angelo is the authentic one, inspired by the fact that in the past the angel of the Duomo could be seen from here," the owners tell us. That one eats very well here and that one can taste even grandma's dishes, nowadays practically impossible to find elsewhere, is common knowledge. In fact, every year the trattoria is a protagonist of the highly successful neighbourhood food and wine event born in 2008 and promoted by the journalist and writer Umberto Fava, "Na Mangiaa in si Sass", that is "a meal on the stones". On the walls we also notice some images capturing moments of the event, during which in via Tibini and via Sansone, both characterised by the ancient paving made of sharp stones, a veritable restaurant is set up with tables properly laid.

"No paper cups street-festival style, but everything done exactly as in the trattoria. There is a place card, a little gift for all the diners, and the evening is enlivened also by entertainments such as the quiz about the city, as well as music. After dinner some can't resist the temptation to dance on the stones. This dinner under the stars, which we always organise on the first Friday of September, is an opportunity to taste the best traditional dishes, and to spend a convivial evening with friends in a setting of ancient memory, capable of strengthening the bond not only between people, but also with one's roots, one's culture and one's community," Matteo explains. When we settle at our table, to whet our appetite we are served a little bowl of lard pesto flavoured with garlic and parsley, together with some crostini.

Next we taste a rich starter of mixed Piacenza cured meats including coppa, salame, pancetta, strolghino, cacciatorino, mariola and culaccia, that is the aged Piacenza culatello, with rind. We also very much like the giardiniera of sweet-and-sour vegetables, an ancient local speciality, and the bortellina is also excellent, made with water, flour and salt, fried in a pan and served together with the cured meats. We continue with the exquisite first courses of fresh pasta made by Mr Carlo, including the legendary Piacenza tortelli with their "tails", filled with ricotta and spinach and done with butter and sage, a dressing that brings out the flavour of the filling to best advantage, though some opt instead for a tasty mushroom sauce.

We certainly also don't give up tasting the pisarei e faso, and we also find irresistible the anolini in broth with a filling of stracotto prepared with a very long cooking time. Among the gems of Piacenza cuisine we also taste grandma's "chicche", precisely: they are little gnocchi made by hand with ricotta and spinach. A delicious filling that we also find in the panzerotti, chosen by some of our friends. We wash down these delicacies with excellent local wines selected by Matteo, including Gutturnio, Cabernet, Ortrugo and Malvasia. The wine is served to us in little bowls of ancient tradition: a further detail that makes our Piacenza experience completely authentic. We continue with typical dishes that take us back into the city's history.

During the Middle Ages Piacenza was an important infantry base, and when a horse went lame it was customary to put it down: this is how the gastronomic tradition of horse meat spread, prepared in many ways, from tartare to steaks. We taste one of the most classic dishes, the so-called piccola di cavallo, a minced meat cooked very slowly and served with polenta. The "piccola" was the name of the vessel in which the dish was served. Among the equine specialities there is also the stracotto di asinina, prepared with a particularly long cooking time, of eight to ten hours over a low flame and accompanied by polenta, its ideal pairing. We also taste various roasts as well as excellent boiled meats with sauces and mostarde. We certainly don't give up the merluzzo in umido alla piacentina either, another typical speciality made special also by being the only fish dish of the territory.

The cod is served both fried and stewed with onions, but some also prepare it with tomato. Our Piacenza day ends in great sweetness thanks to the tasty homemade desserts including the sbrisolona piacentina, that is a crunchy cake with toasted almonds, served with passito. We also taste various homemade cakes including the apple one, and we also very much like the ciambelle, the semifreddi and the mousses. We finish sipping a Bargnolino, an excellent digestive made with berries, and some also opt for a good nocino. After this lovely day that made us discover and appreciate the soul and traditions of the city, we are certain we want to repeat the experience soon.

The right occasion could be a Giovedi del Buongustaio, the trattoria's recurring event, dedicated to the typical dishes of the place, offered according to a calendar that includes the maialata, the trippata, the lumacata, the pigeon, the rooster's crest, but also the frog and the bull, a veritable overview of the flavours of times past that it is lovely to rediscover after a walk in the city.

Francesca Bertha

FOR INFORMATION:

Antica Trattoria dell'Angelo Via Tibini, 14 Piacenza (PC) Tel.: 0523/326739