Yeah, you heard me: DARIO. As in D-A-R-I-O of Panzano, Italy. Did you read HEAT? Mario Batali’s book? Its bright yellow and exposes the underbelly of restaurant kitchens—trust me, you would remember it if you read it.

Anyway… ‘Dario the Butcher’ is in the book, he was a main cast member who influenced and trained Mario. [...]

Here, a list and little blurb about 5 restaurants I would go back to for lunch…. oh yeah! I already have!
1. ZEB or zuppa e bollito is located in the San Niccolo quadrant of the city (Oltrarno). You can point and shoot: literally piece-meal your lunch together by selecting from the meats, cheeses, sides, soups, [...]

I went by there again today. Do you have a favorite store or street? Shops you like to walk by—because for some reason it just makes you feel good? There are many days, while living here in Florence, that I find myself taking a ‘random’ 30 minute walk. But just like reading sites online, ordering [...]

I love this town. We only visited because I had an interview—to write articles on all that is available to tourists in Tuscany. It looks promising; sign me up to research on the art, history, food and culture of Tuscany.
Castellina in Chianti is a small, quaint hilltop town south of Florence by about an hour. [...]

Sigh. I have been smiling since yesterday; we went to a frantoio. A frantoio is a an olive-oil pressing facility/palazzo. It is the olive oil version of a winery. October and November represent the time frame where olives are shaken or combed off trees—into nets—and gathered for pressing.
It is when nuovo olio (new oil) shows [...]

… and soon I will add England to that list, oh, and Italy! But in the meantime, we as a family have noticed specific differences in our breakfasts across these 3 countries.
I told my boys the other day “I love the second B.” The what? The second B in ‘Bed & Breakfast.’ Beds? That is [...]