The Literate Chef

Posts Tagged ‘Belmont’

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Luigi the Barber

In General Articles on July 28, 2013 at 11:20 AM

That bastion of the male world, the Barber Shop, with its candy-striped pole, leather strop and copies of the Police Gazette lying around for your perusal as you wait for your favorite barber to call you next, may have for the most part disappeared; but the art of conversation between a man and his barber (for want of a gender-neutral term) has not. For the past 30 or more years I have had my hair cut by Luigi, who with his brother Enzo, runs “The Isaia Hairstyling Salon” in the Riverdale section of The Bronx.

Luigi (Louie) and Enzo emigrated with their parents from a town near Salerno in the Campania region of Italy when they were children. They started life in America in the Belmont section of the Bronx, also known as Arthur Avenue. When Louie was a stylist working at Vidal Sassoon in Manhattan, he was known as Bernard. That name stayed with him for a time after he left, but eventually he became Louie once again, as the brothers’ own business began to flourish, back in Da Bronx.

When my hair used to grow more quickly, I’d schedule a visit to Louie about once every 4 or 5 weeks. These days visits are usually 8 to 10 weeks apart, and it’s not because I’m letting my hair grow longer, there’s just less of it to cut. So I figure that Louie and I have had at least 250 conversations over the years. We’ve discussed politics, sports, the economy, crime, religion, family and the changes in the neighborhood. But every visit has included a conversation on our two favorite topics, movies (principally Italian Cinema) and food.

Louie enjoys cooking and sometimes, when he knows I am coming in for a haircut, he surprises me, as he recently did, with something he whipped-up the previous night. On our most recent visit to our hometown New York, which included a haircut from Louie, the surprise was Mussels Marinara, not with linguine, nor tagliatelle nor penne or some of the more fashionable cuts of macaroni, but with good, old-fashioned, comforting, spaghetti. It was delicious and Grammy and I devoured it that night when we returned to Falmouth.

The other day,  I made a visit to The Clam Man, our local fishmonger, and as luck would have it, they had a batch of big, black, shiny mussels. With an eye to preparing Louie’s mussels and spaghetti, I bought 2 dozen of the bivalves. Remembering what Louie had told me about his three special additives: brandy (I used Martell Cognac, which I use for my Steak au Poivre), jalapeño pepper and Knorr’s Caldo con Sabor de Camarón and guessed at the proportions. I don’t think it was exactly the same as Louie’s version, but it was delicious.

So here it is folks, the real deal, Mussels Marinara with Spaghetti alla Luigi.

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This Little Piggy Came from the Market

In General Articles on July 4, 2013 at 11:26 AM

Last month, while visiting my favorite butcher, Vincent’s Meat Market on Arthur Avenue, the “Little Italy” (a/k/a Belmont) of the Bronx, I spotted a prosciutto end, which is hard to come by in Falmouth. Thinking I would use it in a batch of Pasta e Fagioli, I added it to my meat order. But, last week with the sudden onslaught of summer heat and humidity, preparing a winter dish like that over a hot stove held little appeal and the thought of eating one held even less appeal.

Since the prosciutto was cured and vacuum packed, it probably would have lasted three or four more months in the refrigerator, at least until the onset of cold weather. However, each time I opened the refrigerator door it called out to me; after all that is its nature, to be eaten.

One of life’s greatest combinations is prosciutto, mozzarella, roasted red peppers and basil. Put those four ingredients on a chunk of crispy Italian bread, drizzle on some olive oil and you’ve got yourself perfection. But I don’t have a meat slicer, and for inclusion in a Hero (Grinder, Sub, Hoagie or whatever its called where you come from; I’m from New York so it’s always a Hero) prosciutto sliced in any way other than paper-thin would be a sin. Besides, crispy Italian bread is a rarity in Falmouth, where most bakeries are in giant supermarkets.

That tri-color combination, red, white and green, which happens to reflect the colors of the Italian flag, is perfection itself. So what else to do with the remains of this generous little pig? When all else fails, man’s thoughts turn to…PASTA!

Now for the alchemy. First, I thought I would lightly brown the prosciutto in its own rendered fat. Then, toss the mozzarella with the hot pasta letting it melt. Finally, add the prosciutto and other ingredients, and and serve it at room temperature. The execution worked well, but for two hitches, and the meal turned out to be appetizing, but perfection was not attained. I have added some footnotes to the recipe for Summer Penne, which I intend to incorporate next time. But that will have to wait until the next butcher run.

A few days later, using the remaining bit of prosciutto, I prepared a Frittata with Peas and Herbs, which served as the keystone for a delicious Sunday Brunch.

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The Best Italian Restaurant

In General Articles on January 21, 2012 at 3:13 PM

Inspired by a dish that she had on our most recent visit to Roberto restaurant in the Belmont neighborhood of the Bronx, my wife suggested the ingredients for Chicken Campagna. That is not the name that Roberto applied to one of the ‘specials’ that he offered that evening. We thought of the name because the dish that we developed in a failed attempt to replicate Roberto’s reminded us of a rustic Italian chicken preparation, one that you would find in a country restaurant practically anywhere in Italy. Campagna translates to countryside. Despite the fact that it is not à la Roberto, Chicken Campagna is delicious in its own right.

Roberto Paciullo, who with his brother opened his original restaurant in this Little Italy of the Bronx more than 20 years ago, is an incredibly superb chef. The current restaurant located on Crescent Avenue, around the corner from the well-known Arthur Avenue, is one block west of where the original was situated at the intersection of E. 186th St., Crescent and Belmont Avenues. For those of you unfamiliar with New York and especially with the Bronx, that is the same Belmont Avenue that gave rise to Dion and The Belmonts.

While the printed menu at Roberto contains plenty of excellent and creative dishes, the ‘specials’ offered on the blackboard each evening are replete with imaginative surprises. For his legions of fans, they are the only way to order. From the very beginning, Roberto’s cooking has been an inspiration to me as well as to many others.

His dishes are filled with ingredients and that are common to la cucina italiana, but are combined in inventive ways that are vastly different than the standard Italian restaurant fare. In my opinion, there is no equal, and I agree with John Mariani, the writer and columnist for Esquire and Bloomberg News, Roberto is ‘The Best Italian Restaurant in America’.

Thanks Roberto, for many years of good eating and inspiration. I can’t wait to return to see what you have developed next.

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