Napping between meals

Our friends Kate and Randy were here over the weekend to check out our Fidenza lifestyle. What they experienced was a lot of gabbing, a daily nap habit, and plenty of eating and drinking. They seemed to enjoy it, and we certainly did.

On their first night here we took them to one of our favorite local restaurants, whose exact name is a bit unclear. It's the Antica Trattoria al Duomo on the restaurant's own Facebook page, but it's the Antica Trattoria il Duomo according to the sign over their door, and I've been saying "Antica Trattoria del Duomo" because I kept seeing it that way online, including on the Fidenza town website and an all-Italy site listing the country's best trattorias. 

"Antica Trattoria" can be variously translated as the old tavern or the old diner, and the Duomo in the name refers to the Cathedral of San Donnino, which the restaurant used to be right next door to, before it moved a block or so up the street.

The back of the Duomo, as seen from the little piazza in front of the restaurant.

I suppose it hardly matters whether it's the old diner at the Duomo, the old Duomo diner, or the old diner of the Duomo. Whatever it's called, the food is great.

In particular, the Antica Trattoria is famous for its antipasto of salami, prosciutto crudo, and other salumi accompanied by torta fritta, little rectangles of bread dough that are turned into tender pillows via a quick sojourn through very hot lard. Many other places in the area make torta fritta, but Antica Trattoria's version is amazingly light and the meats are top quality.

Danny wondered if this local specialty might be a bit too carniverous for Randy, who was a devoted vegetarian until recently. But he need not have worried: Randy enjoyed the antipasto as much as the rest of us did, and we finished every bite. 

In the days that followed we had plenty of pizza, pasta, cappuccini, panini, pastries, wine, beer, meatball soup, gelato, and Bar Teatro's best-ever tiramisu. When it came to the latter, our instinct for self-presevation kicked in and we got just one and shared it.

I love how Italian desserts are served with little shovels.

Their last day here was Randy's birthday, and he proposed we celebrate by going back to the Antica Trattoria for another round of antipasto. We were happy to oblige. We once again ordered the restaurant's very generous antipasto for two.

What better way to say "...and many more" than a plateful of torta fritta?

The preceding days of eating and napping had taken their toll, though. We just couldn't finish it all the second time around. We did, however, manage to eat most of the pasta or meat courses that we ordered as follow-ups, before we staggered back to our place, moaning about how full we were, and hobbled off to bed.

Danny and I were so exhausted by all this high living, and by the interrupted sleep brought on that night by a very rich meal, that we didn't get up till eleven the next morning. By then our guests were long gone. How they managed to get up, pack, and leave in time to catch a 6:30am train to the airport I can't imagine. When at last we got a message saying they'd arrived safely at their destination, I wasn't surprised that Randy added, "We're ready for our naps!"