Casti: A Round Trip to Abruzzo
The start of the school year in September is already well behind us, and routine has settled back into our daily lives. As the day draws to a close, we’re in the mood to get away from it all. Off to Italy, to Casti, to enjoy a bit of a change of scenery over a meal. That evening, the terrace buzzes with the rhythm of backgammon games. The roll of the dice punctuates the players’ discussions as they comment on their moves, while the clinking of cutlery mingles with the diners’ conversations.
Meatballs
We take a seat on the terrace, which has the feel of a Parisian bistro, over a glass of Bellini, and peruse the menu, which follows the conventions of Italian tradition: antipasti, primi, and secondi piatti. We begin our culinary journey with a classic Italian dish: polpette. After a somewhat lengthy wait, our plate finally arrives. Three generous cheese-stuffed breadballs rest on a bed of tomato sauce. Particularly dense, they reveal an intense and distinct flavor.
It’s a sweet temptation to indulge in the saffron risotto, grilled lamb, or tuna tagliata, but our hearts are set on the village of owner Sacha Nadim’s grandfather: Castiglione Messer Marino, in Abruzzo. So we share the Sagne di Castiglione, a local specialty made with pasta, pancetta, fennel sausage, and a sauce made with sweet paprika powder.
According to tradition, the dish is eaten straight from the serving dish, shared among everyone. We opt to use our cutlery and immediately appreciate the quality of the homemade pasta as well as the aromas of the various seasonings. The sauce, however, leaves us a bit perplexed: slightly grainy and lacking in finesse, the dish as a whole would have benefited from being a little spicier to give it more intensity.
Roots of Abruzzo
Night has now fallen, and the terrace is gradually emptying. At the neighboring table, the aroma of cigars mingles with our glass of grappa as we gently draw the curtain on the evening. While some dishes could use a bit more precision, the experience remains compelling. With high-quality ingredients, homemade pasta, and a menu that draws sincerely from the roots of Abruzzo, Casti offers us a wonderful Italian getaway.
