PERUGIA, Umbria

We had a somewhat brief stop in Perugia but in the few hours we were there, we were recommended a restaurant called Fontanella di Porta Sole by a local Perugian.

From the outside it looked dodgy, and I was more than ready to find something else. Nevertheless we went in and had the most excellent lunch in what turned out to be one of only two establishments that still serve authentic Perugian food. I had the favola bean soup, the chickpea soup and another one whose name I've forgotten. Why three soups? Well, because I had been so put off by the decor that I ordered maccheroni con pomodoro....to G and the owner's absolute horror. The owner asked me why I'd chosen something so horrendously pedestrian and touristy (!) and I replied I didn't know what anything was as it was all in Italian...and he said he'd bring me every Perugian soup and I was to try them all, and if I didn't like them they were on him. Of course, I loved (not just liked) them all. The owner was a really fun character, and his sidekick Vera was first-off frightening as hell (skinny battleaxe), then very very sweet. The two of them share something of a love-hate relationship, but it works! He told us that when we walked in he could tell we were good people, or else he would have kept to the 3pm closing time and turned us away. I am sure he was regretting that when he received my original order.


He shared with us the reason why Tuscan bread has no salt...my memory fails me a bit here, but I believe it was due to a tax levy on salt back in the day, so the bakers made without in protest, and this tradition has continued ever since.

We missed the national truffle market by a week -- G is still in mourning about that.