Gluttony is Good!

I made it back safely to Florence and returned to the classroom on Wednesday, April 11. It was great to see the students again, and that night many of us got together for another Cultural Calendar event: dinner at Il Latini.

Here’s how AIFS described this group meal: “Famous Florentine institution in all the guidebooks. No menus; they decide what you are eating (always involving meat). It will be a real feast of typically Italian dishes, a chance to try out all the courses.” They weren’t lying!

First of all, this restaurant really does appear in all the guidebooks. Here are just a few sample entries:

Fodors: Although Il Latini may well be the noisiest, most crowded trattoria in Florence, it’s also one of the most fun, precisely because of the liveliness. A genial Torello (“little bull”) Latini presides over his four big, homey dining rooms. Ample portions of ribollita prepare the palate for the hearty meat dishes that follow. Florentines and tourists alike praise the agnello fritto (fried lamb), and the ravioli con ricotta e spinaci (stuffed with spinach and cheese) is so tasty that kids don’t even realize they’re eating greens.

DK Eyewitness Travel Guides: There is always a crowd of both foreigners and locals clamoring for a table outside Il Latini’s large, noisy trattoria, where huge hams hang from the ceiling. The food is traditional and portions are enormous. Bypass the pasta and try the succulent grilled and roasted meats; bistecca alla fiorentina (broiled T-bone steak) is an experience.

City Secrets Guide Book: Slather olive oil on the ribollita and devour a steak at the communal table at Il Latini. No menus, just grouchy waiters and well-dressed Florentines. Rough, but…

No buts about it, I couldn’t wait to try this place! We met outside the school and walked over to the restaurant, only to find dozens of people already waiting outside for a table. But not us—we were whisked right in, much to the chagrin of an American tourist whom we overheard saying, “About 30 of them just walked right in.” Sorry, ma’am!

We were escorted to a large room, where we filled three communal tables. The table already contained enormous two-liter bottles of wine, bottles of water, olive oil, vinegar, and other condiments. As soon as we sat down, a huge plate of proscuitto was placed in front of me. As I got ready to pass it on to the person next to me, I realized that this plate was for me alone, and eventually everyone at the table was served this huge plate of meat. And this was only one of the starters. We were also served two types of crostini (one with chicken liver and one with tomatoes), another type of cured meat, and a mozzarella and tomato salad. Knowing that there was much more to come, we all realized that we had to pace ourselves.

Next came the primi piatti. We were served large platters of ravioli di ricotta e spinaci and rigatoni al ragù di cinghiale (rigatoni with wild boar sauce). There were also huge bowls of zuppa di fagioli col grano faro (soup with white beans) and ribollita (vegetable soup). We passed the platters and bowls around and dug in.

And the fun had only just begun, for next on the menu was a gigantic planner of meats: pollo arrosto (roasted chicken), coniglio arrosto (roasted rabbit), roast beef, arista di maiale (pork chops), and probably even more. At this point I was feeling rather overwhelmed! And even more bowls and platters came out, filled with an array of vegetables: roasted potatoes, white beans in a tomato broth, peas, and spinach. And there were huge basket of Tuscan bread to use to sop everything up. Would the madness ever stop?

No, because a short time later another huge platter arrived, this time loaded with desserts: profiteroles, crème caramel, chocolate cream pie, and a torte. And there were huge plates of biscotti, to dip in Vin Santo of course, which was delivered to all of us. And this was all followed by glasses of Moscato and cups of espresso.

Wow! I don’t think I’ve ever seen this much food in one place at one time, not to mention right in front of me. Was I a glutton for a night? We all were! Did we enjoy it immensely? You better believe it!