A Tale of Two Restaurants

One's in Florence, One's Outside; Both Are Magnificent

Florence - It has been 16 years since I first set foot inside Cibrèo, one of Florence's best restaurants, filled with the flair and enthusiasm of its owner, Fabio Picchi.

On that first visit, he served up some of his now classic fare - his signature yellow-pepper soup emblazoned with a C-shaped drizzle of local extra-virgin olive oil; the memorable tomato aspic, brilliantly red and shot full of red-pepper flakes, and a wonderful platter of fresh pecorino sheep-milk cheese, shelled walnuts and an avalanche of garlic, Picchi's own take on the traditional Tuscan starter.

Since that visit, I always check in when I'm in town. This time around, I had barely gone through the door and the chef was dragging me into the kitchen to take a look at the gorgeous, glistening, fresh tuna a friend had just sent from Elba. But we would have to wait a bit for that, since Picchi had a lot in store for us during that single meal.

Picchi's once modest trattoria has now grown into a full-fledged affair, one with a fine, casual flair. Diners searching out an even more casual world can still check into his small trattoria on the other side of the wall, or the elegant Cibrèo Caffè just across the street.

Call it a parade or a procession, the food keeps on coming here, all full of intense flavors, refined fare with a distinct personality, Italian, yes, Tuscan, yes, sort of. Pure Picchi at the top of his form. He takes native flavors and ingredients and punctuates them with his own style, always making sure the flavors knock you out.

A tender squid salad blaring the spice of red-pepper flakes; an ethereal, featherlight salt cod purée, or baccala; lots of cloud-like substances, like the brilliant red tomato aspic; lots of dense, compact flavors that still manage to shock you with their overall lightness, like the cubed pecorino tossed with fresh fava beans and oil. The tuna finally made its appearance as the thinnest of carpaccio, smothered with herbs and minced raw garlic.

The memories keep coming, from the delicate tastes of his bright mix of lemon zest, rosemary, garlic, sage, parsley, red pepper, fennel seed, black pepper and olive oil, then marinated a full day in olive oil. It was delicate and delicious.

«I am a happy man» Picchi said. He knows what he is doing and should be proud.

...

29 june 2001 · Patricia Wells · International Herald Tribune