An Appetite For Umbria: The People, The Places, The Food

An Appetite for Umbria by Christine Smallwood is both a beautifully illustrated recipe book and a series of portraits that highlight the best restaurants in Umbria. But ‘best’ certainly doesn’t mean ‘similar’. In the book you will find up-market restaurants next to informal wine bars and casual eating places, establishments that have been run by the same families for many decades next to newcomers, and the modern and stylish next to the more traditional. An Appetite for Umbria gives a snapshot of the heroes of Italian food in this region, some of international renown, others unsung, accompanied by samples of the type of food you can expect to find at their restaurants, trattorie, osterie and enoteche. This book explores not only their cooking but also their history,
stories and views, which are though-provoking, entertaining and inspiring. Many of the featured establishments are small, and their owners have every intention of keeping them that way, preferring 25 customers to feel delighted about the food and service they have received, rather than 50 merely think the experience was good. In none of them is there a frenzied race for culinary decorations, nor are quality or innovation sacrificed for easy returns: many of these chefs and proprietors are supporters of small, local food suppliers and producers rather than supermarket chains, and all believe that offering good food - and wine - is a duty as much as a delight.Each restaurant in the book is listed according to its location, and information is provided on the restaurants address,
contact details, opening hours and number of covers. Sections at the back of the book provide an overview of the regions specialties, and comprehensive directions and maps are included for each of the restaurants listed in the text.