The Art of ‘Being Fed’
For years I’ve always said: “I love to eat”. But that’s changing. In fact, those who know me well will be surprised to hear me say that I don’t much like eating at all. Truth be told, I hate it.
Well that’s dandy. A food blogger that hates to eat? See here’s the thing: I’ve come to realize that eating is functional; it’s about survival. And my love of food runs far too deep to engage in eating any longer.
Instead, I want to practise the art of being fed. Call it semantics, but when I think of being fed it’s a process that starts long before you take your first bite and lingers well after the last. It involves what recipe is chosen, careful consideration of what ingredients will be used and mindfully tending to a meal as it putt-putts at the back of the stove. It’s the conversation at the table, the warmth of the environment and the company you’re keeping.
At Trattoria della Nonna, ensuring their guests are fed is Terry Vassallo and Simone Mombourquette’s food philosophy.
The couple’s investors and dear friends, Susan and Gunther Reibling, share this value. It’s no surprise then, why, on a cold December evening, I began to feel fed the minute we pull up to Trattoria Della Nonna, a traditional Italian restaurant located in Lunenburg. Walking in, with the cozy façade of the restaurant welcoming us inside, I felt I had already had my first course before even taking a seat at the table.
The menu at Della Nonna is not static. It changes to represent the season, the local ingredients that can be sourced fresh and the feelings Terry, the head chef, wants his food to evoke. For December, the options were hearty and warm with big, rich flavours, just as you would find in any northern Italian town this time of the year.
I ask Terry why Italian food…in a Nova Scotian, German-influenced town no less. He explains that over the years his most significant personal and professional influences have almost always been Mediterranean. His dad was from Malta (a small island country south of Sicily), he apprenticed under one of Vancouver’s most renowned Italian chefs and spent part of his youth working in his godparent’s pasta factory in Calgary. Indeed, it seems his Italian-influenced story has been a lifetime in the making.
But for Terry and Simone, Susan and Gunther, Trattoria della Nonna is more about the Italian approach to food.
The tradition of that culture is to take what’s fresh and around you (not 10,000 miles away), no matter how simple or unassuming it is, and make it a meal that people celebrate. Italian cuisine in its truest form isn’t at all about the specific recipes that North Americans have come to love; it’s not about a menu filled with traditional dishes of lasagne, pasta pomodoro or risotto. It’s about being true to where you’re from, the land that’s around you, as well the farmers and food producers who are nearby. It’s this most fundamental aspect of the Italian culture, and coincidentally, the spirit of Taste of Nova Scotia, that Terry and Simone work so hard to incorporate into their restaurant.
In speaking with Terry, and during our meal at Della Nonna, it’s not difficult to see that he and Simone treat every table in the restaurant as if it’s the dining room table in their own home. Whether you’re a stranger visiting for the first time or a local who comes every Thursday night for Terry’s beloved Osso Bucco (a spectacular veal shank that’s been marinated for eight hours and braised for another eight), Terry and Simone’s spirit is present at every table in the restaurant and in the integrity and honesty of every dish that’s served there.
There wasn’t an aspect of our meal at Trattoria Della Nonna that left us feeling empty or unfulfilled. From the front of house staff and Terry’s visit to our table, to every beautifully-conceived and perfectly-executed dish we ordered, we felt warm, at home and amongst friends. And so, with our bellies brimming with beautiful food, we left feeling very full and extraordinarily well-fed.
Our Meal
I, of course, have saved the best for last. I won’t give you a full recap of what we ate, but here are our top highlights. Each item was a staff recommendation and every last morsel was sensational. Live vicariously through me today, but be sure to make your way to Trattoria della Nonna to experience it yourself.
- Cappesante – perfectly-seared local scallops served on pumpkin, celery root (local source: Rumstoff Farms) and parmesan risotto. I could have made a meal out of that risotto alone.
- Anatra – Farfelle pasta with duck (local source: Oulton’s Farms) confit and mushrooms, dried fig and marsala crème fraiche. No need to sell it any more than this straight-from-the-menu description.
- Agnello – cooked-to-perfection, medium rare rack of local lamb, served on papparadelle, this is one dish that guarantees you won’t go home with an empty belly or soul.
- Ironworks cocktails – the Ironworks Distillery products continue to impress me and the Spritz and Rosso Martini cocktails, which featured Ironworks, that we enjoyed at Della Nonna were no exception.
One last thing. While it’s hard to put Caesar salad of any kind on a highlight reel, Terry’s came close to making an appearance on this one. But it’s really the dressing and the fried capers that make this salad. In fact, my dinner company called the capers a “revelation”. Chef Terry told us how to make them at home by draining and rinsing the capers, lightly tossing them in flour and then dropping them in hot oil until they pop open. Wow your dinner guests with this tasty treat.