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| American Dream Cuisine™ |
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| Ristorante Stazione |
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| In Intragna,
Switzerland receives |
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Extraordinaire - Society |
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5 Stars and
6 Stripes for
Extaordinaire - Society Cuisine & Service |
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The Ultimate Award:
Seven
Stars and Stripes ™ |
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Our driver smiled and
exchanged Swiss Ticinese dialect with Marco, they laughed and we were off
to another surprise somewhere over the next mountain. Laughing is universal,
I thought as we passed through another beautifully quaint village and crossed
some railroad tracks finally stopping in front of the RR station. But what's
this? Upon closer inspection what we were about to enter was a restaurant
built into a former RR station of the Swiss National Railway system. Hense
the name Ristorante Stazione.
We had suddenly entered the special domaine of Agnese and Fabrizio Broggine,
owners of this unique Ristorante. It is a special oasis of warmth and love,
genuine to the core. Our entrance produced a flurry of activity punctuated
by laughter and embraces for each of us. Even Blackie the big dog got into
the act with his own version of a Ticinese kiss. It were as if the 'prodigal
sons' had finally returned to a family reunion of decidedly grand proportions. |
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Off on the side stood a distinguished
young man to whom we were most certainly introduced, who now stepped
forward to announce a spur of the moment (so we thought) plan before
sitting down to dinner.
The man, Stefan Früh asked us to prepare for a 'little' tour
of the central part of the village Intragna, with a brief stop to
San Gottardo church to visit the 100 year old pneumatic organ and
Ticino's highest church TOWER.
Stefan Früh is a wise and highly educated resident of Intragna,
and accordingly his family roots can be traced back centuries to the
time of the Middle Ages. Our new friend Stefan took us over narrow
cobbled stone streets, all the while filling us in on the local
history. We were fascinated by his acute knowledge of historical events,
but also his energetic pace up and down the undulating streets brought
more than a few unintentional whimpers from beneath our breath. |
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He stopped us in front of a magnificent colossal
door that had hinges the size of ‘godzilla’s fists’ fastened
to it, the kind only a Home Depot-junkie like me would notice. He whipped
out an ancient looking ‘jailor’s key’ and inserted it into
the lock.
"We will now climb
the tower,” he said in a whisper. We looked at each other and agreed,
but the question that remained unasked was of course 'How high is the tower'.
"It is only 65 meters high", he continued before we could ask it and up
we went….and up….and up…I paused to look up; no end in sight….up
and up…we went. I began to feel like I was caught in some kind of ‘M.C.Escher’
graphic work, where endless stairs are the main motif and I became a recalcitrant
individual neither going up nor going down both at the same time. I could
feel everyone’s thoughts clamoring in protest, begging for a rest and
then it appeared. The belfry was within reach now and we all fell forward
as gracefully as we could into the small area, above which hung several
tons of cast iron bells. Not being able to see too well in the darkness,
we now watched as our guide Stefan lite a small flashlight into the corner
to reveal that a bottle of Ticinese sparkling wine had been chilling since
the afternoon and we were now about to celebrate our new found friendship!
Moments like these are never lost and will be repeated many times in order
to share the experience with the same eagerness and pleasure with as many
as possible. We began our descent with a newfound spirit of fondness and
respect for our guide Stefan Früh and his passion for his cultural
heritage and birthright.
It was almost pitch dark when we landed at the bottom of the tower and Stefan
guided us back to the Ristorante Stazione. Our lavish dinner was about to
begin and in the moments before the first couses were served many curious
questions were asked about our impressions of what we just saw. It is fulfilling
to witness such interest and sincerity on the part of such decidedly proud
people. Once again, menus meant nothing, as it was time for a spontaneous
demonstration of Executive Chef Adriana Gamma's terrific talent. We urged
her to pull out all the stops and she started with the first course of:
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APPETIZER:
Pheasant terrine with Merlot reduction on Tatsoy greens topped with
a mustard fig sauce.
WINE:
Sinfonia in bianco Chiericati Bellinzona 2001 - A 'white' merlot with
warm gold tones, peach and apricot bouquet, light roasted notes and
mild tartness. A modern wine with an exotic touch. |
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Next we were presented with the SECOND COURSE
of:
Homemade fresh pasta with fresh Centovalli porcini mushrooms. Fresh picked
local valley mushrooms provided an earthy accent sufficient enough to propel
the pasta into the limelight.
WINE: Vinattieri Merlot 1994 - Nice aromas of berries, spice and
herbs. Ripe fruit with rich balance and focus, spectacular finish. |
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For our MAIN COURSE
we were served:
Tender veal filet with braised veal ragout and truffled potatoes.
Locally raised milk-fed veal provided a tender 'cut with your fork'
filet, expertly cooked in its own juices.
WINE: Tenimento dell'Or, Sottobosco - The blending of merlot,
cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot produced a pofound expressive
wine of top quality. Deep color, fine nose with blueberry fruit, vanilla
and toasted accents. Good acid balance with hints of forestberries.
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Next came the THIRD COURSE of:
Assorted cheeses both aged and soft, produced with cow, sheep, goat and
buffalo milk from the local Centovalli with fresh fig bread (also a local
specialty) accompanied by the WINE: Dolce oro Terreni alla Maggia
Ascona - gorgeous, exquisite, sweet and beautiful fruit notes. |
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Our grand finale was
presented to us at just the right moment to bring this lovely evening
to a fitting close.
DESSERT:
White and dark chocolate terrine with wild forest berries. At this
point just a double espresso or my favorite 'Café Melange'
would have sufficed if it wasn't for the great enthusiasm of our congenial
hostess Frau Agnese Broggine |
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| Across the room was an innocuous unobtrusive table
stacked with about half a dozen very tall bottles. We should have become
suspicious at the rather large size of the weights attached to the bottoms
of the bottles since they were placed there to prevent the tall bottles
from falling over. |
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| Each bottle held a
serious looking opaque liquid and Ms Broggini reached
over and started to pour it into several aperitif glasses. It
was as if she was holding some kind of 'medieval' weapon in her arms
and with extreme dexterity she was able to complete the job and pour
us an 'after dinner' drink from a distance of about six feet. It reminded
us of a cross between Jaegermeister and Sambuca Romana and was precisely
the right medicine and the right moment. |
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It was a fitting end to an absolutely marvelous
evening and fabulous day in which we had made an enormous amount of special
discoveries that could only have happened under the guidance of well-informed
sincere people who are passionate about their lives and want to share it
with others of different cultures.
Hats off to the wonderful people of Ascona and the surrounding villages
and valleys of Ticino, an idyllic, magical place of quiet fulfillment. Special
thanks to JT. |
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by John Lomitola,
Thorsten Piosczyk & Stefan Deyerler
Editor-in-Chief: Ingrid Lemme
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