My Mum was driving, which should put the fear of God in most people, but this time it was doubled by the fact that she was trying to avoid a coach load of tourists on the autostrada- this was then followed by perilous country lanes up to the hills of Le Marche.
The region includes the Sibillini National Park and towns like Sanarno in the winter are actually ski resorts, though with a very short seasons in comparison to Alpine Skiing. It's a further 1 1/2 from Ancona and involves the worlds windiest roads (in my opinion).
We stayed in the Hamlet of San Vernanzo and the house we were in boasted beautiful views of the nearby Monte San Martino and Panne. It looked like it was something out of the shire and really was an incredible landscape.
Sadly, the weather wasn't really on our side for the week, but like classic English tourists, we persevered and had packed our wellies just in case.
As my sister aptly said: 'there's one thing you can still do in bad weather...eat.'
So here are two highlights from the trip:
Monte San Martino: This was the only sunny day we had in Le Marche (most photographs are from this day) and we decided to wander around Monte San Martino- the streets themselves beat any museum, because the buildings have been so well preserved and cared for that it's beautiful. An added bonus was the village being on a hilltop resulted in beautiful views of Le Marche.
While the village was stunning, our lunch was the highlight of the day. In the village square is a very average looking restaurant that is best to go to on a Sunday (apparently, it was the only day we went). The interior is pretty unexciting, but the food...well it was eaten far too quickly to even get a photo of it!
Our italian is non-existent, therefore we never really understood what we were ordering- the main advantage of this was that the waiters would simply give us a selection of the food- but in Monte San Martino we didn't understand the system. Used to ordering a dish thinking it was for one person, we made the fatal mistake of ordering three pasta dishes thinking that shared between the four of us, it would make a nice light starter. We then proceeded to order four meat dishes and vegetables to share, thinking that would be enough. We really should have registered the surprise on the waiter's face.
As you may have guessed, we really over ordered- the first pasta dish, dyed green with nettles, was a huge serving plate worth of pasta- about 6 portions worth! It was followed by a similar plate of Strawberry risotto (interesting, but not my favourite) and then the house special, Angelica's pasta. This stuff looked like mini cinnabons; swirled pasta stuffed with (i think) pork and covered in a creamy sauce. The pasta itself was the winning ingredient- super light it was so easy to eat- we all finished the entire huge platter! After those three dishes we were pretty full, but then the mains followed!
The mains were also delicious- get what is described as a sirloin steak in the english translation (what is actually means is half a cow)- they cook it until rare and then serve it up on a sizzling plate where it finishes cooking- amazing stuff. Also the potatoes were seasoned so that they were totally more-ish. I was in serious pain from my jeans waistband after this!
Then they dished up the yummiest tiramisu- honestly I didn't think I could eat it but my god it was so delicious. I'm not a fan of coffee in puddings, but it really was fabulous.
La Querche: This is actually just outside of Monte San Martino, and we visited there twice- the first time on our first evening in San Vernanzo, where the pizza and antipasti were amazing, but the second visit made this my firm favourite, just because of the whole experience.
It was cloudy and drizzling slightly, but with such amazing countryside around we all agree to just deal with it and go for a walk. Dad had seen in the house book (a little guide the owner's had written) that there was a walk from the house to the 'nearby' village of Penna san Giovani. While the walk was described as 'not for the feint-hearted' we thought we'd be safe. We walked down into the valley and up again, only to find ourselves nowhere near Penna, but right outside the turning to the Agriturismo 'Le Querche'. Clearly we'd made a wrong turn- one that we later realised was rather lucky.
The silver lining to the trekking going awry was this Agriturismo- a farm that has its own shop and restaurant. We walked in only to see the sign saying the restaurant was closed- however we went in to try and buy some bread and cold meats as a impromptu picnic. The failure of our Italian and the generosity of the owner meant that he simply looked confused gestured for us to sit down and laid the table for lunch.
There is no way in hell that any swiss restaurant would open for 4 people to have lunch, but tired and wet I practically declared my love for this man and promising to feed us. He served up the simplest and delightful dishes. First, a huge platter of ravioli stuffed with ricotta and covered in a sweet tomato sauce. We polished the whole thing off in minutes. It was then followed by pork ribs cooked on an open fire and a selection of grilled vegetables. Hungry from walking and perfectly cooked we devoured everything. As if I couldn't love this place any more, we were each served panna cotta in a berry coulis. Amazing.
The style of Le Querche grabbed me. It's not fancy at all, with the TV playing loudly in the background and harsh lighting. But the owner is so friendly, the food is simple, honest and tasty. I like a place where you can get rib sauce all over yourself and feel pretty comfortable. Who needs snooty fine dining when you can go here?
And just for fun, here's a couple more photos from the trip:
The region includes the Sibillini National Park and towns like Sanarno in the winter are actually ski resorts, though with a very short seasons in comparison to Alpine Skiing. It's a further 1 1/2 from Ancona and involves the worlds windiest roads (in my opinion).
We stayed in the Hamlet of San Vernanzo and the house we were in boasted beautiful views of the nearby Monte San Martino and Panne. It looked like it was something out of the shire and really was an incredible landscape.
 |
| Casa Ginestra |
 |
Sadly, the weather wasn't really on our side for the week, but like classic English tourists, we persevered and had packed our wellies just in case.
As my sister aptly said: 'there's one thing you can still do in bad weather...eat.'
So here are two highlights from the trip:
Monte San Martino: This was the only sunny day we had in Le Marche (most photographs are from this day) and we decided to wander around Monte San Martino- the streets themselves beat any museum, because the buildings have been so well preserved and cared for that it's beautiful. An added bonus was the village being on a hilltop resulted in beautiful views of Le Marche.
While the village was stunning, our lunch was the highlight of the day. In the village square is a very average looking restaurant that is best to go to on a Sunday (apparently, it was the only day we went). The interior is pretty unexciting, but the food...well it was eaten far too quickly to even get a photo of it!
Our italian is non-existent, therefore we never really understood what we were ordering- the main advantage of this was that the waiters would simply give us a selection of the food- but in Monte San Martino we didn't understand the system. Used to ordering a dish thinking it was for one person, we made the fatal mistake of ordering three pasta dishes thinking that shared between the four of us, it would make a nice light starter. We then proceeded to order four meat dishes and vegetables to share, thinking that would be enough. We really should have registered the surprise on the waiter's face.
As you may have guessed, we really over ordered- the first pasta dish, dyed green with nettles, was a huge serving plate worth of pasta- about 6 portions worth! It was followed by a similar plate of Strawberry risotto (interesting, but not my favourite) and then the house special, Angelica's pasta. This stuff looked like mini cinnabons; swirled pasta stuffed with (i think) pork and covered in a creamy sauce. The pasta itself was the winning ingredient- super light it was so easy to eat- we all finished the entire huge platter! After those three dishes we were pretty full, but then the mains followed!
The mains were also delicious- get what is described as a sirloin steak in the english translation (what is actually means is half a cow)- they cook it until rare and then serve it up on a sizzling plate where it finishes cooking- amazing stuff. Also the potatoes were seasoned so that they were totally more-ish. I was in serious pain from my jeans waistband after this!
Then they dished up the yummiest tiramisu- honestly I didn't think I could eat it but my god it was so delicious. I'm not a fan of coffee in puddings, but it really was fabulous.
 |
| The view of Monte San Martino from the house |
La Querche: This is actually just outside of Monte San Martino, and we visited there twice- the first time on our first evening in San Vernanzo, where the pizza and antipasti were amazing, but the second visit made this my firm favourite, just because of the whole experience.
It was cloudy and drizzling slightly, but with such amazing countryside around we all agree to just deal with it and go for a walk. Dad had seen in the house book (a little guide the owner's had written) that there was a walk from the house to the 'nearby' village of Penna san Giovani. While the walk was described as 'not for the feint-hearted' we thought we'd be safe. We walked down into the valley and up again, only to find ourselves nowhere near Penna, but right outside the turning to the Agriturismo 'Le Querche'. Clearly we'd made a wrong turn- one that we later realised was rather lucky.
The silver lining to the trekking going awry was this Agriturismo- a farm that has its own shop and restaurant. We walked in only to see the sign saying the restaurant was closed- however we went in to try and buy some bread and cold meats as a impromptu picnic. The failure of our Italian and the generosity of the owner meant that he simply looked confused gestured for us to sit down and laid the table for lunch.
There is no way in hell that any swiss restaurant would open for 4 people to have lunch, but tired and wet I practically declared my love for this man and promising to feed us. He served up the simplest and delightful dishes. First, a huge platter of ravioli stuffed with ricotta and covered in a sweet tomato sauce. We polished the whole thing off in minutes. It was then followed by pork ribs cooked on an open fire and a selection of grilled vegetables. Hungry from walking and perfectly cooked we devoured everything. As if I couldn't love this place any more, we were each served panna cotta in a berry coulis. Amazing.
The style of Le Querche grabbed me. It's not fancy at all, with the TV playing loudly in the background and harsh lighting. But the owner is so friendly, the food is simple, honest and tasty. I like a place where you can get rib sauce all over yourself and feel pretty comfortable. Who needs snooty fine dining when you can go here?
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| Emma and I showing the latest in trekking Chic |
And just for fun, here's a couple more photos from the trip:
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| The Square in Ascoli Piceno |
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| Monte San Martino at Night |
Beautiful photos! Your trip looks amazing, I definitely need to put Italy on the list of places I want to visit!
ReplyDeleteLovely blog, I'm looking forward to reading more of your posts^_^
Milly xx
http://miyyime.blogspot.co.uk/
P.S. Yay I've found another Milly, spelt with a 'Y' :p
Hi Milly- thanks so much, glad you like the post! Do give me a follow on bloglovin to keep track of new posts- always lovely to hear from people with the same name hehe. If you have the time, do give Italy a go- Rome is a great starting point if you have never been before!- Milly x
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