After voicing my frustrations to my teacher Patrizio about yesterday's turn of events with il comune, and his subsequent rant about how terrible Italian bureaucracy is, the subject went on to food. One of the guys in my class used to be a chef and is now in the restaurant management business so we often ask him for recommendations. This time, however, he asked Patrizio, the native Fiorentino, who drew a map and described I' Ritrovino de' Servi, a tiny hole in the wall panino place near our school that only the locals go to. In fact, it's so tiny and unassuming that I passed by it once or twice without noticing it.
When I finally found it, I scanned the list of panini (costs range from €3 upwards) and knew what I had to get: lampredotto. I heard about it in class, from Pleuve, and from my parents, so I was hungrily curious even though I don't normally eat internal organs. Lampredotto comprises of the fourth stomach of a cow, boiled and seasoned with salt, pepper, and spicy salsa verde. It was originally a Florentine peasant dish since they only had access to the rejected cuts of meat, and now it is crowned jewel of popular street-food. I had the panino version and it was hot, delicious, and satisfying--for only €3!
On my walk home I noticed a street-food vendor selling lampredotto as well. I will give that place a try some other time. First, I have a panoply of other Florentine specialties to sample. Unfortunately they seem to comprise of more organs: tongue, tripe, cheek, and cow udder. Forza!
Today's word of the day is lampredotto.
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