Naples Food Tour

May 9, 2023

Our accommodation here in Naples has turned out to be a winner, both for its comfort and its location. Our first-floor room faces a large courtyard and is very quiet, save for the occasional plane on the final descent to the Naples airport delivering the next load of tourists. It made for a very sound post flight sleep.

Breakfast is included here, as it will be for most of our bookings. As requested, we 'Whatsapp-ed' our host last night to send our breakfast selections. At 8 am sharp, our breakfast tray arrived with coffee macchiatos, blood orange juice, hot and cold milk, cereal, yogurt, freshly baked bread and croissant, butter and jam. What a great start for a day which will be centred on eating!

We're in Naples...Let's Eat!

The food tour schedule for this morning has been in the works for three years as a birthday present for David. Covid shelved that plan for 2020 so we were both excited about today's tour. We were to meet at 10:15 at the Porta San Gennaro gate for the 10:30 start and it would be a 20-minute walk from the B&B according to Google. With the map loaded and phone in hand, David was ready to lead us through the maze, but what began as a leisurely stroll quickened and became a sprint as we lost our way. We risked forfeiting the tour if we missed the start and with no San Gennaro gate in sight at 10:28, it was time to sprint. We arrived at exactly 10:30, only to discover we were the first to arrive. After a couple of minutes, the adrenaline calmed down and we were ready to roll. This isn't the first time we have done this and it probably won't be the last.

There was only one other couple booked for this tour and they had a much more exciting reason for being late (an additional 15 minutes late). They were driving from Amalfi 🙈 and had encountered two accidents and a road closure en route. Then, they got lost on foot after parking their car somewhere in the maze. Good thing wine was on the agenda!

Porta San Gennaro gate, one of the original gates to the city. The painting shows two individuals pleading to the Virgin and the Saint to stop the plague that was raging in 1653.

After introductions, Aldo led us to the neighborhood of Rione Sanità in the Stella Quarter. He explained the history to us. In the mid 1600’s, when the plague was raging, this is where the dead bodies were buried. It was a field just outside the city wall. In more recent times, it was a dangerous, poor area that was tightly controlled by the Camorra crime family. Gradually, the area transitioned to become known for its markets and food, and now it is where foodies head to shop and satisfy their sensory and culinary needs.

Aldo is a sixth generation Neopolitan but he explained that he lives near the city of Pompeii as Naples just doesn’t suit his needs now that he and his wife have an 8 year old daughter. He has always loved food and cooks for the family. He is currently training to become an olive oil somellier.

Beautiful fresh produce on display at one of the many street vendors in this quarter.

Our first stop was to sample some bruschetta with San marzano tomatoes. We inhaled these delicious morsels and moved on to the second stop, which was a coffee bar. Here, we sampled some traditional coffees and pastries, namely sfogliatelle and rum baba. Yes, you read that right, rum baba. I had no idea this was Neopolitan. Neither do the French, who invented it in 1835. The last time I recall seeing or hearing about these was back in the 60’s. I wonder if this twigs any memories for you? I don’t do rum, so passed on it. The sfogliatelle will definitely go on my list to try again.

Next, we moved on to wine made from grapes grown in volcanic soil. This was served with a bagel-shaped savory cookie made from bread dough with almonds and black pepper. It was addictive and fabulous paired with wine. We are in for a treat when it comes to wines in southern Italy. Few of these wines make it to Victoria and I am really looking forward to tasting them as we move from region to region.

We strolled and chatted about our favorite Italian foods and ingredients and Aldo filled us in on where they come from, how they came to be used in local dishes as well as stories of Naples and its history.

Many of the streets and still draped with blue and white banners from the 3rd ever National championship won by the local football team last week. Their idol, Maradona, who helped the team win the second national title, is everywhere! Now, they have a new idol to shower with pride.

We stopped to admire the Palazzo dello Spagnollo, a building that was finished in the Neopolitan Baroque style, Rococo. What also makes this dwelling unique is that the homes are owned by the same families who bought when the building was new. Each entrance is adorned with a family crest.

The Palace was built in 1738 with this extraordinary staircase in Neopolitan baroque. The residences have been in the same families for hundreds of years.

Next, we moved on to a rooftop deck of one of Aldo's good foodie friends, Tatyana. From here, we had a 360 degree view of the city, Vesuvius, Capri and the Sorrento peninsula. Street noise was replaced with the sounds of birds.

View from the rooftop of our tour guide’s very good friend.

Tatyana had prepared a savory pie for her son’s 26th birthday, one of his favourite dishes. Only, we are it! That was followed by our induction as honorary Neopolitans. But first, we had to learn and sing O Solo Mio in the Napoli language (which is entirely different than Italian), play a traditional Neopolitan bingo game and learn a series of hand and facial gestures use by the locals.

We are a about to taste special birthday pie made with sausage and broccoli raabe, all encased in bread, and oven baked.

Then, it was time to say goodbye to Aldo and head back (waddle) to the room. We stuck to the main roads this time and made it back in record time.

Streets are adorned with blue and white streamers from the football celebration last week.

We will eventually be riding out bicycles on this trip and so this afternoon David assembled his bike while I drifted off and had a good cat nap. He followed suit to catch up on some of the jetlag sleep deficit.

Let's Eat Again

Next up was a walk to suss out the harbour and a few attractions in the area and sort out a place for dinner when the time comes.

Near the Bay of Naples, there is an enormous piazza where the Giro D’Italia official start and finish will be set up, the Piazza Plebiscito. It took the current name in 1860, in honour of the plebiscite for the union of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies with the Savoy's Piedmont and the rest of Italy.

The bike race is here on Thursday so the piazza will be a flurry of activity tomorrow, but for now it was just us and a couple of informal football games who's players were all under the age of 10.

King Charles III of Bourbon, one of two horse statues in Piazza Plebiscito.

Basilica di San Fransesco di Paola in Piazza Plebiscito

Adjacent to the piazza is a large covered galleria with high end shops, so we strolled on through, admiring the detailed surfaces and sculptures that were highlighted by the shafts of afternoon sun.

Galleria Umberto. The detailed reliefs and sculpting on the facades are gorgeous.

By now, we were ready to stop for a light dinner. When we found the Trattoria Nonna, we dropped into the chairs and ordered up some drinks and a couple of dishes to share. I know this is grossly unfair, but we neglected to take photos of the most delicious ravioli ever and caprese salad. This is seriously good eats is all I will say. We ended up having a lovely conversation with a couple from North Carolina. We could have carried on, but by then it was dark and time to for us to hit the sack.

We navigated successfully through the Spanish Quarter, where the packed restaurants lined the narrow streets, and found our way back to the B&B.

Tomorrow, we are off to the National Archaeological Museum to have our minds blown as we see the treasure that they removed from Pompeii over the years, and much more.

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