OK, it wasn't terribly warm out, but the sun was shining on Friday evening when my wife and I went to check out Naples Days at Ristorante Bartolotta in Tosa, which I blogged about last week and wanted to update.
And it was just warm enough to start thinking about visiting the cousins in Caivano and Cardito, on the outskirts of Naples, and strolling along the water at Mergellina, stopping at the castle for an alfresco beer.
Add a glass of limoncello as an aperitivo, and we're ready to dig in to the prix fixe Napolitano feast, despite the fact that it means bypassing the standard Ristorante menu, which I adore.
Instead, we opt for the linguine laced with shrimp, octopus, mussels, clams and more gifts from the sea, in a light tomato sauce, and a classic wood-fired pizza Margherita, after starting with eggplant rolls (involtini) and the delicious small clams in wine and garlic.
A glass of Greco di Tufo for me and my seafood and a round-bodied aglianco to complement the pizza and we're good to go. So much so that we sort of rue not having shared a dessert. But I'm all about the chocolate, so the almond chocolate cake is perfect, while my wife savored the lemon cake with just the slightest hint of the olive oil it was made with.
Service impeccable as always, despite the crowded dining room and Bartolotta hits it again.
The special Naples menu runs through March 20, so don't wait if you want to try it.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
