Sept. - The Raleigh Hatchet, a monthly music, art and humor ...

eath by Vanillay Charles Mangins I sit, digesting my dinner of pollo allacacciatore at Guarino’s Italian restauranthidden away at 1503 Buck Jones Road, in theasement floor of a tire shop) my thoughtstray to my most recent international trip:wo weeks last year, spent by myself, roamingrom Palermo to Milan. An experience I’meady to repeat as soon as time and budgetllow. As for the chicken cacciatore, I’meady to get that again, too. Theirs is theest I’ve found that didn’t originate in myrandmother’s kitchen.’ll likely write more about Guarino’s infuture column, but allow me to take aoment to introduce you, gentle reader, inase you’ve never had the pleasure. Guarino’ss not an Italian themed restaurant. It’s antalian restaurant, run by a family of Italians.he kind that come from New Jersey.My father’s family is of similar southerntalian extraction, settling in New Jersey inhe early part of the last century, and it wasartly my mission to discover more abouthat branch of my family tree that inspiredy most recent overseas trip. As each daynfolded, I was better able to understand thexperiences, environments, the cities, peoplend attitudes that shaped my genetic history.Every day during that trip, no matterhere I was, circumstances dictated thatconsume at least a full bottle of wine.etween lunch, dinner and after-dinnernacks, there wasn’t a day that I didn’t haveine. Ranging from delicate to powerful, thenonymous, ubiquitous local table winesere my constant companions. Regardless ofhe locale, travelers are always best advisedo order the vino locale. Drink what the localsrink; eat what the locals eat.And wherever I went, the locals wereating gelato. Oh yes, there wasn’t a day thatent by that I didn’t have at least one servingf gelato.Contentedly pondering this fact, andlready having had two glasses of the househianti, I ask the waiter if they have gelaton their dessert menu. Unfortunately, no,ut they do serve a powerfully good, homeadecannoli— sweet ricotta and chocolatehips piped into a crisp, fresh pastry shell.ertainly enough to satisfy any Italianweet tooth, I am more than pleased withhe cannoli. But as I amble to my car in thelightly tipsy way in which I’d made my waycross Italy, my mind is still set on gelato.Luckily, I have already found a place onillsborough Street that would fit nicely intoost any Italian cityscape.But, you may ask, what is gelato, andhow is it different from the standard, runof-the-hand-cranked-millice cream? It’s likeasking the difference between a McDonaldshamburger and one from Char Grill. Or thedifference between a Wendy’s Frosty and thehand-scooped milkshake I described in mylast column. For one thing, a real milkshakedoesn’t contain things like corn syrup,carrageenan and guar gum.What marks gelato as a different speciesfrom Breyers’ and Baskin Robbins’ fare isnot so much the ingredient list, but themethod of its manufacture. Gelato is frozenand churned in such a way that there isless air in the final product than typicalice cream. Denser than the highest-pricedpremium pints, gelato also usually tastesless distractingly sweet, relying on thesmoother texture and velvety mouth-feel,imparted by smaller ice crystals and fewerair bubbles, to deliver more complicated,subtle flavors. Think hazelnut or pistachio,not Chunky Monkey. Paradoxically, though,gelato tends to have less fat that typical icecream, and more sugar. The closest thingto gelato that most people I talk to havetried is Goodberry’s frozen custard, which,like gelato, is ice cream made in the Frenchtradition, with eggs.Regardless of the mysteries of gelatoproduction, I love the stuff. It could be madewith pork fat and the blood of virgins for allI care.A Google search for gelato in Raleighreveals only two places in town (and one inCary, but I try to avoid Cary as a matter ofprinciple). 518 West Italian Restaurant at 518West Jones Street (a popular place at myoffice for group lunch get-togethers) makesand serves a few flavors on their dessertmenu, but the excellent and authenticSilvia D’Italia Gelato Cafe at the corner ofHillsborough and Pogue streets is where Ihead when I have a hankering for the coldstuff.From what I’ve found, there are only afew gelaterias in the state, though the Italiandessert is supposedly spiking in popularityin this country. This is one trend I’m wishingwe’d catch up with the rest of the country on.Much of the true gelato experienceconsists of slowly walking the medievalstreets of ancient Italian towns, cone orcup in hand, drinking in the atmosphere,sounds and sights, while nibbling on the coldconcoction. The café culture, sitting at a tableon the sidewalk sipping coffee and watchingthe world pass by, is still alive and strong, butafter dinner a leisurely stroll or passagiatais more traditional. Silvia D’Italia is perfectlysituated as the starting point for just such astroll.I park around the corner, peeking intoFoundation’s Edge to make sure it’s stillthere and as weird as I remember, then headinside to pore over the day’s flavor selection.A hearty scoop of stracciatella—chocolatechips in vanilla gelato—serves as sustenanceas I turn left out the door and start tomeander. A stroll down Hillsborough, whilecertainly less continental than a similar jauntin, say, Naples, has its advantages. Thereare more pizza places here—though sadly,Brothers is gone now—and fewer Vespasthan in Naples.Another good after-dinner stroll, one withslightly more potential for window shoppingand, depending on the hour, peoplewatching, is along Glenwood south. Afterdinner at Sushi Blues or Zely & Ritz, head upthe hill to Turkish Delights, the purple houseat 125 Glenwood Avenue. They don’t havegelato, and the ice cream they serve isn’tmade on the premises, but it’s still prettydamned good. The specialties, as the namewould imply, are Turkish coffee and pastries.Ranging from the savory to the sweet,the pastry offerings go from the familiarbaklava to the slightly less well-knownbourek. In between, there are a number ofMiddle Eastern sweetened treats drippingwith honey, as well as savory pies filled withspinach and feta.For an after dinner visit, I recommendhaving a seat along the wall with a demitasseof the intense, unfiltered Turkish coffee. Sipslowly and don’t stir. Once you’re vibratingfrom the caffeine, work it out of your systemby walking up and down Glenwood withyour preferred flavor of ice cream slowlydripping out the end of a waffle cone. For aslightly more unique dessert, combine thetwo experiences; where else can you get abaklava sundae?Share and enjoy.