A Roman Feast at Il Bagatto

May, 2012

Ciao ‘Nauts,

For la bella Beatrice, Dante walked through nine circles of hell, then chilled out in purgatory for a bit, before lulling liberal arts students to sleep floating around paradise. Dante’s Beatrice may have been beautiful (and he had to wait 9 years before she turned 18…) but we think he had the wrong Beatrice. His hails from Florence, basically known only for polenta and some old churches) she wouldn’t have known a testaccio from his testicle. Our Beatrice is Roman, lives in New York, and knows her ‘quinto quarto’ like the backs of her first and second quarto.

So here’s what we’re doing: we’re going to make like the third circle of hell — Gluttony — is actually a blessing, take you straight to Rome (by way of the East Village), and introduce you all to a much more exciting Beatrice.

And trust us, this is a woman you’d want to move heaven and earth for. This woman knows her butcher’s middle name, and she’s inviting us in, like la famiglia, for a Roman feast of offal. From veal kidneys to the most delicate livers wrapped in caul fat to sweetbreads to melt-in-your-mouth stewed tripe (and maybe something green just for contrast), this is one you’re not going to want to miss. And you should probably start exercising for it now, you gluttons. But it’s more than just a intestine fest: these are Beatrice’s favorites — the kind of stuff she can’t really put on a menu each day — that she’s making just for us. And, of course, there’ll be enough champagne dei poveri to fill the Roman baths. So, come and cross the Rubicon with us. After this Beatrice, there’s no going back.

IL BAGATTO

FOOD: Kidneys, Liver, Sweetbreads, Tripe

RESTAURANT: IL BAGATTO

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