As a carnivorous American with a penchant for good, flavorful meat, I had a hard time finding both a good butcher in Trieste and quality meat. In fact, when I first got here, many locals suggested I go to Slovenia to buy meat. There, I was told in a hushed whisper, the meat was better…
Trieste is inherently tied to Vienna. Having been under Austrian rule since as far back as 1382, when the main citizens of Trieste in petitioned Leopold III of Habsburg, Duke of Austria in order to become part of his domains. Subsequently Trieste gained wealth and importance as the port city of the consolidated Austrian Littoral. It became little Vienna on the…
The Greek community has had a healthy presence in Trieste since Charles VI declared Trieste a free port in 1719, opening the city up to trade and the establishment of many different ethnic communities within the city. Still today there are many families of Greek heritage in Trieste and they continue to play an important…
As a gift to all of you, I thought I’d share my tried and true Christmas cookie recipes that I have been making year after year. Now that I have been living in Trieste for almost 3 years, these cookies have become a way for me to cherish my U.S. traditions as well as share…
In Trieste, every season and holiday has its “must-haves” sweets, whether it’s Titola for Easter, Gnocchi di Susine to mark the end of summer or Fave dei Morti in the Fall. Christmastime is no different and holiday tables will be laden with a variety of baked goods. Here are the desserts that you will surely find at a typical Triestine Christmas:…
Silvia Rossi is a wisp of a woman whose creativity bubbles, breaking the surface and it is barely contained by the walls of her tiny atelier at the foot of Castello San Giusto in Trieste. I first met her on a freezing cold winter day at a market organized by Barbacan Produce (a group of…
Just behind the Ospedale Maggiore there is a little oasis, it is l’annaffiatoio. This small flower shop carries a surprisingly large selection of all natural and high quality plants with a sort of “shabby chic” vibe. Owned by Luisa Cividin, the shop has been around for over 30 years. Luisa’s mom started the shop…
Trieste’s public transportation includes a very efficient and environmentally friendly bus service and ferry service (Delfino Verde). Recently added to Trieste’s system is the new HopTour bus service. Many tourists who visit Trieste don’t often rent cars, and yet several of the sightseeing hotspots are not located in the downtown area. Here’s where HopTour comes…
Le Fave dei Morti (“The Fava Beans of the Dead”) sounds particularly well-suited to this time of year, now that we’re coming up on Halloween and the Giorno dei Morti, or Day of the Dead. Each year, starting in October, piles of pink, white and brown round treats fill the windows of the local bakeries.…
With the 50th Anniversary of Barcolana successfully celebrated and relegated to the annals of history with a record-breaking 2700 boats and more than 250,000 visitors — summer is now officially over and mother nature seems to agree. Gone are the warm breezy days of early fall, and now grey skies, red sumac and a more…
For those of you thinking you’ll be missing the rich fall foliage display customary in the US in the fall, you are in for a surprise — the Carso, also known as the Altopiano Carsico or Karst, offers a color show of its own. Largely limited to the change of the Sumac’s leaves, the pop…
This year, Trieste celebrates 50 years of the Barcolana Autumn Cup Regatta (La Barcolana), organized by the Società Velica di Barcola e Grignano. This is one of Trieste’s premiere events for locals and visitors alike. Organizers hope to beat last year’s record of 2101 boats! See footage of the start of last year’s race here.…
On a little winding side street, in the old neighborhood of Cavana one finds TERRA MATER, a little gourmet shop specialized in bringing to market small producer delicacies native to the Friuli, Venezia Giulia Region. The shop opened a little less than a year ago under the guidance of Ervin Rama, and with the help…
For a short period of time every year, every store is stocked beautiful blue and purple plums! Find out how they are part of the Trieste cooking tradition on bestoftrieste.com
When I was looking for cooking classes for friends coming in from out of town, I asked my local Facebook peeps for recommendations; the resounding reply from the majority was “contact Federica!“. Federica Caccamo is a former chemist turned pastry chef (as many know, pastry like chemistry, requires precision and careful management of many different…
