When you think of Italy, what comes to mind? The sweeping architecture of the Roman Empire? Or perhaps the sparkling waterways of Venetian canals? Maybe you’ve got a vision of vineyards in Tuscany or brightly colored houses on the Amalfi Coast. No matter what, I’d bet good money your mind’s eye doesn’t evoke the scenery and scenes of Southern Italy – especially not as seen through the eyes of Anthony Bourdain.
Anthony Bourdain visited Puglia and its neighboring state of Basilicata while filming the “Southern Italy” episode of Parts Unknown (season 10, episode 8). This was his only on-screen visit to “The Heel of the Boot” during his television career, and his own notes share that it was inspired by Asia Argento while filming the Rome episode two seasons earlier.
Both figuratively and literally far from the iconic sights and sweeping vistas most people associate with the rest of the country, you have to really mean it if you want to eat at the places visited by Anthony Bourdain in Puglia. Here are those places, and what Tony ate, should you be inspired to discover a new corner of Italy on your trip.
The Southern Italy episode opens with Tony sitting at a beachside restaurant, enjoying a simple pasta dish – but like many Italian – and especially Solento* – dishes, its apparent simplicity belies both the ingredients and care put into its preparation. He’s eating Spaghetti ai Ricci di mare, which is pasta with garlic, herbs, and Sea Urchin roe, with a cold Peroni and – quite uncharacteristically at this point in his career – a cigarette.
While exploring Puglia and Southern Italy, first Tony has a “Monopoliana”-style beach party/picnic/barbeque after fishing with Dino, Franco, and Asia out of Porto di Monopoli in the Adriatic. They feast on a fish stew with tomatoes, garlic, basil, and bread, barbecued lobster and oyster, and fresh uni, with white wine.
He also has a local grandma meal, one of his go-to ways to try local flavors. Meeting up with a local connection Angelo, they head to Angelo’s nonna, Maria, for hand-made orecchiette with pomodoro and cacioricotta – plus a generous side of religious fervor that gets lost in translation (perhaps for the best!).
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