Eating & Drinking in Piedmont: 2016 Edition

BY ANTONIO GALLONI | OCTOBER 14, 2016  

Piedmont is strikingly beautiful pretty much all the time, but it is especially magical this time of year. The last days of summer melt into fall, temperatures drop, leaves burst into glorious expressions of color and the buzz of harvest is in the air. Mushrooms and white truffles add to the natural bounty of the Piedmontese table. There is no better season to explore Piedmont’s vinous and gastronomical riches.

This year’s round up of the best places to eat and drink in Piedmont includes two new entries. All of the restaurants in this article have been chosen with the wine traveller in mind and are therefore mostly within a short distance from the major Barolo and Barbaresco-producing towns. Readers visiting Piedmont will find a mind-boggling array of dining choices, including many restaurants that are bit farther afield. What follows are some of my favorite spots for food and wine. It is not an exhaustive list, but rather a collection of places I enjoy and have been to many times. One of the things I have learned over the years is that knowing what to order where is critical. With that in mind, I have pointed out signature dishes where applicable. 

The best time to enjoy white truffles is late November. By then most of the tourists are gone, while truffles are at their best and most plentiful, which means they are also often less expensive than they are earlier in the season. Don't be surprised if you see young children in any of these restaurants, even the most elegant. Of all the wine-producing regions I visit regularly, Italy is without question the most family oriented and kid friendly, which means parents don't have to sacrifice a great meal in order to be with their children, while the kids have an opportunity to be educated at the table.

Poached egg with white truffle, Guido Ristorante, Serralunga d'Alba

Lastly, as I have written before, wine storage continues to be an issue in Piedmont’s restaurants. This year I have added a list of restaurants where wine storage and/or service are poor. It is not an easy list to put together, because many, it not most, of these establishments offer good food and/or ambience. But the simple reality can’t be ignored. In knowingly serving flawed wines, these restaurants are saying that they do not respect or care about their customers. Readers should feel no hesitation in sending back bottles that have been damaged by heat. That is the only way Piedmont’s restaurateurs will get the message. As much as it pains me to say this, taken as a whole, Piedmont lags the world’s other elite wine producing regions by a significant margin when it comes to wine service, and in particular storage of fine wines.

Let me be clear: Piedmont exists because of one thing and one thing only: Wine. Without the wine industry there would be fewer jobs, fewer restaurants, much less wealth and no tourism to speak of except for a few weeks during the fall truffle season. When will Piedmont’s restaurateurs learn to take care of their most valuable and most profitable asset? Not all restaurants can have a gorgeous, temperature-controlled cellar. That is understandable. But how much does it cost to a buy a few refrigeration units? Will the average patron notice an extra euro or two per bottle to pay back that investment? Of course not. But Piedmontese restaurateurs largely do not see it that way. Suffice it to say I have been served cooked and/or damaged wine in virtually every restaurant in Piedmont, so it is very much caveat emptor.

Still, I don't think there is anywhere better to be in the fall than Piedmont. Barolo, Barbaresco and white truffles in a good year are as good as it gets. The cool, foggy weather and a good meal at one of Piedmont’s top spots will be more than enough to make visitors start planning a return trip. Things can get a bit hectic during the peak fall season, so reservations are essential.

Antica Corona Reale (Da Renzo)

Via Fossano, 13, 12040 Cervere - Cuneo, Italy; Tel. +39 0172 474132

Da Renzo’s signature Uova in Cocotte

Antica Corona Reale, known simply as Da Renzo, is a must during truffle season. Da Renzo is located in Cervere, which is a bit of a drive from the Barolo zone, but closest to La Morra. The food is terrific year round, but in the fall Renzo is the place to be. Proprietor Gian Piero Vivalda makes the single greatest truffle dish in Piedmont; the heart attack-inducing, poached egg in cocotte, essentially an egg poached in butter and cream, then topped with shaved truffles. If there is a dish visitors must experience at least once, this is it. Other great choices include the Tortelli al Seirass and the Châteaubriand for two. Wild leeks and snails, both local to Cervere, are not to be missed. I don’t go crazy for either frogs’ legs or tripe, but those who do swear by Da Renzo’s versions. Service is very good. The wine list is well chosen, but storage is inconsistent and the program overall remains the Achilles heel of this otherwise exceptional Piedmont benchmark. Last Visit: November 2012.