Verbania: Exploring Pallanza

Technically, we could have walked to Pallanza, Verbania’s lakefront district. But it was still quite hot when we left the house around 4:00p. So, we drove instead. Pure luck landed us a parking spot right on the promenade overlooking Lago Maggiore … not far from the Town Hall.

My attention was immediately caught by the dancing fountains on the lake … music in the background. Lots of colorful flowers; some statues; a WWI memorial, and a mausoleum just a few steps away. It all combined to make for a pleasant area to wander.

Spotting the bell tower of St Leonard’s, the 16th century church that was built on the site where once a church from the 13th century stood, we wandered over to take a peek before the 6:00p mass.

Our steps eventually took us to what was listed as a garden at Villa Giulia … originally built by the man who invented Fernet Branca, one of Italy’s famous liqueurs. There wasn’t much in the way of flowers, but manicured grounds and an expansive view of Lago Maggiore made for a peaceful spot. There was an art exhibit at the villa, but checking out the artist’s work online, we decided it wasn’t to our taste and skipped it.

Our meander back to the town center gave Mui a chance to check restaurant ratings and menus. We settled on the Caffe delle Rose Bistrot on a side street in the centro storico ... an art-nouveau style restaurant with a retro charm described as a “… journey through time among 1920s counters, artwork, old skylights, and turn-of-the-century advertisements.” The food was delicious … the chef is the Michelin-starred Massimiliano Celeste.

We skipped dessert at the bistro for a piccolo gelato later from a shop at the top of the street. After our sweet treat, we drove back to the apartment for an early night. We’re hoping to get out early tomorrow to avoid the worst of the traffic on the coastal road.

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For those interested in the details of what we ate:

We started out with an amuse-bouche compliments of the chef … a frothy, cold soup consisting of tomatoes, mozzarella, and basilico oil … liquid Caprese salad, if you will. I ordered the Acquerello Risotto, so named for the type of rice used … prepared a la cacio e pepe and garnished with caramelized shallots. It was a primi piatti, but perfectly sized as a main course for me. Mui ordered the grilled octopus, served on a bed of mashed potatoes, and garnished with leeks, raisins, and toasted almonds.Читать далее