sandwiches.
A piadina, originating in 1371, is a thin Italian flatbread typically prepared in the historic Romagna region of Italy. It is usually made with white flour, lard or olive oil, a little milk, salt, and water. The dough was traditionally cooked on a terracotta dish but is often cooked on a griddle today.
Ariccia (646-630-8314), located at 14 Bedford Street near Downing Street, is open from 7:00 a.m. till 10:00 p.1
m. It is a comfortable and well-designed little restaurant which serves only piadina for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in a lovely square room with three wooden tables and chairs and a leather Chesterfield couch. It offers more than 20 savory and sweet variations to eat in, take out, or have delivered by Seamless and Grubhub. Named after a comune (an Italian township or municipality) southeast of Rome, it is at once sophisticated and laid back. The breakfast piadina have eggs with cheese, tomato, prosciutto, salmon or steak; for lunch and dinner, everything from meatballs to lamb and chicken Milanese is served, accompanied by cheeses and greens, plus a vegetarian variety. There are also caramelized bananas, Nutella, strawberries and real whipped cream for dessert. I had La Leggenda for lunch (roasted rosemary chicken, Fontina, portobello and pesto), and shared a crème brûlèe with organic berry compote and a whiskey creme chocolate sauce with my friends. Both dishes were mouth-watering. The quality of the pastry is excellent, better than other piadina I have eaten. Ariccia imports the dough from Italy; it has a special flavor cooked on a griddle. Its owner, Roberto, is a native Italian whose kindness and hospitality are evident when one visits Ariccia. He wants to make everything beautiful and everyone happy. The full name of the restaurant is Ariccia Mia Piadina, named after Roberto’s mother, Maria Pia, lengthening her name in good humor to “Piadina” since she is so good at making the pastry. She has cooked piadina all her life, provided the recipe for the piadina flatbread, and some of the dishes on the menu include her name.
