Valtellina is a valley in North-West Italy on the border with Switzerland. The valley is west-east oriented, so the northern slope has southern exposure and is ideal for wine growing. We came here to sample the wines that are made from Nebbiolo (same grape as Barolo, but the wines are different), but of course also wanted to try the local gastronomy.
We had dinner at ristorante Trippi, which has a nice veranda despite the busy road. We ordered an antipasto, a primo, and a secondo from the à la carte menu.
Marinated alpine char (salmerino) with goat cheese, apple, grapes, and chicory. The combination of the unctuous fish, fresh goat cheese, sweet and crispy apple, and bitter and crunchy salad worked very well.
We shared antipasti, so I got to try two. Hand-chopped tartare of Piemontese Fassona beef with alpine ricotta and toasted chopped hazelnuts, with a dressing of mustard and honey. The combination of the beef with the toasted very finely chopped hazelnuts was sublime.
Risotto with ‘summer herbs’ with smoked trout and goat cheese. The risotto was perfectly al dente and not creamy by itself; that was the purpose of the goat cheese. With smoked fish, risotto, and goat cheese all in one bite this was a really good dish. By itself the risotto was a bit astringent from the herbs.
Boiled meat with a green sauce is a very typical dish in this part of Italy (bollito misto). This was boiled blade steak (sukade in Dutch) and I really loved the combination with peperonata and salsa verde. This worked very well with a local Valtellina Superiore red wine.
This had been enough food, so we decided to skip dessert and missed out on the excellent selection of cheeses that the restaurant offers.
Although I found this restaurant in the Osterie d’Italia guide, it is more a restaurant than a trattoria, with original dishes with attention to the plating. Having said that, I can see why it was listed because of the use of high quality local ingredients and making them shine in the dishes. The dishes were all delicious and taste as good as they look.
Stefan's Gourmet Blog 
They all look delicious! 😋
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Am not really a ‘beef person’ but the two dishes on this menu which most appeal are of the ‘moo’ variety. Would have loved to taste the tartare with the honey-mustard dressing . . . and the boiled beef as I grew up with it in the Baltics . . . How would this marry with the salsa verde . . . Hmm – have just had an early dinner . . . perhaps because of that the risotto to me has too much colour and ? finesse 🙂 ! Quite a big meal . . . hope you felt like a long walk afterwards . . .
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Everything looks wonderful!
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What an exquisite meal! The risotto is making me drool!
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I’m dreaming of the beef tartare. First of all, the local cow, but the nuttiness from hazelnuts and that sauce, must have been a truly unique take on a universally popular dish.
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Stefan, I think your first dinner in Italy has been delicius. I hope tonight dinner will be perfect. You’ll have the opportunity to taste milanesi dishes. I’m sarebbe will enjoy. See you soon 😉
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Sembra più un menu piemontese che lombardo, ma senz’altro ottimo. Chiedo se conosci il progetto Slow Food di Carlo Petrini
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Può essere i piatti che ho scelto io, perché non avevo voglia per pizzoccheri alla valtellinese 😉
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Ma va bene, è un’ottima scelta, e nemmeno io vado matta per i pizzoccheri.
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Ho visto Slow Food in giro, ma non ne so tantissimo. Di solito si mangia bene dalle trattorie che hanno il logo Slow Food sul menù.
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Allora ti racconterò la storia
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Good One.
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