The Best Meal I've Had in 20 Years of Travel
A tiny trattoria in Bologna with no menu, no reservations, and the most extraordinary tagliatelle al ragù.
There was no sign outside. My taxi driver had written the address on a scrap of paper and told me to knock twice. I almost didn't go. I am very glad I did.
The trattoria had eight tables and was run by a woman named Carmela who was, I estimated, somewhere between 70 and 100 years old. There was no menu. She told you what you were having. You said thank you.
The tagliatelle al ragù arrived in a bowl the size of a small planet. The pasta was hand-rolled that morning. The sauce had been cooking since before I woke up. It tasted like someone had distilled the entire history of Italian cooking into a single dish and placed it in front of me as a gift.
I have eaten in Michelin-starred restaurants on three continents. I would trade every one of those meals for another bowl of Carmela's ragù.
Margaret
I've been traveling the world for over 30 years and still get butterflies before every trip. This blog is my way of sharing the places that moved me, the meals that surprised me, and the hotels where I slept like a queen.
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