Bagni di Lucca and Beyond

Apart from Ristorante Vinicio we also like to eat at Bruno’s which is situated just outside the little piazza and not far from Bar Italia.

It was started by Bruno and his wife decades ago and has recently been taken over by their son Eugenio and his wife. I had several delicious meals in the restaurant in October.  It was porcini mushroom and truffle season so I naturally took advantage of this and tried several different dishes featuring these delicacies.

My favourite was the homemade cannelloni.  It consisted of thin pancakes wrapped around ricotta and spinach with a light tomato based sauce and topped with either porconi or truffles.  I loved both.

Eugenio is Marco’s cousin.  Their restaurants are quite different, but both are very welcome in Ponte a Serraglia.  Eugenio’s family also owns the Albergo Bernabo which is on the way to Bagni Caldi.  It is in an excellent position offering gorgeous views of the Lima valley.

Deb

Liz adds:  Bruno’s Ristorante specializes in porcini mushrooms and truffles and their menu epitomises the specialty.  During porcini season the porcini is cooked in olive oil and then frozen to be used when the beautiful mushrooms are no longer in season.  They have enough supplies this year, as it was a very good year for these mushrooms, to last until June.  In the summer, when there are many foreign visitors to the Villagio Globale, Bruno’s caters for vegetarians and also to coeliacs.