"She's the best there is," says the sign and everyone agrees, from Umbria to the "New York Times". The perfect stop is at Faliero, a place where in addition to the cake al testo there is much, much more. Everything (even dancing)
"The cake of Maria is the best there is". The cake is the one to the text, we are in Umbria along the coasts of Trasimeno lake, is Faliero it is a must for anyone passing by. Anyone means that it is the right place for lunch, dinner, mid-afternoon, if you have children, you want to spend little, convenient parking, eat outside, inside, lake view and even if you need a room for the night or want to spend a dancing night. There is everything, they even have a football field, bicycle rental and a dance hall, where there is nothing for tens of kilometers. But above all they have the most famous cake al testo in the region.
We ended up there by chance, along the SR599 in search of something to eat in the late afternoon, obviously attracted by a sixth sense. We found ourselves in front of hundreds of seats, inside and out, fan postcards and newspaper articles hanging in a corridor hall of fame. Plus the writings insistent that Mary is the undisputed queen of the text. We convinced ourselves we ended up in a special place, enthusiastic comments from Instagram followers and a quick Google search did the rest. Maria is famous!
The cake is not sweet
The sign on the street only said "cake", but no dessert. Torta al testo is a typical Umbrian product that could be defined as a very thick piadina cooked in a wood oven. Crunchy outside, steaming, soft inside and stuffed in a thousand different ways or used as an accompaniment to every dish, Maria's have been preparing it the same way since 1969. In the heart of Umbria, on the shores of Lake Trasimeno, everything started with a small kiosk run by Maria and Faliero. Maria and her grandmother Pompilia kneaded the al testo cake by hand, made with water and flour, cooked on an always lit hearth which made it soft inside and crunchy outside Filled with grilled sausage and cooked grass, ham and local pecorino, text “de la Maria” became an unmissable appointment first in the area. Then the word got out, the rest is history.
The text of Maria
For the preparation of the cake you need a few and natural ingredients: flour, water and salt. A compact dough is prepared, rigorously worked by hand. It is then given a smooth shape of a disc approximately 40 cm in diameter and 1 cm thick. It is cooked on the red-hot testo, a refractory stone that comes from the Etruscan tradition: the cake is ready when the crust takes on a uniform and golden color. At the end of cooking, the cake is eaten by cutting it in the middle when it is still hot and then, divided into eight wedges, it is filled with various toppings. Tradition wants it to be happily married with grass and sausage (the classic) or with local cold cuts and cheeses.
The dishes on the menu: grill, tripe and coratella
They emerge from the kitchen with trays full of fettuccine, fried lake fish, chickpeas, panzanella, beans with pork rinds, grilled meat and steaks. On the counter there are plenty of vegetables, fried in abundance and then you order from the blackboard menu: endless.
T-shirt and souvenir
Faliero has a surprising number of fans, it was enough to post a photo on Instagram to receive messages praising their cake. This explains why they also sell merchandise as a souvenir. Too bad I discovered it later, I would have bought the camouflage t-shirt with the words "magna ciccio". 10 €, after a stuffed text at 4.50 € it could be done.
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