Osteria Passatelli

Osteria Passatelli on Via Mentana 20 in Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, takes its name from the most characteristic pasta of the Romagna region—a thick, bread-crumb-and-Parmigiano noodle pressed through a special die and traditionally served in capon or chicken broth. The dish is polarising to outsiders (its dense, starchy texture is unlike any conventional pasta) and beloved by those who grew up eating it. This osteria is among the most reliable places to encounter it in an authentic form: passatelli in brodo di cappone is made fresh daily, the broth drawn from a whole capon simmered for several hours, and the flavour is deep, savoury, and profoundly comforting. The kitchen also reaches toward the Adriatic: brodetto alla Riminese, the traditional Romagna fish stew made with a minimum of nine different species and flavoured with white wine vinegar and tomato, appears as a secondo on days when the catch is right. Piadina, the Romagnola flatbread, closes the meal in dessert form with Nutella or honey and ricotta. The osteria is small, relaxed, and unpretentious—wooden furniture, a handwritten menu, service that is friendly and unhurried. It draws a local clientele of Ravenna residents rather than art tourists, and offers a valuable counterpoint to the UNESCO mosaic circuit that otherwise dominates most visitors' days in Ravenna.