24H of ITALIAN FOOD in Bologna – From Pasta to Meatballs.

We are in Bologna and in this video we are visiting this beautiful and historic city, famous for its food such as mortadella and pasta al ragu and juicy delicious meatballs, which we enjoy first. Then in the morning the old streets of Bologna offer more incredible food, from tigelle near the local market to Italian salami and cheese. For lunch there is nothing better than fresh pasta and we enjoy probably the best tortelloni in the city made by this unstoppable chef. We visit the oldest osteria in the city, full of character and good vibes, and then go for famous tortellini in brodo and incredible cotoletta alla bolognese in this charming local restaurant. So let's begin. I just arrived in Bologna and of course my first stop has to be a place serving panini with mortadella, because mortadella was invented here in Bologna of course. And let's start with this place here behind me and this is Moi Mortadella Lab. They are quite famous for their mortadella panini. This is the city where this salami was invented, but here they serve it with many different ingredients and they create these delicious sandwiches. All the ingredients are here in the display and I already know what kind of sandwich I'm going to order. The preparation of this sandwich was quite quick. I didn't even catch him while he was slicing mortadella, but he was slicing fresh mortadella. And then he was toasting this bread which is called rosetta. And then this bread of course was stuffed with pile of mortadella, then some stracciatella d'andrea from town in Puglia region, then also some sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil leaves. The sandwich is here. It's absolutely huge. I also got beer from Sardinia to go with it. So let's start. The rosetta, the bread is absolutely fantastic. Very fresh, very tasty. Then this mortadella is top quality. Nice thin slices, delicious. Then stracciatella, it gives some freshness. And then very tasty, very savory sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil leaves. This is absolutely perfect combination. Mortadella is a bit salty, but it's also very, very light. And thanks to all these ingredients here, the panino, the sandwich, it's quite easy to eat. It's not dry at all. And this is definitely a beautiful bite on the go. We are on our way to Trattoria del Olio and this place is definitely off the beaten path. It's away from the city center and this restaurant should provide some real local experience. Here we are, our second stop in Bologna, Trattoria del Olio. This here looks just like an ordinary convenience store, so I just need to find the entrance to the restaurant. I need to find the entrance to the garden directly. I came quite early, which is good for me. I didn't have to book in advance. And the place is relatively spacious once you are inside. There is this beautiful garden outside. Of course, I managed to find the entrance. They opened the main gate for me. And here behind me is the kitchen. I don't know if they're gonna let me maybe film inside or not. It says privato, so private, no entrance. The smells coming from that kitchen are absolutely incredible, so I can't wait to try the food here. Now I understand why this restaurant is still empty. They opened from 8, but I came around 7. It doesn't matter. I got my table, I made my order. Their menu is not too big. They have several starters, they have several main dishes and also several side dishes. For me, this is always a good sign where the menu is not too big. And we are also going to get a chance for a sneak peek inside the kitchen. So we are in the kitchen and to my surprise there is a ragazza chef. So there is a grill chef here and we're gonna see how she makes the food here. Tagliatelle are cooked al dente and then they're going to be finished in this pan. There is already some sauce. They're going to be cooked and tossed together with this ragu from the pan to get some of that flavor. And then once they are ready, they're going to be topped with this beautiful looking ragu. My tagliatelle al ragu are here. This is how it is called in Bologna. Outside of Bologna would be probably known as tagliatelle alla bolognese, but nobody calls here this sauce it's ragu. And this is this nice fine meat sauce that this city became famous for. So without further ado, let's start. Nice flat and very thick tagliatelle. This pasta is made with eggs and that's why it's this yellow. It has ragu everywhere on it and let's go. This is a completely different pasta al ragu than I tried anywhere else around Italy. The sauce is not liquid at all. It really sticks to these tagliatelle. Tagliatelle absorbed the sauce completely. So they're full of taste, full of flavor. They're perfectly cooked. They're quite al dente and they are very very delicious. I just spoke with the owner and he told me that they own this place since 1947 and the recipe for tagliatelle al ragu are his grandma's. And this is the way they should be made. So the sauce here is to accompany tagliatelle, not to overpower it. And because they make tagliatelle in-house, they have to have this special surface to absorb as much sauce as possible. Incredible. The restaurant is getting busier and also my main dish is here. I got polpette in umido. These are local meatballs in sauce accompanied with this delicious chunk of zucchini. And I also have these tasty looking roast potatoes here. Let's start. I will put this bread to a good use and soak it up in this sauce. When I touched the meatball it fell apart. This is how soft it is. Let's go with the first bite. This beautiful and juicy looking zucchini is also stuffed with ragu that I ate with tagliatelle. Both the meatball and zucchini are just beautiful. The sauce is out of this world. The meatball, the meat is very fine. It's top quality. Zucchini is so succulent, so delicious. This is a heavenly food. You don't know what is better here. This incredible sauce or maybe this meatball that completely falls apart or maybe this juicy tasty zucchini or the meat inside the zucchini or maybe this bread once you soak it inside the sauce and then mix with all these amazing ingredients. This is really unbelievably tasty. I don't want to discriminate these roast potatoes as well. They're nicely baked, they have this beautiful skin, they have some spices and herbs on top as well. For me this is a real and proper cooking. When you take something simple and then you turn it into something very very delicious. This is just one ingredient, potato, but it's perfectly baked, nice soft mushy inside. Then it has this perfect skin. It's a little bit on a salty side but then it has these beautiful spices as well. Absolutely delicious. So this is a family business and this shop is where it all started. The shop exists from 1947. They opened the restaurant afterwards, but let's go inside here to check out this shop and also I will pay here for my dinner. This was like the restaurant here with five tables. Yeah. And tell me like in the morning would local people come here for coffee, for breakfast? This is okay, this is the standard. In front of this restaurant we got three schools. Okay. From 7 a.m we have the breakfast and from about 10 a.m there is a lot of people here coming in bicycle, in scooter before going to work or before going to the school. Okay, so you are busy the whole day practically. From 7 a.m till midnight. And this is the family business. You told me that the chef is your cousin. Yes, this is from the 1946, the same family business. This is the third generation. Very good, very good. So this is another great story in Italy, this time north of Italy, Bologna. Family-owned business, they opened convenience store. This was also like a coffee shop, the traditional Italian, where people would come for espresso, for some breakfast, for some refreshment. They also then had a restaurant with five tables here in behind and then they expanded the newer generations, obviously expanded the business, but everything is still family-owned and family-run and they work from early in the morning until late in the evening, serving all these people and making some great and amazing food. This shop is full of memories, this is a long-lasting tradition and this shop celebrates 80 years of existence this year. That's amazing. Good morning from Bologna. We are off to our breakfast destination, but before that I had to stop at Las Folline. This shop is famous for its handmade tortellini and this shop has been featured in many tv documentaries, magazines, visited by some famous people and whenever you come here in the morning you can witness these three ladies hand making tortellini. Here in the display they have some delicious looking lasagna, tortelloni and also gnocchi, as well as these famous tortellini. They're handmade each day and you can either book them over the phone, you can come here and buy a batch of tortellini that you can prepare and enjoy at your home. This shop was quite interesting, but I'm also very hungry, so let's continue to our breakfast destination. Behind me is finally my breakfast destination, a shop called Tigellino. Let's check them out. In Bologna and the whole region of Emilia-Romagna they love their pasta, but they also love their sandwiches and I came here especially for these, probably the cutest sandwiches, the cutest panino up to date and these are tigelle and they are made just with some simple ingredients like flour, water, yeast and also pork fat. Pork fat plays a role here in making them quite dense and they're baked into these shapes with the flour on top. I got three different types and the first one is Ginevre and it has prosciutto crudo and the local cheese squaccherone, also some rucola as well. The second one is called Lucio and it has mortadella, it also has mascarpone cheese and also pistachio cream and the last one doesn't have any meat at all, it's called Kunza and it has pesto di Modena and also the famous parmigiano reggiano. Let's start with Ginevre. Ginevre is very delicious, this bread is really outstanding. It has a nice crunchy top inside, nice and dense and also there's that nice and mild taste of pork lard, pork fat. The prosciutto is absolutely top quality, nice fresh rucola and this cheese is quite mild, very very tasty. Next one is Lucio with mortadella, mascarpone cheese and also pistachio cream. Lucio is an absolute bingo, this is I think proper taste of Bologna. We have mortadella, we have pistachio cream and we have this mascarpone cheese, this is absolutely delicious. It has that great taste of homemade bread and then of course the combination inside, mortadella, pistachio cream and the cheese, unbeatable. Incredible panini piccoli or the little sandwiches, let's go with the last one. This one is as well seriously delicious, very creamy and then parmigiano reggiano, quite savory. There's quite a lot happening in these side streets and this is kind of an open market. There are a couple of fishmongers over there where people are getting their fish and sea produce but then just here is this salumeria Simone and this is probably the best looking salumeria that I have ever visited. They have these huge wheels of parmigiano cheese in the window and then inside the choice is immense. They have full walls, full ceilings of local prosciutto. They also have these enormous sized mortadella and they also have different types of cheese. They have stracciatella, they have mozzarella, they also have olives, they also have cured sausages, then some more mortadella and some more delicious goods and foods. There's also a second smaller shop and they have this place offering some more mortadella than some tortellini. Then inside there's plenty of cheese, there are these huge wheels of parmigiano cheese, there are dried meats, there are more cheese and more delicious stuff inside. Here we are, behind me is a place called Rama Ciotto and they specialize in tortellini, tortelloni and all the local pasta from Bologna. Let's get inside. This place is a synonym for freshness. It sells, it makes fresh pasta but actually it's so fresh that once you make the order he makes some of this pasta right now. He was packing that pasta with spinach just before, putting them on the net and then they are going into the fridge to get nice and dry but also these people ordered three portions of tagliatelle al ragu and he made these tagliatelle just now and he's gonna cook them and create this delicious pasta for them. I came here especially for tortellini in brodo but they are out of them today so I will go instead with some delicious tortelloni. I made my order but the place is quite busy and this chef is one man army, he's doing everything. He's making fresh pasta, he's cooking it behind for the customers and people are just coming in making their order so I'm waiting my turn to try these delicious tortelloni. These gnocchi were made just in minutes. When I came inside the shop he was preparing the potato. Now we could see that he was putting the potato through that strainer and he was making this mass together with some flour and egg and in several minutes these gnocchi were practically ready. Now he only needs to create those small size gnocchis that go directly into your plate. The place is really small but it's really busy. It's 100% local. These are all local people here coming for their lunch and there are some people already eating, there are some people waiting to make order, there are some people that already made their order. They are near this window here and this guy is so quick that I missed him when he was cutting the gnocchi. So he's running back and forth making fresh pasta, fresh gnocchi and then cooking over there and also good news my tortelloni are here and these are classic tortelloni from Bologna. They're stuffed with ricotta cheese and parsley. They're topped with this beautiful smelling parmigiano cheese that got melted. This looks really really delicious and I will have to start immediately. There's this beautiful creamy sauce and the smell is absolutely delicious. The sauce is made of butter but it's so creamy and tortelloni are fresh, hot. I understand why everyone is coming here for lunch as this guy is a true artist. Creamy sauce, creamy ricotta and very strong parmigiano. This is an absolute poetry. These were some top level tortelloni and the whole operation. The whole experience is amazing. One man army. This chef is incredible. Historic buildings and monuments anywhere you go and turn and this city is really one with the history. This place behind me is extension of that Salumeria Simone that we visited this morning. So all the products, everything that they sell in Salumeria you can come here, you can sit and enjoy. They will serve them for you. There are different options in the menu. There are like charcuterie platters, there are sandwiches as well, panini and also there are these huge wheels of parmigiano cheese everywhere on the wall. They also have these huge jars with traditionally pickled vegetables. Different options, different cheese and different cold cuts and also there's a shop just beside it and they offer the same experience. But if you ask me I think this is mostly for tourists. I don't think that locals come here to eat. This is so to say a tourist gangster paradise but nonetheless it was quite interesting to visit and see. Let's continue to our next place. And just around the corner down the street there's this place that you can easily miss because there's no sign on the outside but this actually is the oldest establishment in Bologna. This osteria was founded in 1465 so almost 600 years ago and it's quite famous among locals but also tourists who have heard about this place as well. Anyway let's go inside and let's check it out. The place is full of history but also good vibes. This is a place where you primarily come to enjoy some good wine. You are allowed to bring your own food as well so you can bring some panino or mortadella or some other snack to enjoy with your wine. There's quite enough space here but there's also a nice looking garden outside and this place is designed for people to come here with their friends to associate and have some good time. So as mentioned almost 600 years old place but owned by the same family since 1940. If you like history and tradition then Italy is definitely your place. Great osteria but I'm not a big wine guy. I'm really looking forward to that well-deserved dessert. We are at the place called mmm la gelateria and this is a perfect place for me since I say a lot of mmm when I'm trying food. So hopefully with this gelato I will also say mmm. Let's check them out. So while I was paying I ate most of my ice cream or at least half of it because it was melting so quickly. But this is a proper gelato artigianale and I got pistachio flavor and also vanilla and they're both very delicious, very refreshing. I also got tartufo with chocolate. This is a dessert that I never tried before. I suppose it's also ice cream style. I have to finish this ice cream first, the gelato and then I will try tartufo as well. Tartufo definitely looks like a huge frozen bowl of ice cream. It's topped with this chocolate. It also has that layer that we can see on tiramisu but let's try it. It's extremely creamy, has that nice unsweetened cocoa powder on top but then inside it has this very delicious looking liquid chocolate. Let's go. To be honest I don't know how they did it but when it comes to gelato and Italians I think anything is possible. It's really sweet, it's really delicious. This is a proper dark chocolate inside. There are other types of stuffing as well. I could have chosen pistachio or nocciola, the hazelnut but I went for chocolate and I didn't make a mistake. This is truly amazing. I'm still amazed by the fact that it's frozen all around and then liquid in the middle and this place truly is la gelateria. This was some heavy sugar overload and I will need to take some rest and then get ready for this evening when we are going to try some more iconic food of Bologna. See you then. Behind me is Osteria San Carlino and this will be the last place in Bologna and also my dinner destination. Let's get inside. I got seated quite easily in Osteria San Carlino and also without reservation which makes me even happier. There's a QR code on the table so you can see the menu from there on your phone but they ask for traditional menu and there's also this small blackboard with the dishes of the day so Anyway, the menu has all the most important food of Bologna and I already know what I'm going to order. The order is in and of course I ordered tortellini in brodo, so the tortellini with soup, very local, very typical. Also, cotoletta alla bolognese, another very typical dish with friggioni additional sauce and I also got a glass of wine. I usually don't drink wine but let's make an exception now. Okay, so my mini starter is here together with my Merlot wine and this is a bread stick and it's topped with pate made of mortadella. This is something quite original. I'm pretty sure that corn flour was used to make this bread stick but then this mortadella pate is really really delicious. The bread stick is quite croccante, very crunchy, very nice and very tasty starter. This is a local Merlot wine from the hills above Bologna. It really goes well after that bread stick. It's mildly dry, nice and tasty wine. They have quite a timing in this restaurant. As soon as I finished the bread stick, they brought me my tortellini in brodo. So these are tortellini but they are in this delicious looking and smelling soup. So let's go. Tortellini are delicious. They have very nice texture. They're not too soft but then this soup I think is the star of the show. The brodo is so delicious, so tasty. I have to try it on its own. The soup is amazing and I had to double check with the waitress because I was not sure if this was beef or chicken soup but actually it's both. This is both beef and chicken soup and that's why it's so delicious. It's so great. Tortellini are nice but nothing extraordinary. But then this soup, brodo, this is something really exceptional and this is what makes this dish absolutely great. Tortellini in brodo went quite well. Now I'm waiting for my cotoletta to arrive. A la salute. Cotoletta alla bolognese is here. I also ordered friggione. This is a sauce as a side and cotoletta alla bolognese is a pork cutlet breaded and fried and then topped with some prosciutto and melted cheese. It's heavy, it's delicious and it's crazy good. But let's try it with friggione. This is a sauce made from onion and tomatoes. Let's see how it goes with it. Oh friggione is beautiful as well. It has that very strong sweet taste coming from the onion. A little bit acidic from tomato but mostly sweet from the onion but really delicious. It goes best with some bread. These people here are not joking around. Just that bite there with bread and friggione was enough to make my evening. But let's go back to cotoletta so I can analyze it a bit more. Cotoletta is definitely a treasure of Bologna. This breaded layer is not crunchy, it's actually quite soft, thick, delicious. The meat inside, tender and juicy. And then this prosciutto on top and cheese, they add additional flavor. I mean this is so tasty, so delicious. Several flavors combining in only one bite. But friggione is definitely my new favorite side dish and it really goes nice in between the bites because the cotoletta is quite savory, very strong, very nice taste. But then this has mild sweet taste so you kind of cut in between. Whoever invented cotoletta alla bolognese should be celebrated. All these great ingredients but then that final touch, the melted cheese, this is like the high point of each bite. With this we end our video from Bologna. This was incredible day and a half for me in this beautiful historic city but I was really surprised with how great the local cuisine is. All the food was amazing from the beginning to the end. I hope you enjoyed this video and until the next time all the best.