Boccacciello Bistrot in Rome, Italy

Posted by Rowena Dumlao Rowena Dumlao - Giardina 6/16/2017

Boccacciello Bistrot in Rome, Italy

Boccacciello Bistrot is about an actor and a chef who rekindle the gastronomic beauty of the place where they grew up in. The aromatic memories of the kitchens instilled in their minds created the identity of Boccacciello Bistrot. With selected recipes using ingredients that were produced by the local farmers, they are placed in the hermetically-sealed jars then steamed for hours. There are no additives nor preservatives added. These food jars are available in versions of 106 grams and 212 grams where they can be kept for as long as 180 days. With the popping of the jars and the sudden release of a diversity of aromas, they do replicate the smell of cooking in the kitchens of Naples.

The concept of the food jars is the easiness of having excellent food within minutes. They can easily be transported and reheated in the microwave, water bath or in the saucepan. They are perfect for office lunches, for the people who are pressed for time, and events. Boccacciello's is not just average because it is created by an outstanding chef.

Starting at a very young age, Pietro Parisi trained with very important chefs like Gualtiero Marchesi and Alain Ducasse. Enhancing his love for gastronomy, he gained more experiences internationally in Denmark, Switzerland, France and Dubai where he worked in the most luxurious hotel in the world, Burj Al Arab. But after a decade of this, he decided to go back to his hometown in Palma Campania in Naples where he bought an old pizzeria, converted it to a restaurant and called it Era Ora where even important people zero in for his excellent dishes.

Luca Capuano, the actor and Pietro Parisi met in 2015 when Luca and his friends went to have dinner at Pietro Parisi's restaurant. Leaving quite an impression on Luca who has a passion for gastronomy, the kitchen and philosophy of Piero became the subject of their business endeavor together afterwards. Their objective was to emphasize the Neapolitan kitchen, to support the small producers and to highlight the work of the men and women working in respect of their territory.

Without a doubt, Boccacciello's parmigiana di melanzane (aubergine parmigiana) is their most popular creation being included in the menu of American Airlines' business class section. The flavors and aromas of their parmigiana perfectly underlines the fruits of the land that they are talking about. The San Marzano tomatoes, Agerola fior di latte cheese and the aubergines that are grown locally.

The selection of food that Boccacciello has is ample and seasonal. Aside from the steamed parmigiana di melanzane, there are also the podolica meatballs in ragù, potato gateau with Palla di Nola (specialized spiced salumi), Genovese with pork or cod fish, steamed artichokes of Pertosa, chickpeas and cod fish, cannelloni bean soup and vegetables of the season. For a sweet option, they have the artisal gelato of Gelateria del Gallo of Ciro Verde. These products can be bought directly at the bistrot or online through their site or through other main delivery sites.

At the bistrot, there are a few tables where you can try their warmed up food jars that can be accompanied with bread, cheese and cured meat from excellent prooducers. The bread is from Bonci while the Neapolitan taralli is from Leopoldo Infante. The selection of cheese and cured meat are from Caseificio La Pagliara, Palla di Nola and Gaiole in Chianti of Macelleria Chini.

It's been a year since they have been keeping the inviting perfume of Neapolitan cuisine bottled up in their hermetically-sealed food jars. On this special occasion, they marked it with a celebratory offering for their regulars or the food curious with a special price on a tasting of four of their food jars (106 grams) for the month of June plus a festivity of tastings of the food that they have created.

La vasocottura è nata nel mio territorio negli anni 40. Prima non c’erano i frigoriferi e l’unico modo che avevano i contadini di fare dispensa erano le conserve. Con la vasocottura e la pastorizzazione, riusciamo a mantenere il gusto e i sapori all’interno del boccaccio.

- Pietro Parisi

Vasocottura (food jars) was born in my area in the 1940s. Before there were no refrigerators and the only method that the farmers had to do was to conserve them. With the vasocottura and pasteurization, we can keep the taste and flavors inside the jar.

- Pietro Parisi (translated to English)

Mi ha affascinato il suo intento di voler mettere in risalto le eccellenze della nostra terra, in quanto entrambi napoletani, ed evidenziare le tradizioni e le cotture di una volta. In particolare, la tecnica della vasocottura mi ha fatto tornare indietro negli anni quando preparavo le conserve con la nonna.

- Luca Capuano

His (Pietro) intention to emphasize the excellence of our land fascinated me, being both Neapolitans, and to highlight the traditions and the cooking of the past. In particular, the vasocottura technique made me go back to the years when I was preparing the preserved food with my grandmother.

- Luca Capuano (translated to English)