The Best of Festa, Celebrating 10 Years of Il Fornaio's Festa Regionale

Pane di Castagne VENETO 2004
Crusty rye and chestnut flour bread, compliments of Il Fornaio

Zimino d’Aragosta SARDEGNA 2000
Lobster bisque with crab meat and tarragon $4.50 Cup $7.50 Bowl Vermentino

Insalata di Bietole TRENTINO 2003
Red and yellow beet salad with arugula, toasted walnuts and asiago cheese; lemon olive oil dressing $6.75 Soave

Gamberoni Benito PUGLIA 2002
Large prawns wrapped in pancetta served with arugula salad $10.95 Vernaccia

Pasta chi Purpetti SICILIA 2004
Housemade pasta ribbons with small veal meatballs, peas and parmesan cheese; red wine tomato sauce with pancetta $12.95 Valpolicella

Mezzelune Cacio e Pere TOSCANA 2003
Fresh pasta filled with grilled pears, mozzarella and parmesan; asparagus-crescenza cheese sauce and toasted walnuts $14.95 Vernaccia

Pasticcio alla Gradese FRIULI 2002
Fresh pasta layered with crab, shrimp, mussels, clams, scallops and tomato bechamel, baked in the wood-fired oven $17.95 Vermentino

Risotto Ladino TRENTINO 2003
Beef tenderloin and porcini mushroom risotto with Teroldego wine $15.75 Aglianico

Pollo al Mattone alla Diavola TOSCANA 2002
Half chicken marinated with herbs and peperoncino, cooked under a brick and served with arugula salad and lightly spicy roasted potatoes, eggplant and peppers $17.95 Plenum

Agnello Arrostutu CALABRIA 2004
Roasted leg of lamb marinated with garlic, parsley and olive oil; thyme-shallot white wine sauce; served with saute’ed spinach and lightly spicy roasted potatoes, eggplant and peppers $20.50 Plenum

Salmone Ostia Antica LAZIO 2004
Norwegian salmon stuffed with fresh asparagus, baked in the wood-fired oven with artichokes, capers and lemon; served with sautéed spinach and mashed potatoes $20.75 Soave

Nasello al Forno BASILICATA 2000
Bluenose seabass filet baked with tomatoes, white wine, basil and garlic; served with spinach and mashed potatoes $21.95 Soave

Cosi Duci SICILIA 2003
Ricotta-filled cannoli with pistachios; vanilla pastry cream profiterole with chocolate sauce $5.95

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Vernaccia di San Gimignano,
Teruzzi e Puthod, TUSCANY 2002
Crisp and delicate with a floral fragrance and flavors of almonds. Its medium body, balanced acidity and freshness make it a great match with the Mezzelune.
$3.25 half glass $6.50 glass $24 bottle

Vermentino, Argiolas Costamolino,
SARDEGNA 2003
This delicious and wonderfully perfumed dry white is produced primarily from vermentino grapes grown in northern
Sardegna. Crisp, dry and refreshing with delicate floral and citrus aromas and flavors, this wine has a lovely,
lingering finish, which pairs well with the Pasticcio.
$4.00 half glass $7.75 glass $30 bottle

Soave Classico Superiore, Pieropan,
VENETO 2002
Pieropan Soave is a dry and delightfully refreshing white wine full of fresh and fruity aromas and flavors. For an unusual
pairing, try it with the Nasello.
$3.75 half glass $7.50 glass $29 bottle

Valpolicella Classico, Allegrini,
VENETO 2000
This concentrated, fragrant and full-fruited red wine is brimming with earthy aromas and flavors of plum, cedar and spice. Its medium body and smooth, well-balanced structure make it a perfect complement for the Purpetti.
$4.25 half glass $8.50 glass $33 bottle

Aglianico del Vulture, Cantina di
Venosa Vignali, BASILICATA 2000
Elegant, well-balanced red full of spicy-cherry fruit aromas and flavors of currant and spice, Aglianico is often referred to as the “Barolo of the south”. It is a great match for the Risotto.
$4.50 half glass $8.75 glass $34 bottle

Plenum "Tertius", Dievole,
TOSCANA 1999
A wonderful combination of juicy and earthy aromas with hints of ripe plum and cherry fruit. This wine is made by our good friend Mario di Dievole. Try it with the Agnello.
$5.50 half glass $10.75 glass $41 bottle

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orn in Marcon, Veneto, Mazzon knew he would be a chef from the age of eight when he would cook shellfish caught with his brother off Punta Sabbioni near Venice. Mazzon, who comes from a family of bakers, went on to realize his dream by spending 10 years working his way up through the various kitchens of Venice’s great restaurants and hotels.

Las Vegas. This authentic Venetian restaurant was Maurizio’s realization of a lifelong dream: create a world-class dining destination here in the U.S. that would honor the kitchens where he honed his craft.

Mazzon’s menu presents traditional foods of the “Tre Venezie” area of northeastern Italy, complemented by

In November of 1985, Mazzon left Italy to serve as chef at Donatello in Tampa, Florida. Four years later, he joined Il Fornaio to open a new restaurant and bakery in Palo Alto, California, just three days after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Under Mazzon’s lead-ership, Il Fornaio in Palo Alto won several awards including “Best Restaurant in Santa Clara County” from San Francisco Focus Magazine three years in a row.

In 1992, Maurizio accepted the challenging assignment to open Il Fornaio’s most expansive project to date, at the newly-restored Hotel Sainte Claire in San Jose. As Chef-Partner, Mazzon oversaw the restaurant, retail, private dining, room service and catering for this centerpiece of San Jose’s down-town renaissance. Because of his leadership in Palo Alto and San Jose, Mazzon was promoted to Executive Chef of Il Fornaio, responsible for every kitchen, recipe and ingredient used at Il Fornaio.

azzon was the culinary leader in the 1999 opening of Canaletto Ristorante Veneto at the Venetian Resort Hotel and Casino in

the wines of this less heralded part of Italy. Situated at the Venetian’s recreation of Saint Mark’s Square, Canaletto quickly became one of Il Fornaio’s most successful restaurants and is today among the highest volume restaurants in the world.

In 2002, Mazzon wrote the Il Fornaio Pasta Book, a personal collection of his favorite pasta recipes. From Piemonte in the north to Calabria at the tip of the boot, Mazzon has gathered preparations from all twenty regions of Italy. Beyond the recipes and personal history, the Il Fornaio Pasta Book also contains a pasta glossary, a source guide for hard-to-find authentic Italian ingredients as well as Mazzon’s collection of Italian proverbs that any cook will appreciate. Today, as Vice President and Executive Chef of Il Fornaio, Mazzon oversees new menu develop-ment, new concept development and the company’s 24 kitchens. He directs Festa Regionale, Il Fornaio’s ongoing exploration of the distinct cuisines of Italy’s 20 different regions and leads the annual “Giro dei Cuochi dell’ Italia” (“Chef’s Tour of Italy”).

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Il Fornaio’s Festa Regionale started ten years ago this January with the idea of providing our guests with the most authentic Italian experience outside of Italy. It is a challenging endeavor to coordinate the changing of menus every month at two dozen restaurants, often with ingredients and wines unavailable elsewhere in the US. Some of the recipes come from tasting regional specialties while on the Chef’s Tour. The annual journey is designed to totally immerse our chefs and managers in traditional Italian cuisine, culture and meet face-to-face with key vendors in Italy.
Though time intensive and increasingly expensive, these regular trips to Italy are what distinguishes Maurizio Mazzon from many other Italian chefs. But that’s Maurizio, who perhaps sums it up best himself, “La cucina del popolo e la sola satta testimonianza della civilita.” meaning: “The only true sign of a civilization is its culinary heritage.” Buon Appetito!

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For information regarding Il Fornaio, please contact us at info@ilfornaio.com
www.ilfornaio.com