PANE DI IESI Traditional Marche bread with gruyére, provolone, pecorino and parmesan cheeses, compliments of the Bakers of Il Fornaio.

Also available for purchase at the Bakery counter.

ZUPPA ALLA FANESE Butternut squash soup, with potatoes, red onions and gorgonzola-filone crouton $5.95 Verdicchio

INSALATA DI SCARCIOFULI Baby artichoke hearts, arugula, shaved parmesan, lemon vinaigrette $8.95 Verdicchio

CROSTONE ALLA PROVOLA E PORCINI Sliced IL Fornaio filone bread baked with provola cheese, porcini mushrooms and truffle oil $8.50 Verdicchio

RAVIOLI AI CROSTACEI Black and white ravioli filled with shrimp and scallops in brandy-lobster cream $14.95 Verdicchio

GNOCCHI ALL'ASCOLANA Potato dumplings in porcini, fennel and cream sauce, finished with truffle butter and parmesan $12.95 Rosso Conero

PAGLIA E FIENO Housemade spinach and egg pasta, bacon, shallots, parmesan; tomato-cream sauce $13.50 Rosso Conero

RISOTTO CON SALSICCIA DI POLLO Risotto with grilled chicken sausage and button mushrooms $13.95 Rosso Conero

FILETTO ROSSINI Filet mignon with truffled goose pate and Madeira wine sauce, mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach $24.95 Rosso Conero

SPIEDINI ALLA PESCARESE Grilled skewers of shrimp and scallops served over spinach, artichokes and fresh tomatoes $21.95 Verdicchio

CERNIA ALL'ANCONETANA Grouper filet sautéed with pinenuts, green olives, capers and white wine sauce $20.95 Verdicchio

CREMA BRUCIATA ALLA ZUCCA Pumpkin custard with a burnt sugar top $6.50

Verdicchio Classico dei Castelli di Jesi
Villa Beatrice, 1999

A crisp and light-bodied dry white wine produced from verdicchio grapes cultivated in the foothills of the Apennines around the town of Jesi. The wine has lovely layers of citrus and vanilla in the aromas and crisp apple flavors. A great match with seafood and poultry

$3.25 half glass $6.50 glass $25.00 bottle

Rosso Conero, Lanari, 1999

A dry, full-bodied red wine produced primarily from montepulciano grapes grown along the Adriatic coast south of Ancona. This round, brilliant ruby-red wine has ripe cherry, blackberry and cedar flavors and a lingering finish. Excellent with pasta, spicy sausage and grilled meats.

$4.75 half glass $9.50 glass $37.00 bottle

icola Calamari loves food and loves to cook. The vigor with which he tells you this makes you wonder if he ever gets out of the kitchen. And then he goes on to tell you about the gratification he gets from cooking and you begin to understand why he spends so much time there.

This love of cooking developed when Nicola was about ten and lived with his mother and grandmother near Florence. The family cooked with ingredients raised on their own farm and Nicola learned the importance of using the freshest and highest quality ingredients. His first job was as a dishwasher in a trattoria at age sixteen. As Nicola tells it, “It seemed that one day I was washing dishes, then one day I was cooking! I prepared and cooked everything on the menu; that was how I learned to cook.” A stint in the army later took him to many parts of Italy, including Marche, where he ate from the north of the region in Pesaro down to the south in Ascoli Piceno.

Now Nicola is Chef-Partner at IL Fornaio in Del Mar, where he has been in charge of the kitchen for over six years. Much of his crew has been with him since his early days at IL Fornaio and he takes great satisfaction in how well they all work together. “Standing at the line and seeing the results of my work—these are some of my best moments.”

he cuisine of Marche is unique in that it is really two cuisines: one of the mountains and one of the sea. The fish and shellfish dishes abundant at the coast are not found inland, and the hearty meat dishes of the mountains are not prepared along the coast.

The one element which both cooking styles do have in common is that their preparation is based largely on the products of the soil: aromatic herbs, vegetables not found elsewhere, wild greens. Because of this, dishes from Marche do not often become part of any other cuisine.

Lamb and pork are commonly used, and prosciutto from Carpegna is famous throughout Italy. Fennel grows wild, finding its way into many dishes. The fat, fleshy olives found only in the city of Ascoli Piceno are stuffed and served as antipasti. The escarole and dandelion that grow wild are sautéed and made into erbette.

The coastal cuisine is naturally rich in seafood. Much of the catch brought in at the coast is shipped off to Rome, but the bass caught off of Ancona never make it out of the port, and the best mussels are saved for use in the city. Ancona was founded by the Greeks and is the capital of the region.

“Rough and savory” fits the inland cuisine which reflects the Roman-Umbrian-Etruscan influence. Marche is one of Italy’s less-travelled regions. Urbino is most certainly the star of the region, surrounded by green hills as beautiful as those in Tuscany. The Palazzo Ducale in Urbino is one of the finest of Renaissance palaces and contains masterpieces by Raphael and Federico Barroci. The Conero Coast south of Ancona is worth a visit, dotted with charming resort towns and spectacular views. The region of Marche is largely unspoiled by the advances of time—there are no grand hotels or restaurants—and is characterized by a quiet lifestyle and simply prepared, home-grown food.