While one can, of course, enjoy food anywhere, Bologna offers an unparalleled gastronomical experience.
The Travel – Condé Nast Traveller recently did a poll among their readers. According to that poll, the Italian city of Bologna emerged as the food capital of the world. Of course, some would have expected Paris, whose world-renowned chefs have been long revered in food circles or even the Big Apple, which, according to a recent article in the New York Times, is home to the best bagels in the United States, to have emerged top. Yet this announcement should not come as an overwhelming surprise.
Italian cuisine is always one of the most famous in the world, if not the most famous. Joe Biden’s love affair with capellini al pomodoro (angel hair pasta with tomato sauce), for instance, even found its way into the pages of a Washington Post article. And who would really blame Uncle Joe for coming under the spell of Italian food? Yet if the food world revolves around Italy, Bologna could be the axis.
What Makes Bologna The Food Capital Of The World
Bologna may not be as famous as Rome, Florence, or Venice; however, when it comes to food, gourmands across the globe swear that no other city can hold a candle to Italy’s Food Capital. Yet “la Rossa,” or “the Red One,” as Bologna is called, has a long, dated history with food. For starters, both tortellini and tortelloni originated in Bologna, a fact that has even spawned a legend. Ostensibly, Venus and Jupiter once stayed at a tavern on the outskirts of Bologna. Awe-struck by the beauty of the goddess of love, the innkeeper would peep through a keyhole to catch a better glimpse of the goddess. Unfortunately, he could only see the outline of her navel. But this was enough for the innkeeper to prepare several batches of pasta resembling the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Of course, over the years, Bologna has fine-tuned its culinary art with respect to its legacy dish that today, it’s damn hard to be disappointed with tortellini in Bologna.
