A luscious cookbook of little known Venetian specialties from one of
London's hottest restaurants, accompanied by luminous photographs.
Tucked away in London's edgy Soho district, Polpo is one of the most
irrepressibly buzzing restaurants in town. Critics and food aficionados
have been flocking to this understated bacaro where Russell Norman
serves up small dishes-think tapas-from the back streets of Venice. A
far cry from the tourist-trap eateries of the famous floating city, this
kind of cooking is unfussy, innovative, and exuberantly delicious. The
120 recipes in this book range from salads and snacks to small main
courses, drinks, and desserts, including asparagus with Parmesan and
anchovy butter; warm duck salad with beets and walnuts; crispy baby
pizzas with zucchini, mint and chilli; scallops with lemon and
peppermint; soft-shell crab in Parmesan batter with fennel; fizzy
bellinis and glasses of bright orange spritz; panacotta with poached
rhubarb; and warm autumn fruits with amaretto cream.
The recipes are accompanied by luminescent photography within a dazzling
design, including a distinctive stripped-away spine to reveal colorful
Japanese stitching--a feature that also allows the book to lie open flat
on a chef's workstation. Polpo captures the unfrequented corners,
bustling bacari, and sublime waterways of Venice as they've never been
seen before.
