Risotto a La Gran Duca
A Tuscan Treasure

By Arnie Greenberg
Contact Arnie at
ultours@gmail.com

(The memorable Tuscan countryside, above)

I retired from my teaching post some years ago. It was with a certain
degree of fear that I faced the world of "timetableless" people. Now there's a word for you! What would I do? The answer was right before my eyes: I would travel. There are all sorts of opportunities, and they are not all expensive. So, I plan, I plot, and I go.

My way was to start a small group travel company. It's hardly a company but rather an interesting opportunity for me to keep busy and see new parts of the world. I had always done some traveling, but now I would go farther and more often. My first choice was France, and from there I went to Italy. Since then I have visited Russia, China, Thailand, Greece, Spain, Portugal, The Netherlands, Denmark, Britain, Hungary, Germany and many of the West Indian Islands, just to name a few. I travel. I return, and I start planning again.

How does one know where to stay -- even for a single night - while traveling? How many of you agonized over a particular town, street, hotel or guesthouse? Obviously, price is a consideration, and those five star chateaux are often out of the question. Sometimes we just don't have a choice. That's how I fell on the wonderful hotel off the beaten track not far from Pisa.

Not only was the hotel clean, modern and inexpensive, but also my palate was satisfied with a local specialty. Every once in a while you come across a dish that you never had and you wonder why that is.

Now, I like to eat with the best of them, and I've tried all sorts of weird and wonderful things.

Risotto with a Silver Spoon

But for some reason, Risotto is not one of the things I ever faced at a dinner party. They certainly didn't serve it at my home. So you can imagine my surprise when the waiter at the Gran Duca Hotel, just outside of Pisa, Italy, approached my table with a large serving bowl and a silver spoon.

(The Gran Duca Hotel just outside Pisa)

"Risotto with seafood (Risotto di Mare)?" he asked with a smile. "Why not?' I replied, with a frown. A huge wad of what looked like rice was dropped in my plate. I gingerly tasted a tiny drop. "Hmmm, not bad," I added. Then I ate larger fork-fulls, and my eyes lit up.

It was one of the best things I'd tried in years, and this out of the way hotel seemed to have the magic recipe It turned out to be a watershed in my gourmet history. I have returned often to this pink oasis on the way to Lucca. It was my palate's coming of age, and I order their special meal whenever I go there with my tours.

(The restaurant of the Gran Duca Hotel with its appealing, colorful display)

The Gran Duca Hotel is a three-star gem (which should be a four-star) with a five-star wine list. It's on the Lucca road a few miles from Pisa. Tell your friends! It is modern and inexpensive as well as VERY comfortable. They have a well-trained staff and treat you royally (or at least like a Duke). There's even a swimming pool and tennis courts.
The town is San Giuliano Terme on via del Brennero, 13. The email address of the hotel is reception@hotelgranduca.it, or look at the web site at www.hotelgranduca.it.

Order the seafood risotto in advance. You won't be sorry.

On to Lucca, the Old Capital

By the way…continue on to Lucca (the old capital). It's a historical wonder with a fortifying wall and a warren of Tuscan streets. There are so many hill villages and fortified towns from Lucca to Siena. Hill towns are wonderful places to become familiar with old Italy. Include Gubio, Todi and Orvieto. We can't examine them all, but even if you only visit a few, you will be rewarded.

Do some reading first or see a film set in the area. E.M. Forster's A Room with a View will give you a feeling for Florence and nearby Fiesole, the hill town older than Florence itself. You, too, will feel as one of the book's heroine who says, "I yearn to wake up in Florence."

I personally yearn to wake up anywhere in Tuscany. Lucca would be my choice, but I'd settle for Siena close to the Piazza del Campo, especially madcap 50-second bareback Palio (horse race) takes place in July and August.

A film that might capture your imagination would be Tea With Mussolini. It takes place partly in San Gimignano, less than 25 miles away. You'll see the towers that remain. Here, too, you can get some great food and ice cream that defies description. But that's for another article.

Meanwhile, here's a good tip about a book on Tuscany, Under the Tuscan Sun, by Frances Mayes. Read it, and you'll want to go there immediately.

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