TR - A few Days exploring the Udine area
May 17th, 2009, 11:53 AM
#1
Original Poster
TR - A few Days exploring the Udine area
We decided to spend a few days of our 3 week vacation to Northern Italy in the Udine area. I wanted to share our experience there since when I was looking for information on this board and others, there was very little. I appreciate those of you who did know the area and provided us with some great recommendations. Highly recommend a visit to this area. In our 3 days we got a glimpse of what seem to be a rather undiscovered region of Italy, undiscovered by Americans that is. Be happy to answer any questions.
We stayed about 10 kilometers outside of Udine in the prosperous little wine town of Buttrio, (Agriturismo Scacciapensierri, room 6). This room was an end unit somewhat away from the major downstairs dining area but over the auxiliary dining room which does fill up on the weekends. The restaurant seemed quite popular. Room 6 has a large comfortable bed, a large bathroom (tub, no shower) and a smallish balcony. As an added benefit, we were able to watch the culminating fireworks of the yearly wine festival from bed. About 100 euros/night.
The Udine area is destination rich. During our stay there we visited Cividale (very nice medieval town w/ some great churches and art galleries), Castelmonte (a tiny medieval town perilously perched on a hilltop), Aquilea (Roman and paleo-Christian mosaics), Gemona (another medieval village with a great church) and Trieste (large city with very strong Austrian/Hapsburg/Viennese coffee shop vibe). All are
recommended. Udine itself, is large, very pleasant university town with great Venetian-style architecture including a hilltop palace (great views!), an arch desinged by Palladio on a perfect piazza, great shopping (fashionable and affordable). It has an unusual modern art museum...the most interesting art there are is the pre-modern 19th Century genre paintings of life in the Friuli and the Veneto; the "modern" section has pretty slim pickings - a mediocre Picasso, a pedestrian Morandi, some so-so de Chiricos. Perhaps best of all, it is "do-able." You can drive wide, well-marked streets directly into town, arrive at an enormous parking lot, park, start walking and be in the old quarter in thirty seconds later. And we accomplished this over a holiday weekend when the town was packed.
Especially enjoyed our morning in Cividale (about 15 kms from Udine) which has a beautiful bridge, Devil's bridge, that splits the town in two. It's a stone bridge with 2 arches that appear to be embedded in the rock. The bridge crosses the Natisone River which has an aquamarine color and was very striking. From the bridge there are great views in both directions. The Palazzo dei Provveditori Veneti, was designed by Palladio. Cividale has a nice 15th century gothic cathedral.
The Udine area is also close to the Slovenian border and would lend itself to day trips to Slovenia once they resolve issues surrounding fees to drive on Slovenian roads.
Scacciapensierri had some of the best food we had in the Udine area; we regret only eating there the first night of our three night stay. Dinner was an antipasta of mixed local cheese and salume, lasagna, papparadelle with rabbit ragu and sacher tort, accompanied by the delicious home-made tokai wine. Tokai - not to be confused with its eponymous Hungarian dessert wine - is a specialty of the Friuli region. When we checked out, we bought a bottle of Scacciapensierria tokai and brought it back to the US with us. Scacciapensierri's breakfast includes any uneaten baked desserts from the previous evening. I can honestly say that it is the only place - other than home - where I have had birthday cake for breakfast.
Other food notes:
> Cividale has a couple alleys that sell local cheese, salume and
breads. You can buy a glass of wine and snack in the street. Of
particlular note was the great 'gubbino' easter bread with cinnamon
and raisons.
> Near Trieste we ate dinner at the Trattoria Bella Riva, a
waterfront seafood restaurant off the coastal highway into Trieste.
You drive down into a little waterfront town then have to hike further
down - about four flights of stairs - to get to the restaurant. Great
views. Luscious melone & prosciutto, wonderful fritto misto (mixed
fried seafood), a delicious house malvasia and a so-so spaghetti
vongole that had fallen victim to the legendary Northern Italian
aversion to garlic. Good tiramasu.
> Vechio Stallo in Udine. It's in just about every piece of
literature for Udine. Best restaurant bread of the trip. And some
immense portions - an order of polenta with gorgonzola consisted of
what appearred to be three or four ladles of polenta with a truly
monumental slab of gorgonzola next to it. The bufalo mozzerella
appetizer was suberb. The crespele ai funghi was also pretty good.
Great house wine.
> San Danielle ham - a local speciality. Our last night in Udine we
ate early at a nameless tourist restaurant - the kind with the menu in
five languages - on the little stream that flows through town. (The
enoteca we'd planned to eat at had been closed w/out notice or
explanation.) San Danielle ham came to the rescue, saving some
otherwise unremarkable salads.
> Pan Salam in Gemona del Friuli, Gemona del Friuli. The name says
it all. After checking out Gemona's Sunday morning "antica" market -
three or four blocks of antique lace, used tablecloths, coins, stamps,
Mussolini photos and Chinese toys, and the town church, we stopped
here. Two huge toasted panini. A glass of delightful red wine. All
for eight euros.
One last note...Buttrio has a wine festival every year in late April/
early May, to coincide with the holidays of the period (end of World
War 2 holiday and International Workers' Day). We didn't partake of
too much of the wine festival - there was too many other things we
wanted to see and do. Nonetheless, for people with more time, this
would be a great opportunity to sample local wine, cheese and honey
and meet local people.
We stayed about 10 kilometers outside of Udine in the prosperous little wine town of Buttrio, (Agriturismo Scacciapensierri, room 6). This room was an end unit somewhat away from the major downstairs dining area but over the auxiliary dining room which does fill up on the weekends. The restaurant seemed quite popular. Room 6 has a large comfortable bed, a large bathroom (tub, no shower) and a smallish balcony. As an added benefit, we were able to watch the culminating fireworks of the yearly wine festival from bed. About 100 euros/night.
The Udine area is destination rich. During our stay there we visited Cividale (very nice medieval town w/ some great churches and art galleries), Castelmonte (a tiny medieval town perilously perched on a hilltop), Aquilea (Roman and paleo-Christian mosaics), Gemona (another medieval village with a great church) and Trieste (large city with very strong Austrian/Hapsburg/Viennese coffee shop vibe). All are
recommended. Udine itself, is large, very pleasant university town with great Venetian-style architecture including a hilltop palace (great views!), an arch desinged by Palladio on a perfect piazza, great shopping (fashionable and affordable). It has an unusual modern art museum...the most interesting art there are is the pre-modern 19th Century genre paintings of life in the Friuli and the Veneto; the "modern" section has pretty slim pickings - a mediocre Picasso, a pedestrian Morandi, some so-so de Chiricos. Perhaps best of all, it is "do-able." You can drive wide, well-marked streets directly into town, arrive at an enormous parking lot, park, start walking and be in the old quarter in thirty seconds later. And we accomplished this over a holiday weekend when the town was packed.
Especially enjoyed our morning in Cividale (about 15 kms from Udine) which has a beautiful bridge, Devil's bridge, that splits the town in two. It's a stone bridge with 2 arches that appear to be embedded in the rock. The bridge crosses the Natisone River which has an aquamarine color and was very striking. From the bridge there are great views in both directions. The Palazzo dei Provveditori Veneti, was designed by Palladio. Cividale has a nice 15th century gothic cathedral.
The Udine area is also close to the Slovenian border and would lend itself to day trips to Slovenia once they resolve issues surrounding fees to drive on Slovenian roads.
Scacciapensierri had some of the best food we had in the Udine area; we regret only eating there the first night of our three night stay. Dinner was an antipasta of mixed local cheese and salume, lasagna, papparadelle with rabbit ragu and sacher tort, accompanied by the delicious home-made tokai wine. Tokai - not to be confused with its eponymous Hungarian dessert wine - is a specialty of the Friuli region. When we checked out, we bought a bottle of Scacciapensierria tokai and brought it back to the US with us. Scacciapensierri's breakfast includes any uneaten baked desserts from the previous evening. I can honestly say that it is the only place - other than home - where I have had birthday cake for breakfast.
Other food notes:
> Cividale has a couple alleys that sell local cheese, salume and
breads. You can buy a glass of wine and snack in the street. Of
particlular note was the great 'gubbino' easter bread with cinnamon
and raisons.
> Near Trieste we ate dinner at the Trattoria Bella Riva, a
waterfront seafood restaurant off the coastal highway into Trieste.
You drive down into a little waterfront town then have to hike further
down - about four flights of stairs - to get to the restaurant. Great
views. Luscious melone & prosciutto, wonderful fritto misto (mixed
fried seafood), a delicious house malvasia and a so-so spaghetti
vongole that had fallen victim to the legendary Northern Italian
aversion to garlic. Good tiramasu.
> Vechio Stallo in Udine. It's in just about every piece of
literature for Udine. Best restaurant bread of the trip. And some
immense portions - an order of polenta with gorgonzola consisted of
what appearred to be three or four ladles of polenta with a truly
monumental slab of gorgonzola next to it. The bufalo mozzerella
appetizer was suberb. The crespele ai funghi was also pretty good.
Great house wine.
> San Danielle ham - a local speciality. Our last night in Udine we
ate early at a nameless tourist restaurant - the kind with the menu in
five languages - on the little stream that flows through town. (The
enoteca we'd planned to eat at had been closed w/out notice or
explanation.) San Danielle ham came to the rescue, saving some
otherwise unremarkable salads.
> Pan Salam in Gemona del Friuli, Gemona del Friuli. The name says
it all. After checking out Gemona's Sunday morning "antica" market -
three or four blocks of antique lace, used tablecloths, coins, stamps,
Mussolini photos and Chinese toys, and the town church, we stopped
here. Two huge toasted panini. A glass of delightful red wine. All
for eight euros.
One last note...Buttrio has a wine festival every year in late April/
early May, to coincide with the holidays of the period (end of World
War 2 holiday and International Workers' Day). We didn't partake of
too much of the wine festival - there was too many other things we
wanted to see and do. Nonetheless, for people with more time, this
would be a great opportunity to sample local wine, cheese and honey
and meet local people.
May 18th, 2009, 12:48 PM
#2
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Thanks! This is great info. Can I ask you a few questions about Scacciapensierri?
First, the cost for a half-board if you know it or can provide a website. Second, ease of parking. Third, is there a way to guarantee a quiet room? How were the beds? Italian matrimonial style?
By the way, I love birthday cake for breakfast! One of my secret pleasures living in Italy is the endless array of "fiber rich" cookies that are sold in supermarkets as breakfast foods. The packages all advise that -- with a glass of milk and a glass of pineapple juice -- it's a nutritious breakfast! I eat them religiously, but skip the liquids.
The mosaics you saw intrigue me. Did you like the town?
If you had it to do all over again would pick a different base? Spend more time in Trieste? Spend more time in the country? Anything you'd do differently? What do you imagine is the sweetest time of year to go?
I'm mainly a vegetarian with a soft heart for rabbits and I hate polenta. Would I do okay at your agriturismo -- think they'd accommodate me? Friendly folk? Did you consider any other agriturismi or spot any that you'd recommend?
Thanks!
First, the cost for a half-board if you know it or can provide a website. Second, ease of parking. Third, is there a way to guarantee a quiet room? How were the beds? Italian matrimonial style?
By the way, I love birthday cake for breakfast! One of my secret pleasures living in Italy is the endless array of "fiber rich" cookies that are sold in supermarkets as breakfast foods. The packages all advise that -- with a glass of milk and a glass of pineapple juice -- it's a nutritious breakfast! I eat them religiously, but skip the liquids.
The mosaics you saw intrigue me. Did you like the town?
If you had it to do all over again would pick a different base? Spend more time in Trieste? Spend more time in the country? Anything you'd do differently? What do you imagine is the sweetest time of year to go?
I'm mainly a vegetarian with a soft heart for rabbits and I hate polenta. Would I do okay at your agriturismo -- think they'd accommodate me? Friendly folk? Did you consider any other agriturismi or spot any that you'd recommend?
Thanks!
May 18th, 2009, 01:38 PM
#3
Original Poster
Here's the website for the agriturisom, http://www.aziendagricolamarinadanieli.it/
I bet it's quieter mid week and it did get quiet by 11 pm or so, not much later. I think the dining room closes at 10 pm. The way the rooms are set up is that 3 are over the auxilary dining room and that's where where we stayed. the other 2 rooms were over the regular dining room. I don't know if that would be quieter. There was 1 room that faced the back and didnt have a balcony that may have been quieter. There are only 5 rooms. Don't know the half board rate, but I'm sure it's on the website or u could email. Our bed was 2 twins pushed together with one sheet (this is what we found alot this trip). Is that Italian matrimonal?
I thought I died and went to heaven when I found 3 cakes for breakfast!! Did u wince when u read our food description of the lasagna? sorry. They recited a menu to us so I really don't recall what the items were given I didn't have the opportunity to mull it over. Again u could email and ask what they prepare. They were very responsive via email and nice when we were there...not overfriendly, but fine.
I looked for a bit online for a place to stay in the area and I think someone on this board recommended it. Then I read the Mario Battali stuff online and he mentioned it, so I figured, give it a try and was happy with it. Yes, there is parking--it's out in the country maybe a mile from the town itself. On Saturday night we did come home around 10 pm and found no parking in the lot. We just parked across the road and then moved it when some folks left the B&B. I imagine we could have left it where it was, but my husband didnt feel comfortable doing that.
Aquilea was just packed -- it was the Sunday of holiday weekend and that may have taken away from the town itself. the info offices gives you a walk you can take to see the roman ruins and we did that and then left. We were in Ravenna last Spring and these mosaics while interesting, paled in comparison. Of course i imagine many mosacis will now pale in comparison to Ravenna.
I thought Buttrio was fine as a base. Not much in the town itself. Close to an autostrada and lots of great small roads to go from here to there.
Would definitely spend more time in Trieste--we went there very spur of the moment, after we had visited Aquilea. We hit horrendous traffic getting into town, so got into Trieste early evening. Didn't have a map of the town and couldn't seem to find a hotel or info place to get one. I liked it and would have enjoyed spending at least a full day there, 2 would be nice, with a map. If you are a beach person, u could easily spend more time there.
and lastly, what would I do differently? Spend more time in the area! I feel we barely scratched the surface.
I bet it's quieter mid week and it did get quiet by 11 pm or so, not much later. I think the dining room closes at 10 pm. The way the rooms are set up is that 3 are over the auxilary dining room and that's where where we stayed. the other 2 rooms were over the regular dining room. I don't know if that would be quieter. There was 1 room that faced the back and didnt have a balcony that may have been quieter. There are only 5 rooms. Don't know the half board rate, but I'm sure it's on the website or u could email. Our bed was 2 twins pushed together with one sheet (this is what we found alot this trip). Is that Italian matrimonal?
I thought I died and went to heaven when I found 3 cakes for breakfast!! Did u wince when u read our food description of the lasagna? sorry. They recited a menu to us so I really don't recall what the items were given I didn't have the opportunity to mull it over. Again u could email and ask what they prepare. They were very responsive via email and nice when we were there...not overfriendly, but fine.
I looked for a bit online for a place to stay in the area and I think someone on this board recommended it. Then I read the Mario Battali stuff online and he mentioned it, so I figured, give it a try and was happy with it. Yes, there is parking--it's out in the country maybe a mile from the town itself. On Saturday night we did come home around 10 pm and found no parking in the lot. We just parked across the road and then moved it when some folks left the B&B. I imagine we could have left it where it was, but my husband didnt feel comfortable doing that.
Aquilea was just packed -- it was the Sunday of holiday weekend and that may have taken away from the town itself. the info offices gives you a walk you can take to see the roman ruins and we did that and then left. We were in Ravenna last Spring and these mosaics while interesting, paled in comparison. Of course i imagine many mosacis will now pale in comparison to Ravenna.
I thought Buttrio was fine as a base. Not much in the town itself. Close to an autostrada and lots of great small roads to go from here to there.
Would definitely spend more time in Trieste--we went there very spur of the moment, after we had visited Aquilea. We hit horrendous traffic getting into town, so got into Trieste early evening. Didn't have a map of the town and couldn't seem to find a hotel or info place to get one. I liked it and would have enjoyed spending at least a full day there, 2 would be nice, with a map. If you are a beach person, u could easily spend more time there.
and lastly, what would I do differently? Spend more time in the area! I feel we barely scratched the surface.
May 18th, 2009, 01:53 PM
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Thanks for that detailed response! Yep, that's the "letto matriamoniale" -- two beds pushed together. I keep hoping I'll find a "letto inamorata" but no luck yet!
I'll definitely check out that agriturismo. I've had better luck following Battali's recipes than his restaurant recommendations, but I do pay attention and I've discovered touring in Italy that what I most enjoy is half-board places rather than restaurant-hopping. It's kind of a rule of thumb in American and England that you shouldn't eat at your hotel restaurant, but so often just the opposite is true in Italy. The hotel really takes care of your stomach, especially if it's a small family run place.
I'd like to spend at least a week to 10 days in that area. Sounds like you were traveling during the easter-liberation day -may day nexus this year. It's amazing how much Italians like to go touristing in their own country. I suspect I'd be trying to see these places in autumn, maybe to coincide with a few unusual film festivals in that region. Since I live at the sea, Trieste interests me less as a beach town than a caffe spot. It's always sounded so exotic culturally.
Thanks again!
I'll definitely check out that agriturismo. I've had better luck following Battali's recipes than his restaurant recommendations, but I do pay attention and I've discovered touring in Italy that what I most enjoy is half-board places rather than restaurant-hopping. It's kind of a rule of thumb in American and England that you shouldn't eat at your hotel restaurant, but so often just the opposite is true in Italy. The hotel really takes care of your stomach, especially if it's a small family run place.
I'd like to spend at least a week to 10 days in that area. Sounds like you were traveling during the easter-liberation day -may day nexus this year. It's amazing how much Italians like to go touristing in their own country. I suspect I'd be trying to see these places in autumn, maybe to coincide with a few unusual film festivals in that region. Since I live at the sea, Trieste interests me less as a beach town than a caffe spot. It's always sounded so exotic culturally.
Thanks again!
May 18th, 2009, 02:08 PM
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PS: I just spent a few moments looking at the menus at your agriturismo, including the easter menus, and they are extremely vegetable-lover friendly.
I've discovered living in Italy that much of the classic family cooking has vegetable dishes dominating, with egg or cheese providing the protein (sometimes beans), Meat appears as flavoring, or a minor note in small amounts. Tourism has pushed menus to be meat-centric, but often agriturismi buck the trend, especially when a main part of their income is from farming, rather than the restaurant tourist trade.
Another nice feature of agriturismi eating is that often Italian recipes are really perfected on the basis of being prepared for four or more people. When a party of four goes to a restaurant in Italy and orders different items for everybody -- I think the food sometimes suffers. It isn't as good when prepared as an individual serving. I'm sympathetic to tourists ordering lots of different dishes to get a "taste" of a wide vareity of specialities, but I've come to enjoy going half-board at an inn and the entire table being served the same dishes,
I've discovered living in Italy that much of the classic family cooking has vegetable dishes dominating, with egg or cheese providing the protein (sometimes beans), Meat appears as flavoring, or a minor note in small amounts. Tourism has pushed menus to be meat-centric, but often agriturismi buck the trend, especially when a main part of their income is from farming, rather than the restaurant tourist trade.
Another nice feature of agriturismi eating is that often Italian recipes are really perfected on the basis of being prepared for four or more people. When a party of four goes to a restaurant in Italy and orders different items for everybody -- I think the food sometimes suffers. It isn't as good when prepared as an individual serving. I'm sympathetic to tourists ordering lots of different dishes to get a "taste" of a wide vareity of specialities, but I've come to enjoy going half-board at an inn and the entire table being served the same dishes,
May 20th, 2009, 12:14 PM
#7
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zepp -- i agree re eating at agriturismo. We've always had good food and find that they are very flexible with what they can serve u esp when you're a guest at the b&b part. Hope u enjoy your summer and your trip to FG.
WT -- yes, we need more info on the less-traveled areas...of course, then they may not remain less-traveled
WT -- yes, we need more info on the less-traveled areas...of course, then they may not remain less-traveled
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Dec 16th, 2014, 01:00 AM
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i used these posts to help with planning our trip over the summer and got some great tips. want to add to this that we absolutely loved our agriturismo 'la faula' which was recommended here on fodors... and a food note. try to find a dish called 'frico' which is basically fried cheese (sometimes with potato) and very local. loved it. no trip report yet... maybe after the holidays!
Nov 8th, 2015, 03:22 PM
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I just found this while looking for info on Udine - there isn't much out there!
I have about three days in the middle of a trip I'm planning for next July - I'm meeting my husband in Venice but I'm flying in several days before him and was thinking Udine looked interesting. I won't have a car. I think I saw that Cividale is on a train line. Are any of the other places mentioned in the report doable without a car? I've been to Trieste so probably won't go there. Is there enough to do for three days in Udine and Cividale do you think?
I have about three days in the middle of a trip I'm planning for next July - I'm meeting my husband in Venice but I'm flying in several days before him and was thinking Udine looked interesting. I won't have a car. I think I saw that Cividale is on a train line. Are any of the other places mentioned in the report doable without a car? I've been to Trieste so probably won't go there. Is there enough to do for three days in Udine and Cividale do you think?
Nov 8th, 2015, 03:56 PM
#17
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Surprised to see this pop up! Too bad there is still not much out there on this area as it was really delightful.
I don't think I can help you much with where you can get to without a car as we had a car. I think that Udine & Cividale could easily fill 3 days. Aside from the sites in each, both towns are great for cafe people watching. Both were pleasantly crowded with Italians enjoying themselves. Have a good trip!
I don't think I can help you much with where you can get to without a car as we had a car. I think that Udine & Cividale could easily fill 3 days. Aside from the sites in each, both towns are great for cafe people watching. Both were pleasantly crowded with Italians enjoying themselves. Have a good trip!
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