Beth Eats Italy Part II: Ah, Capri

I have to confess that when I stepped off of the hydrofoil from Naples and arrived in Capri, it was a moment of pure happiness. I had always wanted to see this part of the world, so it was the realization of a dream. It’s not everyday that you get to be somewhere that you’ve always wanted to go. And it was a pretty fantastic feeling even though I hadn’t gotten past the marina yet. It’s times like this that reinforce my feeling that travel truly is one of life’s great pleasures, and is awfully good for the soul. That’s me in the middle below!

At the marina, we were greeted by a representative from the Capri Tiberio Palace, the hotel where we would be staying for this leg of the trip. Our bags were counted, collected and taken up to the hotel for us, then safely planted in our rooms. When you travel to Capri, this is a really nice touch because otherwise you have to drag your luggage with you to your hotel – which entails some walking, a trip up the “funicular” (think cross between train and skiing gondola heading upwards) and more walking. Capri is primarily a pedestrian island and while there are taxis, their reach throughout the island is limited to specific areas. Already the Tiberio Palace was proving to be a fantastic host. One could easily get very used to this 5 diamond deluxe lifestyle!

In my last post, part 1 of “Beth Eats Italy: Naples”, most of the food I enjoyed and shared with you was more like ‘home-cookin’ than anything else. In Capri, it would be fine dining all the way! Moving forward into this “Italian Adventure” was like living in some culinary parallel universe where everything placed in front of me was presented in the most creative way imaginable, using the finest, freshest ingredients and prepared by chefs at restaurants with incredible accolades. I believe that eating your way through another culture is the best way to understand it. And all of our meals in Capri were a testament to it’s glitzy, yet beachy vibe. That’s not to say that you can’t find a simple pizza, salad or pasta there, but we were destined for something else.

Upon arrival at the Capri Tiberio Palace, we were offered a champagne flute filled with a tart, but still perfectly sweet house made lemonade (lemons are a big deal in these parts!). I was escorted to my room, and settling in was so much fun because the suite was truly a wonderful mix of casual elegance with a beachy feel. It was extremely cozy with hard wood floors and white and blue ceramic details with a wonderful sitting area, huge windows, an incredible terrace and a mind blowing view. Everywhere I turned, there was a cool detail to take in.

Renovations of the entire property will take place over the winter so what is already fabulous will only be better come next season. I should also mention that the Blu Mediterraneo Spa by Acqua di Parma is sensational. I had one of the best massages of my life there.

That night, we were having dinner with our hosts from the hotel and it was such a fun, fine dining, italian feast! Cocktails were in the Jacky Bar, Tiberio’s funky lounge where we were treated to some fresh, light hors d’oeuvres of salmon and green apple carpaccio, beef and capers carpaccio and cherry tomoatos with smoked mozzarella (I’m finding that you are hard pressed to find a meal that doesn’t include mozzarella cheese here). It was such a nice way to start another large meal – all three were so refreshing and didn’t take much room up in the stomach!

After cocktails, we made our way down to their restaurant called Terrazza Tiberio. The service, the company and of course the food were memorable. Here’s the lowdown on what I ate (Foodies, hold on to your hats):
The amuse bouche was cous cous and eggplant over tomato cancasay w/anchovie. Next was eggplant flan w/buffalo riccotta, tomato and basil vinaigrette. This was to die for, so already I’m worried about my ability to consume everything I want to eat! Next came caprese ravioli. It was unlike any ravioli I had ever had before. Here, they were like cute little pillows of yumminess (yes. I said “yumminess”) vs. the square, flatter version we get at home. .
Hey, did you know that the caprese salad was born in Capri? And, so is ravioli! It was news to me!

My main course was a seabass en palette (steamed in a bag) with a side salad of bitter greens, lemon and the fruitiest olive oil I’ve ever had.This seemingly simple dinner was so incredibly good! The fish was flaky, citrusy and cooked perfectly, and the salad was fresh, light and the ideal side to the sea bass.

It’ll come as no surprise that I was full at this point, but I couldn’t resist dessert. Not one that looked like the picture below! It was white chocolate mouse with a licorice caramel ‘heart’ covered w/chocolate
sauce. ‘Nuf said.I’m going to reel myself in here and save some of my adventures in Capri for another time. What I’ve written about just scratches the surface of one day, one meal and one hotel! There are the famous grottos, cliffs, caves and of course the shopping! Capri is without question somewhere that you want to make sure is on your ‘bucket list’ so stay tuned to hear more about it!

For more information on any of the above, just ask! If you missed Beth Eats Italy Part 1: Naples: here it is!

Beth Eats Italy Part 1: Naples

Ciao for now!
Beth

follow me on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/BethLovesTravel
on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/beth.friedman1
beth@elitetravelinternational.com
journeybybeth@yahoo.com