08/05/2026
FRITTI E FRIZZANTE
Rachel Roddy on fried food and sparkling wine in three Italian cities
“A friend, now sadly dead, had a habit. Before visiting a new city, he’d do just enough research to put three dots on a map; something he wanted to see, somewhere he wanted to eat, and a park to rest in after the first two. The same friend also believed that if there’s one edible thing worth finding out about a city, it’s the fried specialty. Of course, he then had to make sure the place he marked on the map served the fried thing (if not, he might rethink that choice), and also check what’s traditionally drunk with it (if it wasn’t sparkling, again, possible rethink). The following is the result of this advice.
There’s more: sparking wine, with acid and CO2, also challenges fat, working in much the same way as a spritz of lemon or shake of vinegar, and while fat is slowly melting, the rush of bubbles is enlivening and essential. There is also our hunger and anticipation, our drumming of fingers and eyes on the kitchen door; coming at the start of a meal, fritti and frizzante have that advantage too.”
Read the full fritti e frizzante guide online now as part of the ‘Five Free’ from our ‘Best of’ Noble article archive, featured in Issue 28, published February 2022.
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