Among the lush hills of the Pisa country side, in the middle of the quaint town of S.Giuliano Terme exists a place where you can forget about all your troubles, and enter a dream world made of pleasant smells, soft music, and elegance hard to find elsewhere these days. This is a real gem, aesthetically stunning, where you can spend a week at the hotel, a day at the spa, or a night at the exquisite restaurant, where you can savor a revised version of the delightful Tuscan cuisine.
As you approach the town of San Giuliano Terme, driving up on winding narrow roads, you reach the heart of this small, picturesque, sleepy town where the old man still sit outside chatting and chilling. Right there, you find yourself on Corso Shelley and you see the elegantly sober facade of the hotel, Bagni di Pisa. As you walk in, you are overwhelmed by the beauty and the elegance of the rooms, and the light coming in from the big windows. We were there at night and coincidentally on a full moon night, which made it all the more magical to see the moonbeams coming through the majestic, turn of the century, French windows.
Greeted by the host all dressed in white, we are escorted to our candle lit round table, all beautifully set in a total white look. The light all around is soft, just like the soft-spoken people sitting at the other tables, big lamps light up the pink bushes of the Oleanders. We open our menus and choose a good local red wine from a vineyard in Montecarlo, above the city of Lucca, called Buonamico. As an hors d’oeuvre, I decide to order raw shrimp, on a bed of turmeric mayonnaise, with sun-dried tomatoes, cubed peaches, rocket salad and mixed baby greens.
After this succulent appetizer my taste buds were in heaven, not knowing yet what was supposed to come next was even better. As a main course, I ordered a special type of pasta called “paccheri” on a smooth and fresh peas pure, with shrimp sautéed in white wine, topped with fresh burrata cheese. Burrata is a type of mozzarella but way softer than the usual one, with a milky cream heart. The truth is, burrata is impossible to describe in words, its one of a kind flavor and consistency must be tasted!
After such a memorable dinner I could not skip dessert, so I chose my favorite tiramisu. The special part was that it became one of my two birthday cakes, since this was my special birthay dinner which I truly enjoyed. I feel really lucky to live close to so much beauty!
With Love and gratitude.