Never Trust a Thin Cook and Other Lessons from Italy's Culinary Capital

by Eric Dregni

I simply want to live in the place with the best food in the world. This dream led Eric Dregni to Italy, first to Milan and eventually to a small, fog-covered town to the Modena, the birthplace of balsamic vinegar, Ferrari, and Luciano Pavarotti. Never Trust a Thin Cook is a classic American abroad tale, brimming with adventures both expected and unexpected, awkward social moments, and most important, very good food. Parmesan thieves. Tortellini based on the shape of Venus's navel. Infiltrating the secret world of the balsamic vinegar elite. Life in Modena is a long way from the Leaning Tower of Pizza (the south Minneapolis pizzeria where Eric and his girlfriend and fellow traveler Katy first met), and while some Italians are impressed that "Minnesota" sounds like "minestrone," they are soon learning what it means to live in a country where the word "safe" doesn't actually exist-only "less dangerous." Thankfully, another meal is always waiting, and Dregni revels in uncorking the secrets of Italian cuisine, such as how to guzzle espresso "corrected" with grappa and learning that mold really does make a good salami great. What begins as a gastronomical quest soon becomes a revealing, authentic portrait of how Italians live and a hilarious demonstration of how American and Italian cultures differ. In Never Trust a Thin Cook , Eric Dregni dishes up the sometimes wild experiences of living abroad alongside the simple pleasures of Italian culture in perfect, complementary proportions.

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, Italy, Food, Memoir

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Eric Dregni has written nine books including Midwest Marvels, The Scooter Bible, Ads that Put America on Wheels, and Grazie a Dio non Sono Bolognese. As a 2004 Fulbright Fellow to the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Eric researched Scandinavian culture and roots for a forthcoming book. His time is divided between Italy, Norway, and Minneapolis where he is the curator for El Dorado Conquistador Museum and guitarist for the mock-rock trio Vinnie & the Stardüsters.

Reviews

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute! Makes me hungry.

[Jerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun series of pretty much completely separate essays about moving to Modena for two years from Minneapolis. The title of the book—which is what drew my attention to it—is just one of the essays, and not at all what the book is about.

Modena is the food capital of Italy because it is the pig capital and the balsamic vinegar capital. It’s also the home of Ferrari (or, at least, the Modenese consider it the home of Ferrari) and Maserati.

Coffee is never flavored; after all, coffee is a flavor… the protocol around coffee in Italy is strict, and experimenting is left to foreigners.

Much of Italy has changed since 2009 when this was written. In 2009, Starbucks had yet to make inroads into the Italian market. They apparently did so by exploiting just what Dregni notices about Milan: it isn’t very Italian.

Bars in the center of the city [Milan] serve meals that people gulp in piedi come un cavallo, or standing like a horse.

The perfect city for an in-n-out coffee establishment, not at all like drinking coffee in Modena.

Maurizio rarely smiles or speaks when fixing espresso; he must concentrate for perfection. The ritual begins as the barista bangs out the old grounds but never washes the coffee machine with soap since the flavor would be compromised. He loads it up with fresh grounds and packs it hard. The steam billows around the machine, and the black elixir dribbles down into a pair of heated tazze (cups).

He presents the tiny cups with only a thimble full of espresso lining the bottom. Everyone dumps in at least a teaspoon of sugar, which somehow dissolves in the already thick brew. Stirring the sugar is the longest part of the process and requires an absolutely bored expression, as though each swirl of the spoon might brings its stirrer closer to the grave.

While much of the writing is about food, a lot is also about being an under-the-table renter and teacher in Italy. One is even about evading the television tax. Many of Dregni’s essays play on things his students have said in his classes teaching them English, either about English, about life in Italy, or about what they imagine about life in America.

The word safe doesn’t really exist in Italian. Sicuro is just “secure.” My students suggest non pericoloso (not dangerous) but add that everything has a certain amount of danger, so “safe” is a paradox.

[Rich · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of anecdotes about the authors two-year sojourn in Italy, working and exploring and learning the culture. This was enjoyable, but seems like it was a bit too long, a bit too conversational at times, and less polished than I would have expected. A more judicious hand from the editor would have helped. But, it was informative, fun and downright funny in places. It's interesting enough, that I have bought another from Dregni about his time in Norway.

[Mindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author convinced his girlfriend to live abroad with him for 2 years. This enjoyable book with 47 short stories explains life in Italy. Very enjoyable.

[Les Reynolds · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was interesting, but didn’t capture my imagination the way that great travel writing does.

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It was fun to read about Italy from a Minnesotan's view. The author & his girlfriend spent two years over in Modena and he wrote about his travels and all that he had learned. It was very funny stuff to read about and all of the things he needed to learn. He was known as a tourists but eventually people befriended him and sort of "let him off the hook" for being American. This book makes you hungry as well as you're reading it. The one thing I learned about Italians that surprised me was that they rarely at spaghetti. Now I sound like a tourist. Who knew!

[Kenneth · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was quite interesting... a little long, but definitely made me smile and burst out laughing (much to the dismay of my roommate)
It was cute, and had many interesting points on the nationalism and characteristics of the country. The nuances of our countries and our differences was particularly interesting. The food! oh, the food! how important it is to the culture and the lifestyle, just simply makes me wish I knew how to speak Italian, and could visit.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read it because it's short and the publisher sent me a free copy. At first I thought, these are just anecdotes. But then I realized, great! these are anecdotes! It's an easy read with the author's standard sense of the absurd and obvious love of his characters. I laughed out loud, occasionally, on the bus.

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow going with this one. There are a number of words in Italian with definitions in the back to look them up. I really liked this book. I will forever appreciate good (Italian)food and good wine from now on.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Insight into the quirks of living in Italy and more specifically Modena.

Felt disjointed.

Always good to support a local author.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and enjoyable to read -- but it's making me reconsider my fantasy decision to move to Italy to instead just frequenting a really good Italian restaurant.

[Kitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun description of the author's two years in Modena, Italy, highlighting food and cultural differences. A good light read.

[R.A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining and also about food. Delicious.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book. Quick read. Funny!

[Doreen Longo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it!