Modena Italy. Amazing Foodie Heaven
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Modena Italy Visit — Continuing my backward recollection of our Mangiapalooza food tour of the Emilia Romagna region, we spent two days in the city of Modena, another gem of the region and a famous one for Balsamic Vinegar and Opera. Looking back, l would have done one thing differently though.
February 12, 2023
Modena is an elegant place that has a very rich history and is a place where the people make you feel welcome. The pace of life there is slower than in the other cities nearby such as Florence and Bologna. As you can guess, it’s off the radar for most foreigners. Perfect.
We spent a lot of time at the shops and we brought back a lot of goodies not found here.
Modena Italy: Two Days Of Deliciousness
Why did we choose to visit Modena?
Who wouldn’t be tempted by all these fresh pasta varieties? It reminded me of our pasta-making tour in Rome.
The reason can be summed up in one word. Food. The city is known for absolutely fantastic food and we wanted to experience it. We were not disappointed either.
Modena and the surrounding areas pack quite a punch when it comes to cuisine. It boasts three Michelin-star restaurants and another 15 or so Michelin guide ones. Amazing! Looking at the prices, some of them are quite reasonable too.
Our AirBnB happened to be a minute’s walk away from one of the most expensive ones. An eye whopping €340 for the meal and another €190 for the wine that accompanies the courses. No, thank you!
We could only afford to pose outside the Osteria Francescana, not eat in there :-). I’d never heard of the chef either much to Fede’s surprise.
Remember l had mentioned doing something differently? I should have made sure we were there on the actual weekend, and gotten to eat more food.
On Mondays, most restaurants are shut, even in other cities. The difference is that since those ones are more touristy, you can find a lot of restaurants open in the city center. Not in Modena, we walked and walked and only found one place open, and yep, the owner price gouged.
BOOK YOUR STAY IN MODENA
The most expensive bowl of bean soup I’ve ever had. Good though.
His coperto was 6 euros per person as opposed to 2–3 euros on normal days. What is a coperto you ask? It’s a cover charge for servings of bread, salt, etc., and is a normal part of your bill.
He also had specials as opposed to the regular menu, so you ordered blindly. My bowl of bean soup was 12 euros ($12.84) which is insane. At the end of the meal, he told us the price verbally with no presentation of a bill and of course, it was high.
Fede got into it with him and they took some money off the bill and apologized. The other poor victims that were tourists and didn’t speak the language were probably screwed. The food was good, but it soured the evening some.
That experience was the only sucky part of the days spent there. Everywhere else, the people were warm and engaging, and the food? excellent.
I am drooling as l write this post even though it’s early in the morning.
My other half reason was wanting to visit Pavarotti’s house which has been made into a small museum. Though not a fanatic, l appreciate his voice and thought it would be something to see.
Unfortunately, the house is not reachable by public transport, you’d have a 20-minute walk ahead of you after getting off at the stop. We were still up for it. That is until the rain started. We had an umbrella but nope, we weren’t gonna walk on unpaved muddy country roads in the middle of nowhere.
Images from the museum website where you can purchase your tickets.
There are agreed prices with the cab company from one point in the center of town, or the Modena train station that would take you there and back for €40 and included a one-hour wait time which is more than enough to take in the modest house. All in all, spending more than €60 for a half-hour at the most visit wasn’t worth it, but for true fans, it’s something to consider.
Modena doesn’t have a lot of must-see attractions and is therefore one of the reasons why it remains charming, but here are some things to see in Modena.
The Piazza Grande of Modena Italy:
I can’t seem to find any pictures from the daytime.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site as of 1997, sits smack dab in the center of town and consists of the Modena Cathedral and the Ghirlandina Tower. It’s pretty cool to see. You can climb up the 200 steps to the top of the tower for an amazing view of the city.
Modena’s Albinelli market:
Fresh produce and a dizzying array of fresh pasta with every kind of combination possible. We drooled and wished we could bring some back with us. There were also stalls selling balsamic vinegar, their most famous product.
You can even eat in the back where there is sitting. I had to die for lasagna with balsamic vinegar.
We were happy to find some in 100ml size, the maximum we could bring back in our hand luggage. They had so many things made with it, including chocolate which was delicious by the way.
Getting ready to feast with a jar of Lambrusco. Most restaurants keep the heat off because of the high cost of electricity. That black that shows under my sweater? Thermal top :-).
The local red wine is Lambrusco, one of my favorites. I was surprised that it wasn’t as sugary-sweet as in the states. It took a couple of glasses to appreciate it, but once l did, we indulged. Some places even serve it in bowls as that’s how it was served in the beginning.
The Ferrari Museums of Modena Italy:
In addition to Pavarotti, did you know that Enzo Ferrari was also a native son? If you’re a fast car lover, l suppose it’s worth a visit. It’s not my thing, and l wouldn’t know one if it ran over me.
Is Modena worth visiting?
If you’re a foodie, I would recommend a two-day minimum visit to really enjoy the place and try some of the homemade scrumptious food of the region.
You must try the fizzy wine that is Lambrusco, lots of varieties too.
Fresh pasta of all kinds.
They have famous tortellini, cotechino, and zampone, a combination of ground pork with herbs and spices stuffed into the hollowed-out lower leg of a hog. You can have pasta made with Lambrusco. It’s near heaven for a food lover. Don’t get me started on the desserts like Bensone.
If you’re not, a day trip is fine to discover the city center on foot. Modena is definitely worthy of a visit in my opinion, and we will be back.
Back to the food :-). Here are some of the food we had in Modena.
One can’t forget breakfast. Yummy!
Potatoes with balsamic vinegar reduction and fresh stracchino cheese. Wow!
Some of what we brought back.
You might like: Rome Food Tour
What can l say? I love bean soup. This was slow-roasted with some meat and chili for two days! It was perfect, especially after adding that red pepper to it.
We even opted for an Argentinian steak meal one evening. So fantastic.
Wrapping up our Modena Italy visit:
An amazing time and a place we would visit again. We are lucky as there is a direct flight from Valencia to Bologna, a city we adore, and from that base, you can visit Modena in about half an hour on the fast train at a cost of less than $5 each way, so it makes for a great day trip if you don’t want to spend the night.
Have you been to Modena Italy? If yes, did you enjoy it?
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