Bologna, Italy - Lunch at Drogheria della Rosa

I have just returned from a five-day trip to the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. If you're not familiar with this area (Bologna is the capital) it is famous for both its food (prosciutto di Parma, Parmigiano Reggiano, Aceto Balsamico) and its automative industry (Ferrari, Ducati, Lamborghini). 

As I landed in Bologna at lunchtime, I went directly from the airport to a culinary gem called Drogheria della Rosa, to tuck into my first meal. This traditional Bolognese trattoria used to be an old pharmacy and still has shelves full of apothecary jars. 

We started with a nice cold glass of prosecco:

Past diners include Francis Ford Coppola, Danny de Vito and Arnold Schwarzennegger. 

Apart from the food, one of the biggest draws at Drogheria della Rosa is the owner, Emanuele Addone, a southern Italian who personally comes to each table to wait on you and regale you with stories of all types. 

Emanuele sent over this starter, which was delicious (though I was too afraid to ask what it was for fear it might have been horse meat).

We selected a bottle of local Sangiovese wine:

This pasta course was actually a southern Italian dish, drawing on the owners roots. It was cavatelli pasta tossed with sweet sausage and broccoli:

I could not resist the famous tagliatelle bolognese, the pasta with meat sauce that was invented right here in the city that bears its name:

For the second course we had a melt-in-your-mouth (no knife necessary) piece of pork loin with potatoes and chicory:

Before dessert we tasted some chunks of the local parmigiano reggiano cheese:

And we finished with a mascarpone cream dressed with persimmon sauce and chocolate chip disks:

Drogheria della Rosa also has one of the finest wine cellars in all of Europe, with some bottles reaching up to 3,000EUR! There are tables in the cellar as well, which makes for a cosy dining experience. 

Even if you've eaten so much you roll right out of Drogheria della Rosa, like I did, make sure you walk around the corner to La Sorbetteria, where under the arched porticos you will discover one of the best gelato spots in Bologna.

Here you will find all of the classic flavors (chocolate chip, pistachio, hazelnut) alongside some very inventive combinations that La Sorbetteria have created using all natural ingredients, including favorites like Dolce Karin (white chocolate ice cream with caramel covered hazelnuts) and Desiderio (Mascarpone ice cream with spreadable gianduja cream). 

The gelato is made continuously throughout the day directly on-site:

Stay tuned for the next four days of my food tour throughout Emilia-Romagna (with a pit-stop at a famous winery in the Chianti section of Tuscany)!

Alexandra D. Foster Cushion Giveaway!

As many of you know, I recently launched my own luxury cushion collection with designs inspired by my travels. Today I have teamed up with fellow blogger Erin of House of Turquoise to offer one lucky reader a cushion cover of their choice!!! So head on over to House of Turquoise and enter the competition here. Good luck!!

I'm also excited to share that my cushions were featured in the November issues of Town & Country and Traditional Home magazines! You can view the entire collection on my website: Alexandra D. Foster. 

London, England - A Private Tour of Kensington Palace

Last evening Kensington Palace invited 50 of its neighbors to an after hours cocktail party and private viewing of The King's State Apartments in conjunction with The Kensington Magazine. Over 250 people were turned away for this 'Meet the Neighbors' event, so I was very lucky to have been included (and to live two blocks from the palace). 

We started with wine and nibbles ... 

And learned some fun facts from the Head of Kensington Palace ...

Then we began our private tour of The King's State Apartments ...

We all ascended the King's Grand Staircase ...

These little characters were all illuminated in the lanterns lining the staircase ...

The first series of rooms we visited were covered in massive tapestries and had the most amazing hand-painted ceilings ...

Then we entered the Cupola Room where the King entertained with live music and dancing ...

The ceiling was a magnificent optical illusion, even though it was entirely flat, it was painted to resemble the ceiling in the Pantheon in Rome ...

 From there we went into the Drawing Room, where the King would host card games ...

And on into his private study, which now houses royal period dress ... 

Quite an elaborate window treatment ...

We also saw the King's Coronation robe, lined in ermine fur with a train that took six boys to carry ...

The last room of the King's State Apartments was perhaps the most grand and impressive. The ceiling depicted one of the many scenes from Homer's Odyssey ... 

 We descended the King's Grand Staircase again and returned to the cocktail party. It was such a privilege to be in the Palace after hours and have it all to ourselves.