Food Club & Special Offers
For more information about the i Ricchi Food Club please click here.
- Food Club: August 9-14
Palio di Siena: The craziest (and tastiest) horse race in the world!
Siena is the scene of one of the most anticipated and exciting historical horse races of the year. To celebrate, the entire city takes to the streets to eat and drink at parties that last all week. These communal dinners bring people together to share in centuries-old traditions of camaraderie and local culinary specialties.
The Palio will finally take place again this year, and this week’s menu will give you a taste of what could be served on their communal tables decorating the streets of Siena.
- Food Club: August 2-7
Ferragosto: August Staycation with Mamma
For the two weeks before and after the holiday of Ferragosto on August 15th, it seems as if all of Italy goes on vacation crowding the beaches and mountain resorts and leaving the cities virtually deserted. As with all other Italian holidays, food is the main attraction whether prepared for a festive picnic or stay-at-home summer lunch.
“Il Pranzo di Ferragosto”/”A Mid-August Lunch” is a delightful cult film that is a glimpse into the life of a middle aged bachelor living with his octogenarian mother over the long holiday weekend in Rome. Food, appetite, and the need for community are prominent themes along with an intimate peak into the complicated dynamics that exist between Italian men and their mothers.
This week’s menu highlights some of the food served in the movie as well as other dishes that could be found at a mid-August lunch whether for a vacation picnic or at home for a staycation lunch with Mamma.
- DC Restaurant Week: August 16-21, 2022
It’s Time to Come to the Table!
Eating together helps build understanding and strengthens the bond between us. It can foster an exchange of ideas, break down prejudices and connect us on a most basic human level. This is something Italians have recognized for centuries. At the table sharing, reaching, pouring wine and eating food thoughtfully prepared, links us to who we are and develops empathy for others. Oh, how we’ve missed breaking bread together!
Menu
CALAMARI
Fried fresh baby squid with pomarola dipping sauce
ANTIPASTO SALAD
Italian greens, aged pecorino, fennel salame, artichoke hearts, olives, cherry tomatoes, crispy faro & red wine vinaigrette
PICI AL’AGLIONE
House-made thick spaghetti, garlic tomato sauce with whipped ricotta garnish
RISOTTO AI FUNGHI
Imported Vialone Nano rice with assorted wild mushrooms
ZUPPA DI POMODORI ARROSTITI
Oven roasted tomato soup garnished with basil mascarpone & parmesan crisp
***
MAFALDINE SCAMPI
Homemade pasta ribbons with shrimp, crustacean stock, and toasted breadcrumbs
SALSICCIE
Braised sweet & hot Tuscan fennel sausages with roasted grapes & creamy polenta
POLLO FRITTO
Tuscan deep fried chicken with crispy fried potatoes
MERLUZZO AL GREMOLATA DI ZUCCHINI E PINOLI
Pan seared cod topped with zucchini, pine nut gremolata served over cannellini beans
EGGPLANT PARMESAN
Baked summer eggplant layered with fresh mozzarella, tomato & parmesan
***
CANNOLI
Hand dipped chocolate pistachio rimmed cannoli filled with ricotta cream
PANNA COTTA
Molded fresh cream with honey, toasted almonds & summer berries
TIRAMISU
Espresso infused ladyfingers, whipped mascarpone cream & chocolate
BOMBOLONI
Tuscan mini cream filled donuts with peach coulis
SORBETTO DI LIMONE E PANNA MONTATA
Lemon sorbet with whipped cream and lemon crisps
$55
- Palio Di Siena: August 21, 2022
ANNUAL COMMUNITY DINNER PARTY
Sunday, August 21, 2022 – 6:00pm
Siena, Italy is home to one of the most anticipated and exciting horse races in the world. To celebrate, the entire city takes to the streets to eat and drink at parties that last all night! We will recapture that unique sense of camaraderie, merriment, and good food unique to the region and ”The Palio.” Depending on the weather, long communal tables will line our outdoor Piazza OR our Tuscan dining room adorned with Sienese flags.
MENU
SPRITZ ESTIVA E CROSTINI – Summer Spritz cocktail & assorted crostini
STROZZAPRETI AL CINGHIALE – Handmade Sienese pasta with wild boar
ARROSTO ALLO SPIEDO –Grilled skewers of pork loin, chicken, sausage, Tuscan croutons
FRITTURA – Fried zucchini blossoms & summer garden vegetables
INSALATA DI CAMPO – Chicory, arugula, radish, mint, fresh lemon & Tuscan olive oil
CROSTATA DI PESCHE E MANDORLE – Homemade peach & almond tartp
$89
RESERVATIONS: 202 835 0459
- Christmas in August!
It’s never too early to plan for Christmas. Book your holiday party in one of our private rooms during the month of August and enjoy: COMPLIMENTARY HORS D’OEUVRES.
i Ricchi has venues for every need. Consider multi-course Italian celebratory dinners with elegant service or more casual family-style settings. Cocktail receptions, King’s grazing tables, buffet dinners, dessert parties, custom breakfasts, office lunches are just some of the options.
Christianne Ricchi will work with you to create a memorable experience.
Email her at crricchi@aol.com or call 202 835 0459 to reserve your space.
- Food Club: July 26-31
WEEK 123 MENU: July 26-31, 2022
Capri: Blue Waters and Lemon Trees
Right at the top of my ever-growing post-COVID bucket list is the return to the Isle of Capri. It has always been a choice of well-heeled international tourists and discriminating Italians. An iconic celebrity destination since the 40s and 50s, it is a glorious balance of idyllic scenery, spectacular coastline, designer shopping and fabulous homegrown flavors.
Its cuisine is dominated by a plethora of fresh seafood and vegetables that are at their height now, during the summer months. This week’s menu highlights some of Capri’s most well-loved dishes paired with the region’s renowned Falanghina white wine.
A Capri dinner would not be complete without a sip of its lemony nectar – limoncello – distilled right here in Washington, DC and some of the best I have ever tasted.
- Food Club: July 19-25
Tutti al Mare! Tuscans at the Beach
This year, Italians finally are planning to return to their beloved beaches with the hope that tourists will follow. Though many of us are still not comfortable making the trip to Italy, at least we can reflect on vacations past while imbibing in its local flavors, enhanced by its colorful customs. Italians absolutely love beach life and are most likely the sexiest and most fashionable beachgoers in the world.
La Versilia is a very unique stretch of Tuscan Mediterranean coast backed by the Apuan Alps. It is best known for its golden beaches, nightlife, art communities, and surf-n-turf – Mare e Monti – cuisine. But to fully enjoy the Italian beach culture you need to know its unspoken rules. After all, you do not want to look like a tourist on an Italian beach!
- Food Club: July 12-17
Sardinia: Where People Live Forever
The most interesting fact about the island of Sardinia is that it boasts the largest number of centenarians per capita than any other place on Earth. Their consumption of clean, simple “peasant food,” together with red wine rich in antioxidants and polyphenols just may be the reason for their longevity.
Our Sardinian menu highlights the mainstays of their Mediterranean diet – legumes, vegetables, olive oil, pasta, cheese and seafood. Those together with, Cannonau, a red wine made from grapes indigenous to the island could be the key to living a long and healthy life.
- Recipe: Grilled Zucchini Ribbons with Burrata & Saba
Ingredients:
4 large zucchini
½ cup extra virgin olive oil (divided)
sea salt
ground black pepper
¼ cup chopped onion
2 balls burrata (4 oz each)
¼ cup parsley breadcrumbs
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
splash of saba Reduced grape must)
Directions:
1. Prepare a charcoal grill or heat a gas grill to high
2. Wash the zucchini and trim the ends. Using a mandolin or sharp knife, thinly slice the zucchini lengthwise. Toss the zucchini with 1/3 the olive oil, salt & pepper to taste. Quickly grill the zucchini ribbons until lightly marked & wilted, about 1-2 minutes. Remove to a plate and let cool slightly.
3. When slightly cooled, toss zucchini in a bowl with a pinch of chopped red onion and olive oil. Adjust seasoning to taste. Place on a dish, top with ½ ball of burrata, a sprinkle with parsley breadcrumbs and finish with a thin stream of saba.
- Every Sunday: Fried Chicken Meal
At our little Trattoria in Tuscany we were famous for our “Pollo Fritto,” fried chicken. The Florentines would drive out to visit us in the country on the weekends and we would always sell out. I am proud to say that my American friends and customers (even those from the South!) seem to have also fallen in love with my recipe so I am starting a new tradition. On Sundays I will be frying up my recipe — this time for the Washingtonians.
And now we have perfected a Gluten-Free version that is equally delicious and have created an entire menu that is gluten-free to accompany.
- Every Sunday: Prime Rib Sunday Supper
Our Sunday night Prime Rib Supper is designed to deliver good, solid comfort food to nurture both the flesh and the spirit. We slow-roast our herb-crusted prime rib for hours, and serve it sliced thick with a rich beef jus reduction and crispy steak fries, fresh salad, rosemary focaccia and our Tuscan tiramisu. We are also offering three tiers of wine that go beautifully with supper. Enjoy!
