Typically Autumn marks the beginning of oyster festivals when our proud harvesters and obsessed fans from Buzzards Bay to Narragansett Bay celebrate their fall bounty of local oysters. As oysters thrive in our harbors and bays, they are nurtured and protected, as well as the waters around them, by devoted farmers, and devoured by Oyster Nation. As we like to say at Cibo, “eat where you are”, and Cibo is where it’s at. Once a regular customer and oyster lover challenged that she could tell where her oyster was from with her eyes closed. She guessed Buzzard’s Bay and she was right, while her friend didn’t care as long as it was fresh, also right. So on this first day of Autumn 2020, while festivals may be cancelled, limited or gone virtual, you can still support and celebrate the distinguishably rich and fresh oysters today at Cibo.

Eager, hungry customers, regulars and first-timers, have ventured out to Cibo and Corfinio, our sister restaurant in Easton, to enjoy good times and good food and it’s been great to see everyone again. You deserves it. It’s also meaningful to us behind the line to connect with our local farms and bring you their summer’s bounty with flair and flavor. Here is a terrific summer appetizer courtesy of Langwater Farm.

Langwater Farm Heirloom Tomato Toast

organic, prize winning heirloom tomatoes, herbed ricotta cheese, basil, red wine vinaigrette on toasted ciabatta.

We missed Langwater Farm and their folks who came by with our goodies and talked food, heirloom this, and zucchini that.  The feeling is mutual at Langwater, “Now that you’re back open and doing lots of business, we’re glad to be back to our regular routine.” The routine, as in the farm-to-table food chain, is back in business. As the folks at Langwater say, “We love that we get to do business with neighbors–this is localism on steroids! Plus your whole kitchen crew are so creative and just plain good at their jobs and it’s always a pleasure working with people who are passionate about food like we are.” Here are a few more expressions of our passion on steroids. Thanks again for coming back!

Fettuccine Pomodoro

Langwater farm tomatoes, garlic, basil and parmsesn.

Zucca Loca

organic Langwater farm zucchini, cilantro aioli, toasted Parmesan cheese

Fried Green Tomatoes

panko encrusted fried Langwater green tomatoes, cucumber mango salsa, chipotle aioli, cotija cheese and cilantro

Langwater Roasted Golden Zucchini

saffron rice, oven roasted tomato and red onion jam, green chili aioli, crispy quinoa

When it comes to Italian comfort food what typically comes to mind are classics like pasta, bolognese, spaghetti and meatballs, risotto, and all varieties of parmeseans, marsalas and piccatas, but hands down, one of the most scrumptious, comforting dish is our locally-sourced, organic roasted chicken with mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach.

It’s a classic Italian everyday staple, inexpensive and easy to prepare at home. Consequently, when dining out you might want to try something new, exotic, even risky like chicken livers sautéed with garlic, onions, cherry tomatoes and white wine, or chicken ballantine which requires stuffing. Who has time for stuffing at home! But that savory classic is still here for you when you want to come home while dining out.

Home is where the heart is, and the fresh bird…rinsed, plump, and covered in thick, cream-colored skin.

We marinate it in roasted garlic infused with olive oil, salt, pepper, very fresh rosemary and lemon for 24 hrs.

Made to order, it’s seared in the 500 degree oven. Flipped once, it has that crispy brown coating all around. You can request extra crispy too! Why not?

The luscious gravy is made from our own chicken stock, mushrooms, and heavy cream.

It’s served with spinach and creamy mashed potatoes. Good to be home again.

Much of what the season has to offer at this time of year you can find on our winter menu. We are taking advantage of all the locally sourced favorites like winter squash, artichoke, kale, radicchio, brussel sprouts, cranberries, apples, beets and wild mushrooms. These fresh seasonal ingredients are blended with our already wonderful dishes to add a new layer of flavor and texture, like the crunch of the pomegranate to the brussel sprout salad. Everyday we have specials that also get that blast of cold air like the Winter Panzanella with toasted bread, winter squash, dried cranberries, kale, feta, and white balsamic dressing. Isn’t that lovely?! Our specials change daily so be sure to check us out on Facebook.

The Autumn Wheatberry Salad with tuscan kale, radicchio, sweet potato, feta, dried cherries, pepitas, and maple-soy vinaigrette.

The Buttercup Squash Ravioli with pears, walnuts, sage-brown butter sauce, and shaved Parmesan.

The Brussel Sprout Salad with pomegranate, pecans, pears, romano, and a cranberry vinaigrette.

The Artichokes Pizza with pesto, toasted garlic, fresh mozzarella, Romano, arugula, and aged apple vinegar.

No offense to the salad but sometimes it’s all about the dressing. Every well-planned salad must have an equally balanced dressing that compliments and clings to its ingredients. A light Italian dressing, smooth Caesar dressing, and a honey balsamic with a sweet kick beats a messy dressing that offends your tastebuds. Every dressing must begin with great olive oil and vinegar. Once they emulsify, the embellishing begins. That’s the fun part.

Marcella Hazan, chef and author of “Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking”, explains it perfectly when it comes to achieving that balance, “It takes four people to make a good salad. The Prodigal one for the olive oil, the Stingy one for the vinegar, the Judicious one for the salt, and the Patient one to toss.” We make nine dressings for very different salads so we will need to include the Obssesive one for the sweet, the Cautious one for the citrus, the Affable one for the cheese, and the Intrepid one for the herbs.

Our house salad is a big deal because of Little Leaf Farms in Devens, Massachusetts, where their motto is “Born Local. Raised Right.” They are greenhouse grown year round, harvested and delivered in one day, day after day. Bagged up by machine, never touched by yucky human hands, these babies reach our salads all crispy and flavorful. Crunch. They are harvested when they are about 4 weeks old, just right for that perfect bite-size.

While the greens are used primarily in our hugely popular house salad, you can find them everywhere on our menu.

Saffron is the most expensive spice on the planet, averaging $20 per gram at stores. Some distributors are more expensive than others. We purchase ours from Spain, which costs us about $70 per ounce (28 grams) wholesale. It’s so expensive because the three red delicate stigmas of the crocus plant are handpicked. It takes 100,000 flowers to make about one pound of saffron spice. That’s a lot of sore backs. Here at Cibo, and our sister restaurant Corfinio, we let the saffron flower bloom in white wine to extract it’s flavor, making a lovely saffron white wine broth which adds a soft red color and floral, sweet, earthy flavor to our specials such as Cozze Allo Zafferano with steamed mussels, peppers, onion and tomatoes, saffron white wine broth, basil drizzle and grilled ciabatta. We use it in other specials such as saffron risotto, bouillabaisse and paella. We post our specials every night on Facebook so check for these wonderful saffron dishes. You might get lucky.

If you want to give it a try in your kitchen, we suggest this simple recipe. Saute onions, peppers, and fresh garlic together. Add crushed or diced tomatoes with the juice. Then add sherry or white wine, a few threads of saffron, and give it a lazy bubble for 30 minutes or so. Add to your favorite fish, and serve with rice, risotto, or roasted potatoes. Simple enough.

“What is that?” Every night we try to answer that culinary question curious customers ask when thinking about ordering from our specials menu as we try to show off different ingredients and cooking styles that may be considered outside the usual Italian cuisine repertoire. If you have a better understanding of these ingredients, hopefully you’ll say, “I’ll try that!”

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Beurre-Blanc – Lobster risotto with fresh corn, tomatoes and spinach with lemon thyme beurre-blanc.

White wine and scallop reduction with bay leaf and black pepper corn that’s finished with tons of butter. We infuse it with fresh herbs like basil and lemon thyme from our own garden. It pairs best with fish.

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Hakerui Turnips – Pan seared halibut with roasted hakerui turnips, kale, asparagus and red peppers, fresh tomato jasmine rice, cucumber and lime vinaigrette.

A fresh, locally grown turnip that is sweeter than the Thanksgiving variety. Also known as the salad turnip, it’s eaten raw but best when roasted as it’s flavor becomes as sweet as candy.

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Ceviche – Striped bass and halibut marinated in lime, cilantro, jalapeno, and red onion with tortilla.

Ceviche is a simple yet diversified dish with three star ingredients; raw fish “cooked” in a citrus juice, any variety of hot peppers from jalapeño to Peruvian amarillo, and cilantro. Rounding out the flavor are fresh, seasonal vegetables such as Langwater tomatoes, red onion and corn. 

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Confit – Rabbit confit with roasted tomato and asparagus with pappardelle, tomato and mozzarella stuffed tenderloin, sherry reduction sauce.

Confit is any meat cooked in it’s own fat or, in the case of rabbit, olive oil as it doesn’t have much fat. While Farmer Mr. McGregor cooked his rabbit in a pie, we like to simmer it real slow at a low temperature until it’s tender and juicy.

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Harissa and Lime Aioli – Pan fried frog legs with harissa and lime aioli with micro arugula.

Harissa is a spice blend made with smoked cheyenne pepper. The lime makes the harissa less hot, while the aioli, made with egg, canola oil, garlic and a bit of magic, makes it smooth and creamy. As a side, frog legs taste like chicken but are flaky like cod.

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Capicola – Stuffed chicken with house capicola and cheddar filling

We make our own capicola. It’s the collar muscle of the pig that is dry rubbed with our house capicola seasoning that gives it a nice spicy kick. It sits for 2 days, and then slow roasted for 2 1/2 hours. It adds the wonderful savory flavor used in our chicken marsala, and makes for a nice treat in our specials.

The End

When we decided to include a veggie burger on our menu, we set out to make it as healthy as possible. Prepared fresh every week, our burger has 33 ingredients with seven fresh vegetables including sweet potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, broccoli, cauliflower, red peppers and mushrooms. It’s many stages of preparation result in a nice thick burger with a perfect blend of textures and flavors. Include the lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, avocado, and a hand-rolled brioche roll, and you have yourself the ultimate power lunch without the speeches.

Sweet potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, broccoli, cauliflower, red peppers and mushrooms roasting in the brick oven.

After roasting the veggies, we blend it with over 15 different herbs and spices, one of which is tumeric. We chose tumeric as a predominent spice because of it’s proven medicinal benefits. Typically used in Indian and Chinese cooking, tumeric has been a prescription for over two thousand years for many ailments, and it continues to intrigue medical experts researching it’s desease fighting potential. How’s that for team work and motivation.

Shaped into huge patties with over 15 different herbs and spices.

Crispy outer layer

For a little history lesson on the origin of the veggie burger, check out this Smithsonian article which says John and Yoko were eating the veggie burger long before it hit the mainstream. I can imagine that.

Mediterranean Grilled Octupus with spicy romesco-chilli sauce, roasted red peppers, garbanzo beans, kalamata olives, arugula, lemon dressing

Grilled octopus is always a big hit on our specials list because we do it right. We prepare it with olive oil, toasted potatoes, garlic, and lemon aioli with chili drizzle, or olive oil, seared potato, micro peppercress salad with chili drizzle, sometimes with kalamata aioli, arugula salad and chili drizzle, once in a while with lima beans and chili drizzle. We like to drizzle. And just the other day, we served it with roasted sweet potatoes and spicy habanero aioli.

Admittedly, something with 8 tentacles, hundreds of suction cups, a mystery sack and spewing ink doesn’t sound appetizing, or edible for that matter, but you can’t argue with thousands of years of tradition. High in protein, B-12 and iron, this squirmy sucking creature has always been very attractive to cultures in the Mediterranean, Asia, Africa and South America. Our Head Chef Pepe sticks to the tradition taught to him by his father. They would wade in the shallow waters on Marcona beach, once a quaint fishing town, near the Nazca Province in Peru and catch octopus. They simmered the octopus for half an hour, then grilled it or put it over ceviche.  A very easy recipe that makes it a little easier on the eyes.