We had been wandering around Orvieto with casual aimlessness for about two hours when we decided we were hungry. It was that inconvenient period of time to get hungry–around 3:45 when it’s too late for lunch and too early for dinner. We had just come from visiting the 13th century Duomo and our mouths were dry from hanging open with awe as we looked up at the golden murals and hulking marble statues of a variety of saints and apostles. The Duomo was really the only thing we had been wanting to do, but after we had left, I remembered my mom texting me that her favorite white wine was from Orvieto.
After much quiet deliberation, Eli began to lead us through the moderately crowded, cobblestoned streets. We were framed by picturesque buildings, simple and elegant flags hanging from them for Republic Day as our stomachs grumbled. We passed artists working meticulously in their shops, hunched over leather and clay while simultaneously keeping an eye on the door for customers. Finally, we took a right onto a steep alley studded with wooden sculptures of horses and cows on either side, and ducked into a small dark bar patronized by two old Italian men in the corner drinking beer. The barman was a tall and quiet guy with dark curls springing from his head. Behind him were three or four huge stainless steel fermenters for brewing beer crammed into the corner. Eli approached the bar and asked about food. The barman looked back at the four of us for a minute before retreating to a small service closet where a register was and consulted a younger guy with a large beard. After a moment, he came to us and said, “We can do cold things for you.” My friends and I looked at each other and shrugged and took him up on the somewhat vague offer, walking toward the bearded guy, who led us up a narrow set of stairs.
The stairs opened up to a large, brand new, very hip, and very empty dining room with white walls, which were occasionally adorned with vibrant pieces of modern art. Green velvet chairs flanked each table and the ceilings were trimmed with wandering ivy and LED lights. The bearded man, Riccardo, who I later found out is the chef of the restaurant, sat us down at a round table and recapped what the barman, Paolo, had told us. “Our dinner service doesn’t start for another hour and a half but we’re happy to make you some meats and cheese and beef tartare. Would you like to see a wine list?” We were thrilled. We felt like celebrities in the empty ornate dining room. We were also a bit intimidated by thoughts of Can we afford this place? Do we seem like goofy Americans wanting to eat so early?
After we had decided to order all of the meats and cheeses and beef tartare we could, we were lost on what wine to get. We asked Riccardo if he had any suggestions, to which he gave a detailed explanation of Orvieto’s famous white wine. I mentioned that I had seen the fermenters downstairs and asked if they brewed beer, to which he gave a full run down of each beer they served. We were still, admittedly, lost on which wine to get, so he offered to bring us a bottle to try that he thought would pair nicely with the charcuterie we got. We agreed as he smiled and walked away. We looked at each other as if we were in the Twilight Zone. The whole experience was so nice it almost felt as though we weren’t supposed to be there. Moments later, he returned, poised as ever with a bottle of wine in hand. He skillfully opened the bottle as he asked us where we were from. We told him we were from South Carolina, studying in Spoleto.
“Surely you’re not from Aiken?” He said with a smile.
“What’s in Aiken?” We asked.
“I have many friends in Aiken. I love it there. It’s actually the sister city of Orvieto. I was there just a few months ago,” He said proudly. This random waiter at a restaurant in the middle of Italy has ties to Aiken? And this beautiful little town with a 13th century Duomo was sister city to Aiken, SC? Aiken? We laughed at the coincidence, talked about Charleston for a while and began to taste the wine. It was unlike anything I’d ever tasted: chilled, smooth and light, with bright flavors of apple and apricot. We left the restaurant after an hour or so, our heads light with the wine and our stomachs full with the food, content with how our day had changed because of the experience
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