Visitors to Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region typically visit Modena, home of the famous balsamic vinegar; or Parma, the source of the prized prosciutto and parmigiano-reggiano cheese; or Bologna, a famed “culinary capital” of Italy. But these are big cities by our standards. These foods are readily available throughout the region, and venturing out into the countryside can lead to wonderful discoveries, both historical and culinary.
One of our favorite places to visit in this area, in the middle of what used to be called the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, is the little town of Busseto. It sits at one end of the vast Po River plains, one of the agricultural breadbaskets of Italy. This area is also, notably, the birthplace of composer Giuseppe Verdi.
Porticoed walkways into the town along the Via Roma offer shaded comfort past Busseto’s shops, apartments, grocers, and bars. At the heart of the centro sits Caffè Centrale, a local café wholly dedicated to opera: on the walls hang a huge collection of signed, framed head-shots of opera stars past and present. The interior of the bar is more highly decorated than most: velvet-covered chairs, mahogany inlaid ceilings, chandeliers, and marble tabletops. The place is frequented by locals – at certain hours, local men arrive to claim a couple of the tables for their daily card games.
Outside in the main square, the bar’s opera fixation is readily apparent: Piazza Giuseppe Verdi is dominated by a huge statue of the famous composer in front of the imposing Teatro Verdi, a former fortress that dates back as far as the 10th century. The actual theater is housed in the castle structure, and is itself surprisingly small (about 300 seats) but very lavishly decorated. All the wood is carved to look like hanging beads or painted to look like marble. It is easy to see why the socialites of Verdi’s time regarded Busseto’s exclusive opera world with such high esteem – everyone who came to the performances here must have felt like they were steeped in the height of luxury (a fun fact: Verdi himself didn’t think much of this theater; he even sold his own box seats to demonstrate his disdain for it).
Just around the corner from the Caffè is one of Verdi’s (and our) favorite eateries – Salsamenteria Baratta, a total throwback in time. There are no plates, forks, or glasses; guests drink wine out of small ceramic bowls, which is traditional in this area. There’s no real menu: instead, the staff delivers a huge, huge plate of the best locally-sourced meats and cheeses, plus their homemade sauces, to be eaten with chunks of their delicious bread. An original score of the composer Verdi is on display in the front, along with a piano he played on; opera music serenades you as you eat. Verdi himself used to come here, to eat and to buy local foodstuffs for himself and his friends.
Verdi was born not in Busseto but just a few kilometers away, in the tiny village of Le Roncole (now referred to as Roncole Verdi – because, fame). He is famously (perhaps spuriously) quoted as saying, “I am and always will be a peasant (paesano) from Roncole.” Verdi’s childhood home is open for tours as a museum, where visitors can see the very humble roots from which this musical icon sprang. His father was the keeper of a crossroads inn and general store here, much of which is still intact. Down the street is the town’s 11th-century Chiesa di San Michele Arcangelo, the church where Verdi was baptized – the same baptismal font is still there and is still used to this day.
The country we now know as Italy only became Italy as a result of the Risorgimento— the tumultuous period of Italian unification in the 19th century. Previously, the peninsula was an assortment of monarchies and city-states controlling various regions. Verdi and his music played an important part in the unification: several of his operas had not-too-subtle political overtones, favoring democracy over the abuse of power that came with monarchy and oligarchy. Since the country was unified during the height of Verdi’s fame, his music became the quintessential national music of the Italian people.
Because of those pre-unification city-states, this area is full of castles – many still intact and open for visitors. One such, at the center of the nearby small town of Fontanellato, is one of very few moated castles in Italy; others dot the hillsides in the surrounding hills. A scenic trip to stroll through a few of these historical sites goes a long way to walking off all of the great food you’ll eat here!
About the authors: Zeneba & Matt moved from the U.S. to Italy in 2019, where they live and work as performing musicians. They are also authors of four award-winning travel guidebooks (including one for Emilia-Romagna) and a memoir about their move to Italy. As Little Roads Europe, they craft itineraries for travelers to visit small towns and enjoy authentic experiences in Italy and Ireland. www.littleroadseurope.com.
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