Welcome to the Via Rosa Newsletter—so glad you’re here!
Here’s a taste of the newest content we’ve been sharing on our website lately - a fresh roundup of stories, updates, and inspiration we can’t wait for you to explore. Plus last minute openings on tours for 2026!!
After a very rainy winter here in Italy, spring has sprung and with it, the first peas, fava beans, and asparagus have started appearing at the market and fruttivendolo. If you’re in Italy, now is the time to enjoy the last of the artichokes and winter citrus while waiting for the first strawberries of the season. We always look forward to spring and the fresh green vegetables it brings, so we thought now would be a great time to round up some inspiring recipes from our guest hosts that you can cook all season long.
Easter in Italy tends to follow a familiar rhythm. There’s almost always lamb at the center of the table, simply roasted and surrounded by the best of spring: artichokes, peas, asparagus. Antipasto might include cured meats, fresh fava beans and pecorino, and of course hard boiled eggs, a symbol of the holiday.
The first course is where there’s more room to improvise. One year it might be asparagus soup, another pasta al forno or risotto with whatever is in season. Dessert, on the other hand, is rarely up for debate, with classics like pastiera, colomba, and the inevitable chocolate eggs making their annual appearance.
Here, though, I’ve taken a slightly different approach. Each dish is rooted in tradition, but a little less obvious: a spring lasagna with artichokes, a Roman-style lamb inspired by the city’s Jewish cooking in place of the usual roast, a simple kale salad, and ciaramicola, a festive Easter cake from Perugia to finish. It’s quintessentially Italian without being predictable, and the kind of meal that makes the whole table feel just a little extra special.
And although Easter is past, this menu makes the most of Spring all season long.
If I had to choose one city in Italy for a long weekend devoted to good food, it would probably be Bologna. After all, Italians nicknamed it la grassa, the fat one, for a reason. And that tells you quite a lot.
Bologna has always felt unapologetically itself. It’s not trendy or polished in the way some northern cities like Milan or Turin can be, and despite its endless porticoes and medieval bell towers, it doesn’t lean on grand monuments to impress you. Instead, it’s a city of atmosphere and appetite that wins you over gradually, one homemade dish at a time. I always tell people that Bologna is less about ticking off sights and more about planning your meals.
For over thirty years, my family and I have split our time between our two beloved homes: our apartment in Rome and our villa in the hills outside Todi, in Umbria.
While life in the city tends to be busy, with errands to run, restaurants to try, and almost always somewhere to be, in the countryside things slow down quite a bit and we end up spending most of our time at home. In the winter there’s a fire going, and in the summer the pool makes it very tempting not to leave. When it comes to eating, our large marble table under a shady, vine-covered pergola means having people over for lunch or dinner is a no-brainer. And since most of the ingredients come straight from our garden, the menu planning usually takes care of itself.
Still, every now and then it’s nice to head into town. Perched high above the valley of the Tiber River, Todi is one of those classic Umbrian hill towns that seems to float above the countryside. With its medieval streets and beautiful central piazza, it feels both elegant and wonderfully laid-back. And luckily, there are plenty of good places to eat and drink, from traditional trattorie to wine bars and relaxed little spots for coffee or aperitivo.
And while Todi isn’t as big or as well-known as Perugia, which we’ve already written about in a dedicated guide, we think this town deserves one of its own, since we spend so much time here and it holds a special place in our lives.
Schostal Originals is one of the rare stores that feels timeless but not frozen in time. Enter off the elegant Via della Fontanella di Borghese and you find yourself in an old school shop with shelves stacked floor to ceiling with shirts, sweaters, socks, and pajamas perfectly folded and wrapped in plastic or cardboard boxes. Antique wood-and-glass display cases are filled with silk scarves and ascots. Running the show from behind the counter is Shirley Braine, whose husband Roberto Bloch represents the third generation of proprietors.
Opened in 1870 by the Schostal brothers from Vienna, the shop was originally located on Via del Corso and sold petticoats, handkerchiefs, stockings, and shirts. When Lazaro Bloch acquired it in the early 1900s, he kept the name and passed it down from generation to generation. Framed on the walls are archival documents attesting to the store’s prestige, including a certificate from King Vittorio Emanuele III declaring it an official supplier of the royal house of Savoy dated 1918.
Via Rosa organizes small group tours that explore Italy’s rich and diverse food culture. Each journey is thoughtfully led by either Elizabeth or Sophie—the founders of Via Rosa—or by a carefully selected guest host from their trusted circle of food experts and friends.
While most of our tours are currently waitlist-only (they sell out fast!), a few spots have just opened up on select departures with our guest hosts. As a subscriber to this newsletter, you’re among the first to hear about these limited openings.
September 13-19, 2026: The Culture of Food in Puglia hosted by Erin O’Brien
October 18-24, 2026: The Culture of Food in Parma hosted by Shereen Pavlides
You can find our full schedule of tours by clicking the button below
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