On Sunday night we were able to celebrate our first event in the newly remodeled space. With some assistance from Chef Simone and Ombretta, we hosted a smashing surprise birthday party to remember. Here are the photos from the event – we are so happy to finally be able to share this space with you!
DC’s Metropolitain Baking Company is joining forces with Via Umbria, supplying our Georgetown market as its first-ever retail partner. Metropolitain will provide daily deliveries of baguettes, rustic loaves, pastries, and a specialty Umbrian bread called torta al testo made exclusively for us from the traditional Umbrian recipe. Via Umbria will feature their products in the Café, for private event dinners, and available to purchase in our market.
Every piece of bread from our large three pound rustique loaf down to our tiniest rolls for bite-size sandwiches have been made with care by their team of bakers. Metropolitain’s production team is led by Arnaud Courad, a French artisan baker who has been working in the industry for more than 40 years.
The Via Umbria kitchen team has been working with Metropolitain to perfect the torta al testo so it is exactly as it is in Umbria. “The Torta tests came out spectacular and we are all euphoric, the fresh yeast was the perfect ingredient. Sandwiches made on this bread will transport you to Umbria,” said Chef Miller who spent the day at Metropolitain until they got their recipe just right.
Said Metropolitain owner, Michelle Couraud “We have been making and delivering authentic European style breads throughout the DC area for almost 14 years now. Usually we deliver our breads, sold anonymously. It’s an exciting step to be the specialty provider in a boutique such as Via Umbria where the bread is being heralded for its quality and taste.”
And you will want to come in for a taste, and grab a bottle of fresh olive oil, dip the crusty hunk inside and enjoy the flavors.
DC’s Metropolitain Baking Company is joining forces with Via Umbria, supplying our Georgetown market as its first-ever retail partner. Metropolitain will provide daily ...
This Saturday, we spent selling some goods outside our store for the Book Hill Fall Market. Thank you for everyone who came out – we had a lot of curious fans begging for us to re-open!
We are working hard to open our doors for you! In the meantime, download our Calendar of Eventsand mark down some nights filled with cooking, demonstrations, book clubs, and wine.
We will see you soon, or as they say in Italian, ci vediamo!
What’s hot, Italian and waiting for you at the bar?
That’s right—illy coffee at the all new Via Umbria opening this November! Paired with a fresh made croissant, and sipped at the bar—Via Umbria provides the traditional Italian coffee bar experience right in Georgetown.
“You can grab a cup of coffee anywhere; we wanted to offer people a real Italian coffee experience. Stop in on your way to work, order a small, delicious cup of illy and talk politics with your neighbor—just like in Italy. We will open at 7am for coffee and breakfast,” said Suzy Menard, one of the owners of Via Umbria.
Via Umbria’s coffee bar is perfect for those who crave the classic social European coffee experience instead of a cafe overrun with people on headphones and laptops.
Later this week, Via Umbria will announce its website’s new press page for up-to-date news, events and announcements.
CONTACT: Jenny Buck, Via Umbria
(612)801-6056
jennybuck1@gmail.com
What happens when passions collide? In this case, amazing flavor as Via Umbria opens its doors in a few short weeks. One of its many new offerings will be Italian cooking demonstrations paired with the perfect wine—and who better to bring these two together than DC Chef and Sommelier, Vickie Reh.
“Joining Via Umbria is the perfect opportunity for me—it combines my passion for cooking, wine and tourism. Via Umbria’s owners, Bill and Suzy Menard bring quality to everything they do and I am looking forward to being part of their new Italian Marketplace in Georgetown.”
Many DC Foodies will remember Reh in her position as Chef at Buck’s Fishing & Camping. Reh is a Certified Sommelier and a recipient of the Level Three Award from the Wine Spirits and Education Trust, passing with Distinction. Since leaving Buck’s she has been a wine consultant and personal chef and is currently working on a book about food and wine. “I’ve been waiting for the next right opportunity and this is it. I met the Menards when I was Chef at Buck’s years ago, and we became friends. I’ve travelled with them to Italy and cooked with them in their home. I am really excited to join this enticing endeavor. More than a restaurant or market, Via Umbria is an authentic Italian experience and I get to help make that happen.”
Via Umbria will operate café style during the day with guests enjoying freshly prepared fare from the onsite kitchen. Cooking and wine classes in the exhibition kitchen will be offered.
“Introducing our customers to the complete experience of Umbrian food and wine is going to be great fun! Via Umbria will have everything needed for those looking to learn about cooking specialty Italian fare at home–fabulous authentic ingredients and an enthusiastic staff ready to advise every step of the way!”
Via Umbria will open in early November, with a tentative date of November 7th In the meantime, you can read about the adventures of Chef Reh and the Menards as they lead an upcoming Food and Wine Tour at their Italian farmhouse, right here on the blog. To read more about Vickie Reh’s ideas about food and wine and her culinary odyssey with Bill & Suzy, check our her blog http://www.vickieswinetable.com/blog.
For those of you who already know and love Simone Proietti-Pesci, for those who have had an opportunity to meet him in Cannara, Bevagna, Washington, DC or across the U.S, and for those who will meet him on his annual trip in January: his restaurant – le Delizie del Borgo – is having a grand re–opening this weekend!
Le Delizie del Borgo is one of our favorite restaurants in Umbria and is always our first stop when we drive to Cannara after landing in Rome. Located in a quiet public park just outside the city walls of Bevagna and just pochi passi from his old location, the new Delizie del Borgo is a perfect mix of indoor air conditioned seating and outdoor seating in the park.
Simone and partner Ombretta always use the freshest seasonal ingredients to create dishes that are both traditional and new. Look for porcini mushrooms, wild asparagus, foraged herbs, fresh truffles and pasta made fresh daily. And be sure to tell Simone that you’re friends of Via Umbria!
Via Umbria is rolling out the red carpet in our Galleria to celebrate the premiere of the six-episode travel series Dream of Italyon PBS.
Dream of Italy, the PBS series, is based on the award-winning subscription travel newsletter, Dream of Italy. In the series, McCabe visits six areas of Italy, meeting the colorful locals — chefs, artisans, historians — who are deeply connected to their land, carrying on and preserving the traditions of their ancestors. The regions covered in the series include Rome, Tuscany, Puglia, Piedmont/Lake Iseo, Naples/The Amalfi Coast and of course, Umbria.
Our special guest will be Chef Simone Proietti-Pesci, owner and master chef at La Delizie del Borgo in Bevagna. Chef Simone will conduct a cooking demonstration of traditional Umbrian delicacies and of course there will be plenty to taste. Plus, sip on some of Umbria’s best wines and watch clips from the series.
Join host Kathy McCabe and Via Umbria owners Suzy and Bill Menard at the store on Saturday, May 30th at 5 p.m. for a celebration of all things Italian and Umbrian. To attend the Dream of Italy party, RSVP to Elsa at elsa@viaumbria.com. See you there!