The restaurant Bufalina in Guilford is a slice of Italy on the Connecticut shoreline. With their new book, “Lido: Recipes & Stories from Italy’s Beach Clubs,” chefs Melissa Pellegrino and Matt Scialabba are bringing the coast of Italy to readers everywhere.
The pair will discuss their book Tuesday, March 24 at 6:30 p.m. at R.J. Julia Booksellers in Madison. You can enjoy a spritz or non-alcoholic sparkling wine while you listen.
More than a cookbook, this volume blends gorgeous photos and prose about the lidi, beach clubs that dot the coast of Italy.
“At a beach club you can play cards, swim, have a plate of spaghetti with clams for lunch, have a glass of wine, a coffee, and take a nap,” said Scialabba. “That’s the rhythm of the day. Although the beach clubs are open to the public, Italian families come back year after year and rent the same row of chairs and umbrellas.”
The Italians call it dolce far niete or pleasant idleness.
The recipes included are the chefs’ interpretation of food they’ve tried during their research trips to Italy.
Tagliatelle with lemon cream, branzino with almond salsa verde and kataifi dough-wrapped shrimp with spicy mayo are some of Pellegrino’s favorite recipes from the book, which also includes cocktails and desserts.
“We wanted people not to have to spend too much time in the kitchen,” Pellegrino said. “We wanted the recipes to be easy, light and not too ‘cheffy’.”
The idea for the book emerged on a cold winter walk in the woods during the COVID pandemic. The couple have already published two books on Italian cooking, the last in 2012.
This book is dedicated to their daughter, Emilia, 13, who loves the beach and spaghetti with clams.
“This was our first book with a kid and a restaurant,” Scialabba said.
After producing a sample chapter on the Puglia region, publisher Hardie Grant greenlighted the project.
In the summer of 2024, the whole family set off for Italy to research the lidi, capped off with a Taylor Swift concert in Milan.
“It was an amazing experience to work on this project with our daughter, and we have great customers who supported us,” Pellegrino said. She hopes the book will inspire people to take an Italian vacation off the beaten path of Rome, Venice and Florence.
“There’s no better way to have a beach vacation and if you can’t get there, we hope we can transport you there through the book,” she said.
Dining and Cooking