Tonight we will be eating out at a restraurant in Garlenda.  The Osteria dei Bischeri (Borgata Chiappa, Via Roma) Tel 0182-582599 is down a slope beneath a large sign on the left beyond the far end of the village.

You dine in a large and very beautiful rustic room, served by the owner, Aldo, and his friendly staff all of whom speak good English.

The food and wines are Tuscan through and through, and the price is reasonable for the high quality of the food. The antipasto of salami, cheese and soup is excellent, as are the pasta and rice dishes.

All the meats and sausages are excellent, but many order the house speciality which is a truly gigantic Fiorentina steak (plenty for two people). Note, however, that unless you specify otherwise the steak will be cooked in the way that Italians prefer – that is, hardly cooked at all on the inside! At the end of it all you will be plied with limoncello, mirto, grappa, vin santo etc.