Sea and fish in Bari

This weekend I was lucky enough to go back to Italy for a long weekend, but instead of going directly to Rome, I found flights that go straight to the south in Bari. There are many reasons why I love going to Bari: first, my grandmother, my perfect Italian grandmother who starts calling me every day a week before my arrival, just to be sure she is going to buy the right food for me and cook the right meals. Just because she is scared I am going to go hungry, and because according to her "There is no real food in London". The other main reason I love Bari is the sea; and along with that comes the raw seafood. I personally do not like Sushi, but there is just something about the raw seafood that you can buy directly from the port that makes me go crazy. Not all of the restaurants serve them because things like raw mussels, sea urchins and oysters can be quite dangerous, but I always make sure to go to Il Sorso Preferito, where the chef Pierino always makes sure to let me have a whole plate of raw 'Frutti di Mare' just for me. If I don't go there, I go to the fish-seller on Via Melo, who now knows me as 'La Romana' (The girl from Rome) and lets me have a taste of everything he has in the shop. Amazing.

Orecchiette con le Cime di Rapa cooked by my Nonna

Burrata and Focaccia in the backround

Sea Urchins or 'Ricci'

Frutti di Mare at the restaurant