On my very first day in Florence, the owner of the villa where I am staying (her name is Clara) told me about a place called Teatro del Sale and said that it is an experience worth having. Literally meaning "Theater of the Salt," it is a dinner theater run by the same person who owns several very high-end restaurants in Florence. If I was to have the chance to try his food, Teatro del Sale would be my best/least expensive option.
It is a unique place. Before you can go you have to purchase a membership for 5 Euro, which means that you can then go there for breakfast, lunch and dinner which are each fixed price. You can hang out there whenever you want, though you need to make reservations for the evening activities. Every night from Tuesday through Saturday there is some sort of show offered. It runs the gamut from comedy to music or dance. At a cost of 30 Euro it is not inexpensive but your evening reservation gets you all the food and drink you want plus the show. So ultimately it would seem you get your money's worth.
Last week Clara sent me the program and told me that Saturday night's show was sure to be a good one. So my friend Melissa and I decided to give it a go. We arrived at about 7pm and the door opened at about 7:30. People then rush into the main theater which, at the beginning of the evening, is set up as a restaurant with tables. You find your table and shortly thereafter, the head chef leans out the window of the kitchen and starts yelling that the food is ready. I am sure that he is providing a lot of detail about what the food is, but since it is all in Italian I never had a clue what was going on. Every once in a while we could pick out a word, usually it was "limone" (lemon), but we may have been wrong because he seemed to say that every time.
All I can say for sure is that for the next hour and a half he would lean out the window every 10 minutes or so to yell something else, at which point everyone would charge toward the window to get their plate of whatever he was serving. Throughout all this there is also a buffet table holding numerous platters and bowls of various salads, breads and vegetables, all of which was delicious. There was so much food I didn't know what to do, I felt compelled to try almost everything even when I wasn't sure what it was. Just when I was so full I thought I might explode, something else would come out. And then there was the self-serve wine holder, a big wooden box with a spigot, one box for white and one for red, that you could visit as often as you like. This is an idea I can really support.
The final shout-out from the kitchen was for dessert, which was the best coffee gelato I've had since I got here. It was so good that Melissa and I each had 2 servings after which I felt sure I'd need to be rolled out of there. Just as you're stuffing your face with this tasty delight, the manager comes around and starts taking away the tables. Your chairs are repositioned facing the stage in preparation for the show.
That night we had the privilege of seeing the band Dennis & The Jets, a self-described rockabilly band. I've heard the term rockabilly before but really wasn't sure what that might mean. As it turns out, this is a local band of somewhat older men (a couple of whom attempt to channel Elvis, right down to the dance moves) who play songs from the 50s. [If you'd like a visual, check out the following link: http://www.dennisandthejets.com/gallery24.htm] They had a lot of energy and provided a very entertaining show but the best part was that they would play these very American songs seemingly without knowing English.
For example:
"We gonna rock around the clock tonight... we gonna rock rock rock, til ah bay lie..."
"You ain't nothin but a hound dog... hi alla hine..."
They seemed to get the words for the one main line of the song but after that it sort of fell apart. I guess it's possible that they were singing the English words with a strong Italian accent but I can't be sure. Regardless, the songs were fun and instantly recognizable and they put on a great show. Once again I was really wishing I knew Italian because between songs, Dennis would talk about various things that I am guessing were pretty funny based on the audience reaction.
Melissa and I heartily agreed that it was worth every penny, from the hollering chef to the bottomless wine to the delicious food and great entertainment. Now that we are part of the club we'll have to go back at least a couple more times, though Dennis & The Jets will be a hard act to follow.
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