urban beets

Discovering Life’s Lessons Through Shared Plates

This article began as a way of cheating a restaurant review I had to write. The assignment seemed simple: pick a restaurant and become ‘Anthon Ego’ for a few lines. Become a merciless critic, stab a restaurant’s soul with your words but I wasn’t expecting to have a Ratatouille drop-the-pen moment.

I was stunned by an epiphany brought on by the beautiful dance between tripa and gnocchi—two dishes sold separately but destined to come together. Tripa, with its slightly acidic and sweet tomato sauce, found the perfect partner in the creamy, rich gnocchi alla Raschera. Their flavor profiles couldn’t be more different, but maybe that’s why they worked so well together. (The fact that it’s cheese and tomato help, of course)

Our visit to Mondovì was unplanned, the result of hating another city. But funny enough, it turned out to be a place I’ll never forget. Beyond the food, it was here that I learned something unexpected: sometimes, two people can want the same thing but be too afraid to admit it to each other. And that sometimes, a shared dislike—like hating a university—can bring people together in unexpected ways.

But it’s not just about mixing dishes; it’s the sharing that adds that extra flavor. As someone once said, in life, you have to find a partner who complements you. And it’s not just about big things like goals, values, or ideas—it’s about the little quirks that make sharing life (and food) sweeter.

It’s about finding someone who loves black olives and hates green ones, so you can swap them every time they pop up in your meal. Someone who will happily take the purple figs while you savor the green ones. It’s about being with someone who’s cool with you stealing a fry off their plate—or better yet, who you can order two different dishes (even if you both wanna order the same one) so you can share and discover them together.