In our family tradition of international travel over the Christmas holiday, we generally read as much as we can about our destination in advance so that we are aware of options and historically important sights, but we leave most of our itinerary in the hands of spontaneity. The one exception is that I identify one “fancier” restaurant in advance for a lunch reservation on Christmas Day. This provides some insurance that we’ll have a festive holiday experience on the actually holiday, a day on which most shops and restaurants are closed in European countries. This also gives us a chance to experience a traditional holiday meal, local style, something we always enjoy.
Prior to this trip, I understood that Italians, especially in southern Italy, celebrate Vigilia di Natale (literally, the vigil of the birth of the baby Jesus) with a Feast of the Seven Fishes. Then, a traditional Christmas Day meal, while somewhat variable, is likely to include antipasti, a stuffed pasta served in a meat broth, and some sort of roast meat (note: this is as far as can be from the American roast ham!), and a panettone (light, buttery sponge cake) for dessert.
My search for restaurants serving a special Christmas lunch in the area surrounding Lucca (where our apartment was located) revealed a number of interesting options. We chose Restaurant Le Repubbliche Marinare Pisa, a restaurant in Pisa (site of the Leaning Tower) that was offering a special fixed price tasting menu. When I sent an email to request a reservation, they offered a to prepare a simple pasta dish for our daughter. I thanked them but suggested that she would likely enjoy the tasting menu as already planned. We really want her to have the opportunity to experience the richness of the cultural fabric when we travel, and chicken nuggets and french fries would obscure that pretty completely! We thought the menu included a choice of dishes at each course, but upon our arrival, we learned that we were going to be served each of the dishes listed, which amounted to 9 (yes, 9!) separate tasting plates, each so beautifully presented as to leave us awestruck.