Ransom Tavern | South Woodstock, VT

The Kedron Valley Inn is a brick colonial beacon of elegance on a dark December night, situated at a crossroads in South Woodstock, Vermont. Wide hewn wood floors and worn loom rugs give way to a procession of glass lamps and evergreen boughs dangling with dried oranges and Christmas ornaments. The Ransom Tavern is a bar full of intimate conversation over savory Neapolitan fare. 

Thick embroidered drapes hang in grand colonial windows. Eye-catching antiques, soothing artwork, and creamy upholstered furniture such as duo of royal blue velvet chairs framing a portrait of Abe Lincoln meet a festive, modern Vermont dining room. The brightly lit space is full of wooden tables, clipboard menus, cheerful waitresses, and an open kitchen backed by a wood fired pizza oven.  A convivial tavern is bustling with patrons and families. Reservations are recommended. 

The food is wonderfully good, soul nourishing, and executed with finesse. Cocktails abound from Nonna's Old Fashioned ($12) to the Wassail ($14) which comes steaming hot in a joyfully round teacup and saucer. The wine list is award-winning, I opt for a glass of R. Stuart + Co. Big Fire Pinot Noir ($14). It tastes of fig, rich cherry, and nutmeg. The Meatballs and Ricotta ($15) come with two nestled in a glistening red sauce. The Roasted Beets Salad ($15) hits just right with mixed greens, red and gold beets, goat cheese, and toasted pumpkin seeds in a maple vinaigrette. The pizzas achieve that outstandingly chewy meets crisp Neapolitan excellence, with topping combinations to swoon over. Consider a trio of mushrooms: shitake, cremini, and oyster, plus roasted garlic, mozzarella, arugula, and shaved parmesan over a fresh roasted butternut squash puree ~ The Gardener ($24) should be your #1 pizza pick.

Broccoli Rabe and Sausage ($24) lends a distinct flavor and spice from the fennel sausage, roasted red peppers, and an elegant chili oil. The Capricciosa ($28) with tomato sauce, artichokes, cotto ham, fresh mozzarella, and basil rounds out the parade of pizzas nicely. The kids ordered ice cream sundaes ($8) for dessert while the adults enjoyed a Tiramisu ($12) and a Mille Foglie ($12). With final sips of Carpineto Dogajolo Rosso ($11) we wound down our precious time at the Kedron Valley Inn.

From Church Hill Road to Peterkin Hill, we navigated the mountain back roads and excitedly crossed the Ottaqueechee River over Lincoln Covered Bridge. Crossing a covered bridge by happenstance is so quintessentially Vermont, a moment that always deserves just that - a moment.

Ransom Tavern | Kedron Valley Inn

4778 South Road

South Woodstock, VT 05071

One Fire Beach | Praiano

Allow me to introduce the other side of Praiano which is actually called The Praiano Side. The Vettica Side is where we stayed. It would be a shame to visit Praiano and not explore both sides. 

From the western facing part of town you can view Positano in the distance and walk down many steps to the popular orange chair + orange umbrella lined One Fire Beach! 

To get from one side of Praiano to the other there is a bus that drives the main loop making frequent stops. You could definitely walk although it is far! Our bus stop was conveniently located at the bottom of Flavia Goa. (Flavia Goa is the pedestrian only street where our Airbnb was located.)

Make sure to have coins for the bus - and a baby counts as a full person even if they are attached! The drivers are helpful to point out your stop if you let them know where you're headed. 

The stop for the steps down to One Fire are at San Gennaro Church. 

And from there enjoy a scenic walk twisting and turning with signs and local artwork to guide you. 

Camden loved the squid sculpture!

We arrived around 1 pm to a concrete beach club ever so stylishly nestled into the cliff side. The friendly staff gave us our pick of lounge chairs. While Camden was the only baby here we didn't feel out of place with him, we felt welcomed. As the afternoon lingered One Fire became more and more crowded and it turns into quite the scene - queue the infamous watermelon cutting dance party! Also, a weekday in September tends to be the start of the slow season, in the high season you'd need a lounge chair reservation. 

We had the best day here. We made friends with a couple from Denver, Colorado on their honeymoon and I'm pretty sure Camden convinced them to go ahead for that honeymoon baby. 

We headed out around 6 pm leaving behind a pretty tipsy crowd which I have a feeling was only getting started. We were off to enjoy the sunset at Bar Del Sol located at the top of the steps across from the church. 

It was apparently a day for Aperol Spritz selfies. Meanwhile, Camden makes friends nearly everywhere he goes. Here he is hanging out with Roberto who has lived in Praiano all his life. 

After sunset we had a nice dinner at Cafe Novanta Quatro. Our meals were off the charts good. That perfect plate of rigatoni, tomato sauce and meatballs was accompanied by crusty bread and red wine. Quite literally there is nothing more satisfying!

The following evening was our 5th and final night in Praiano. Multiple people we met while here raved on and on about Criscitos. This pizza restaurant is just over the hill from Vettica into Praiano so we walked up and over and grabbed a table outside just in time for another sunset.

Criscitos is know for their fried pizza and it sure is something. I recommend getting a fried pizza and a regular pizza, I was astounded at how good both were. The menu selection is large and varied so we spent a great deal of time making a decision. It felt right to go for a simple one and an all out one. We also had a ridiculously good octopus carpaccio and a rare treat in Italy, craft beers!

This is very much a time where my photos are not living up to how good the food is here. If that just looks like a bunch of meat piled onto a pizza I'm sorry but it was one of the best pizzas I have ever had!! Salumi featuring mortadella are topped with pesto, pine nuts, fresh parsley, and tiny balsamic pearls that explode in your mouth.

Meanwhile, Camden was sleeping on my lap, the little angel! He is such a trooper at all these dinners out, it's honestly so much fun to bring him everywhere. We are lucky he's such an awesome and healthy baby. 

My parting words on Praiano: Make sure you visit both sides, don't hesitate to take your baby to One Fire Beach, Criscitos is a must visit for their fried Pizza!

Our day trip to Positano is up next.

T r a s t e v e r e | R o m a

Trastevere is the COOLEST. (Not sure if the 30 photos I posted above gave it away!) I loved staying in this charming and quintessentially Roman neighborhood just across the Tiber River, where the graffiti covered and draped in green ivy buildings date back centuries and the enchanting cobblestone streets encourage leisurely strolling. Located close to the historic center and south of the Vatican, we were able to walk to all the sites from here.

We stayed in an Airbnb on the most perfect and picturesque street, Vicolo del Bologna; a curvy and V-shaped cut through street, ever so slightly tucked away from the busy squares where everyone gathers in the street! 

The first photo in this post Camden is right outside our large wooden door and the family photo was also taken on our street. Above and below are looking out our living room windows. When the ultimate charm is right outside your door, there is nothing more exciting than stepping out each day and night ready to take on Rome. 

All of our dinners in Rome were right here in Trastevere. After busy days out it was much easier with a little bubba in tow to remain close to home. Mostly we'd take the stroller out and were able to do one of two things 1) wheel it right up to an outdoor table or 2) we'd lift out the car seat and put him on a chair, then fold up the stroller and place it out of the way. 

We took Camden out in the Ergobaby the first night and ended up holding him throughout dinner. Not all of these cozy trattorias have highchairs, so after night one we stuck with the stroller option.

Throughout our meals Camden would be doing all the things - eating (breastfeeding), wanting to be held and hang out (grabbing all the things), or he'd be sleeping. So actually having his seat where he could comfortably sleep made a lot of sense. 

In my planning efforts I read so many recommendations to make reservations when in busy Rome, but at the same time I make an effort not to OVER PLAN! I went with reservations for two nights and left the other three up to our whim. I do think the neighborhood is packed with tourist traps which all things considered we did our best to avoid. 

Trattoria Da Enzo (Via dei Vascellari, 29) is a cozy family-run trattoria on a charming backstreet. Da Enzo has become well-known and people will wait hours in line for a table. I had made a reservation and sure enough they had my name written on that nights list: "Cristan Luisi". HA! It felt like a huge win as the three of us bypassed that infamous line. 

A heaping plate of creamy burrata di Anoria, crispy light as air fried zucchini blossoms, perfectly al dente, seriously heavenly pasta amatriciana, a fantastic agnello alla scottadito con patae (grilled lamb shank + potatoes) and the best tiramisu! 100% call for a reservation if you'd like to eat here. This remained one of our favorite meals not only in Rome but throughout Italy.

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Ditta Trinchetti (Via della Lungaretta, 76) is a cozy and charming family run gem located on a main pedestrian street, the tucked away door front hidden in plain sight! This was a whim destination - they had a menu del giorno and so we by-passed larger neighboring restaurants with English menus in favor of this spot. We ordered the mozarella du bufala fritta antipasti and both the primi - a pesto linguini with squid and almonds and a cous cous with fish ragu. It is hard to describe how good these plates were. The simplest, most humble sounding ingredients and voila, a beautiful meal!

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Glass Hostaria (Vicolo de' Cinque, 58) - When there is a Michelin-starred restaurant run by a notable chef (Cristina Bowerman) at the top of your street, you go! 

This impeccable meal is in a separate post!

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Osteria der Belli (Piazza di Sant'Apollinia). Instead of Roman the family that runs this restaurant is from Sardinia.  From a seafood focused menu I chose the pasta alle vongole and it did not disappoint! There is plenty of outdoor seating and while it was fairly busy we were seated right away with no reservation. 

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Cajo y Gajo (Piazza San Callisto, 10). The food here is typical Roman casual in a bustling and popular square. The pasta carbonara and chicken scalopini were very good. Much to my delight they had fried artichokes! (Most restaurants do not as they are not in season.) For better or for worse, I was happy to finally have the famed Roman dish. Once again it was busy and once again we managed to be seated right away outdoors.

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Olateg! (Via di S. Cosimato, 14a). The only gelato pictured, yet I definitely had gelato once a day either after dinner or when we were out and about. (And not to worry, we are not teasing Cam in that photo, we gave him a bite or five!) The flavors are made fresh every day at g-e-l-a-t-o spelled backwards, proving a worthy choice when in Trastevere. 

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Dar Poeta - (Vicolo del Bologna, 45) the.best.roman.style.pizza. wood fired thin crust, exceptional toppings, cold draft beer  - this was a late lunch upon our arrival and I was in heaven. We had the cacio e pepe and the spicy calabrese salami. This unassuming but well known pizza spot is actually on our street on the other side of the "V" - we took a sharp left to find it from our Airbnb. 

Bar Calisto is fronted by the charming and popular Piazza San Calisto. The cobblestones and live music lulled Camden to a restful sleep while we had a Peroni after dinner.

Bar del Cinque might just be the best people watching + most photographed spot in all of Trastevere. This vine covered bar was at the top of our street! The espresso martini sign out front prompted our order - and they were a very good start to our last night in Trastevere.

Bar Toto - The photos where you can see Bar Toto behind us are across the river in the Jewish Ghetto, another charming neighborhood with a lot of history. We drank some Aperol Spritzes and wandered the historic streets. There is something so inherently unique and charming about a bar in Europe, am i right?

Also not to miss while in Trastevere:

Piazza di Santa Maria. The most central piazza where everyone is gathered at the fountain. The church is stunning so make sure to step inside.

I miss Trastevere and it is definitely one reason we loved Rome so much!!!