Taverna’s Ragu’ di Vitello con Tartufo Nero

I have made a couple of trips to the newly reopened and much improved Taverna dei Fori Imperiali in the past week. On the first visit, I took advantage of it being artichoke season and had ravioli with artichokes. But that is only because my favorite dish, and one that I dream about most days, was not on the menu. Le pappardelle con ragu’ di vitello e tartufo nero–thick pasta noodles with a ground veal and black truffle sauce–is only served when the pappardelle are fresh, so I had to wait for my second visit to delve into Chef Alessio’s signature dish. The veal’s delicacy combined with the structure of the pasta creates a fitting palate for the highly aromatic truffles. It was certainly worth waiting for.