A Bari food tour by rickshaw

Stuart Forster tastes Puglian cuisine and hears about the Italian city’s heritage during a fun Bari food tour by rickshaw.

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A Bari food tour by rickshaw

“Bari is flat, so it’s perfect for cycling,” says Alf, who turns to look at me as he pedals. I have it easy, I’m sitting under the canopy of his rickshaw and taking a foodie tour around Bari Vecchia, the old town in the heart of Apulia’s regional capital.

We’re in Italy but Alf, or Alfredo, is Spanish. He’s one of a team of Veloservice’s multilingual rickshaw drivers. The company works mainly with tour and cruise groups but also offers bespoke tours. My goal is to gain a taster of Bari’s heritage and cuisine.

Clock tower of the Palazzo del Sedile dei Nobili on the Piazza Mercantile, market square, seen during a rickshaw tour of Bari, Italy.
The clock tower of the Palazzo del Sedile dei Nobili on the Piazza Mercantile, market square, seen during a rickshaw tour of Bari, Italy.

Culinary and heritage insights

As we roll into town, along the busy Corso Cavour, warm evening sunlight casts long shadows. While we’re underway I learn that just 2,000 of Bari’s 320,000 inhabitants live in Bari Vecchia, which has 30 churches.

We pause on the Piazza del Ferrarese, a public square where locals are sitting and chatting – a handful have brought chairs from their houses. It strikes me that on Britain’s streets it’s youths who hang out together but here it’s often old men in flat caps. Not all though. A couple of young lads pass a football back and forth. An inquisitive kid comes over to inspect the rickshaw. We’re parked next to a sunken, uncovered section of Roman road.

At Bari’s Piazza Mercantile, we stop by the ‘column of justice’ a stone pillory with a medieval lion sculpture. I hear how in bygone times people would have been tied naked to the pillory and humiliated on market days.

Pillory with a medieval lion sculpture at the Colonna della Giustizia, Bari's column of justice, at the Piazza Mercantile in the heart of Bari Vecchia.
Pillory with a medieval lion sculpture at the Colonna della Giustizia, Bari’s column of justice, at the Piazza Mercantile in the heart of Bari Vecchia.

Bars now surround the square, which becomes a hub for weekend nightlife. Freshly landed fish used to be sold on the square, in front of the governor’s palace. Being based near the harbour meant the authorities were well-placed for levying taxes and controlling the arrival of pilgrims.

“This is the most important city in the West for Orthodox people,” says Alf as he navigates along narrow lanes with time-worn beige flagstones, turning expertly between stone buildings which have a warm, pinky hue. Rickshaws can enter alleys that are not accessible to cars.

Guide during a culinary rickshaw tour of the Bari Vecchia district of Puglia's regional capital.
Guide during a culinary rickshaw tour of the Bari Vecchia district of Puglia’s regional capital.

Basilica of St Nicholas Bari

At the Basilica of St Nicholas I look up at the huge, east-facing rose window that lets light flood the church on mornings. The design is typical of Apulian churches. As the sun rises the interior remains in shadow and cool.

Sculpted oxen feature by the main entrance of the basilica, which has an Orthodox chapel in the crypt and a grand Roman Catholic altar on the ground floor. In medieval times the relics of saints were key to drawing pilgrims, and therefore good for a city’s economy. A party of sailors raided Myra, in modern-day Turkey, for the bones of St Nicholas and brought them back on 8 May 1087. According to legend, the oxen drawing his relics refused to budge once they reached this spot. It was regarded as a divine sign, so chosen as the location for the basilica.

Medieval bull sculpture by the main door of the Basilica of Saint Nicholas in the Old Town of Bari, Italy.
Medieval bull sculpture by the main door of the Basilica of Saint Nicholas in the Old Town of Bari, Italy.

A statue of St Nicholas stands outside. It was a gift from Russia and came with a greeting from Vladimir Putin, who has visited the crypt.



Origins of Santa Claus

By the la colonna miracolosa, a red stone column inside an iron cage, I hear how women throw bigliettini (‘little tickets’) inside. They bear the name of the man they’d like to be their husband.

St Nicholas is the patron saint of children as well as women. My guide recounts a legend about a poor family, with three daughters, living in Myra during the 4th century. Poverty forced the women into prostitution.

Statue of St Nicholas of Myra, called San Nicola in Italian and known as Nicholas of Bari, outside the Basilica of St Nicholas, the saint associated now with gift giving and Christmas
Statue of St Nicholas of Myra, called San Nicola in Italian and known as Nicholas of Bari, outside the Basilica of St Nicholas, the saint associated now with gift giving and Christmas.

Over three separate nights, St Nicholas is said to have dropped three golden balls (with which you’ll see him depicted in paintings and statues) down the chimney, thus providing for their dowries and saving them from their profession.

Back then his intervention was deemed a miracle. Today searching questions would probably be asked if a bishop was to leave gold at a house inhabited by prostitutes. If you’ve ever wondered why Santa Claus slips down chimneys to deliver gifts then the basis is this legend.


Pinterest pin for Go Eat Do's blog post a Bari food tour by rickshaw.
Pinterest pin for Go Eat Do’s blog post a Bari food tour by rickshaw.

Focaccia in Bari

Around the corner from the basilica, we head into Panificio Fiore (Strada Palazzo di Città 38), a bakery from which the delicious aroma of fresh bread is wafting. The interior walls bear icons of St Nicholas. Amphorae stand by carved pillars – remnants from an 8th-century church. Focaccia bread is sold by weight. Slices cost around €1 each and are popular with locals.

Focaccia in Bari from the Panificio Fiore bakery.
Freshly baked Focaccia, a traditional dish popular in the Bari Vecchia quarter of Bari, Apulia, Italy

I’m ushered into the kitchen, where a smiling baker greets me while kneading the dough with his fingertips. The scene is reminiscent of a piano player energetically playing a concerto. Exuberantly, he sprinkles salt and olive oil over the circular dough before chucking on a topping of olives and tomatoes.

“I make 50 to 60 in a half-day shift. More if the weather’s really good and we have lots of tourists,” he says before placing his work into the bakery’s wood-fired oven. On leaving I grab a slice of his handiwork, which is simple and delicious.

Baker baking focaccia at the Panificio Fiore bakery, one of the stops during Veloservice’s Bari food tour by rickshaw.
Baker baking focaccia at the Panificio Fiore bakery, one of the stops during Veloservice’s Bari food tour by rickshaw.

Apulian food

Alf pedals us past the subtly illuminated white façade of Bari’s cathedral to the Antica Salumeria (Strada dei Bianchi Dottula 17), a rustic, family-run delicatessen with a boar’s head by the door. Flintlock pistols are ranged on the walls, above stone arches. In broken English, the owner tells me the shop has been in his family for four generations and 150 years.

A boar's head, bottles of wine and the delicatessen counter in the Antica Salumeria Del Gusto Italian delicatessen in Bari, Italy.
A boar’s head, bottles of wine and the delicatessen counter in the Antica Salumeria Del Gusto Italian delicatessen in Bari, Italy.

Bottles of wine, regional cheeses and taralli (bread rings made from flour and olive oil), are among the wares on sale in the attractively laid-out store. I nibble on olives, dip into an intensely creamy stracciatella cheese and taste Apulian salami before moving on.

Puglian food including olives, freshly baked bread, Italian wine and a regional cheese selection at the Antica Salumeria Del Gusto in the Bari.
Puglian food including olives, freshly baked bread, Italian wine and a regional cheese selection at the Antica Salumeria Del Gusto in the Bari.

Bari street food

On an under-lit square in the centre of Bari Vecchia, a woman wearing a blue striped pinafore stands under a once red, sun-bleached umbrella that bears a Peroni advert. Hot oil fizzles in a broad pan and she fries slices of polenta to make sgagliozze. As she cooks, I learn this woman is called Carmela.

Carmela, a local woman, serves orecchiette, a local pasta dish, at an outdoor kitchen during a food tour of Bari.
Carmela, a local woman, serves orecchiette, a local pasta dish, at an outdoor kitchen during a food tour of Bari.

She sprinkles salt onto the sgagliozze. Six slices, served on a paper plate. This is what locals eat after they’ve had a couple of drinks I learn. Unfortunately, I’m not a fan of deep-fried food.

Sgagliozze, polenta fritters, frying in a pan in an outdoor kitchen in the Bari Vecchia quarter, where is a popular Italian street food.
Sgagliozze, polenta fritters, frying in a pan in an outdoor kitchen in the Bari Vecchia quarter, where is a popular Italian street food.

Carmela is, however, a fantastic cook. Using a knife, she scrapes a doughy sausage of fresh pasta – made from semolina flours and water – along a wooden board. Working at speed with her thumbs she creates ear-shaped forms known as orecchiette, Bari’s traditional pasta.

A local woman prepares orecchiette, a pasta shaped like little ears, on a square in Bari, Italy.
A local woman prepares orecchiette, a pasta shaped like little ears, on a square in Bari, Italy.



Orecchiette in Bari

Hundreds of orecchiette dry on a metal grill by her table. She’s one of the dozens of women who sit outdoors in the old town, making pasta which is sold directly to passing individuals as well as restaurants and hotels. With a rasping voice, Carmela explains she started making orecchiette aged six.

She returns to her pans when the leaves of a broccoli-like vegetable, cime di rapa, are simmering. Carmela adds orecchiette. In a separate pan, with a tomato sauce, she heats anchovies, garlic and olive oil. The result is delicious, inexpensive food that I eat while sitting at a plastic table a couple of metres from her stall.

Alf, too, has enjoyed a plateful of orecchiette, so is fuelled for the journey back to the hotel. It’s been an insightful tour and an enjoyable way of tasting the traditional cuisine of Bari and the Apulia region.

Woman cooking orecchiette, pasta typical of Apulia, in a pan at an outdoor kitchen in central Bari, seen during a food tour of the Puglian city and a popular Bari street food.
Woman cooking orecchiette, pasta typical of Apulia, in a pan at an outdoor kitchen in central Bari, seen during a food tour of the Puglian city.

Hotels in Bari

The iH Hotels Bari Oriente (Corso Cavour 32, 70122 Bari; tel. +39 (0)80 5255100) is a 4-star hotel less than 10 minutes’ walk from the heart of Bari’s Old Town.

The hotel has 75 guestrooms, meeting facilities plus a bar restaurant that doubles as the breakfast room.

The building was constructed in 1928 as the Palazzo Marroccoli and stands near the Teatro Petruzzelli, one of Italy’s great historic theatres.

Like the idea of rooftop drinks? Head up to the rooftop to enjoy an evening drink with views over the city.



Eating and drinking in Bari

If you’re in the mood for an ice cream choose from the many flavours available at the long-established Martinucci café on Piazza Mercantile.

To enjoy a glass of Apulia’s Primitivo wine in a central setting head to the terrace of La Parilla de Juan bar (Piazza Mercantle 21), where Wi-Fi is available.

Travel to Bari

Bari’s Karol Wojtyla International Airport is approximately nine kilometres (5.5 miles) northwest of the city centre. The airport is named in honour of the man who became Pope John Paul II.

easyJet operates direct flights between London Gatwick (LGW) and Bari (BRI). Ryanair flies between London Stansted and Bari (STN).

KLM flies between Newcastle International Airport (NCL) and Bari via its Amsterdam Schiphol hub.



Bari centrale is the city’s main railway station.


Map of Bari

Zoom into the map of Bari Vecchia, Bari’s Old Town, to find places of interest in the Italian city:

Google Map of Bari, Italy
 

Books about Bari and Puglia

Planning a trip to Bari and the Puglia region? You can buy the following books from Amazon by clicking on the links or cover photos:

The Mini Rough Guide to Puglia:

The Puglian Cookbook: Bringing the Flavors of Puglia Home:

Finding Myself in Puglia: A Journey of Self-Discovery Under the Warm Southern Italian Sun:

Eat Italy: The Complete Companion to Italy’s Cuisine and Food Culture:

Further information

To learn more about attractions in the Apulia region see Puglia Tourism’s website.

If you’re thinking about combining a visit to Apulia with other destinations in Italy, see the Italian Tourism website.

For details on how to book a rickshaw tour, a bicycle tour or to hire a cycle take a look at the Veloservice website (Strada Vallisa 81, 70122 Bari; tel. +39 389 6207353).

Thank you for visiting Go Eat Do and reading this article about Veloservice’s culinary rickshaw tour of Bari, Italy. Interested in Italy and Italian culture? Take a look at this post about a food and fashion tour in Milan.

Stuart Forster, the author of this post, is an award-winning travel and food writer. He is based in northeast England.

Photos illustrating this post are by Why Eye Photography.

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A version of this post was initially published on Go Eat Do on 29 June 2015.

Pinterest pin for Go Eat Do's blog post about a food tour in Bari by rickshaw.
Pinterest pin for Go Eat Do’s blog post about a food tour in Bari by rickshaw.

2 Comments

  • Rhiannon Bock

    March 8, 2017 at 06:10 Reply

    Hello, which company did you do this tour with? Cheers.

    • Stuart Forster

      March 8, 2017 at 08:14 Reply

      Hello Rhiannon, as I mention in the post and the info box, it was with Veloservice. The team proved fun to spend time with, and the tour filled me with food and information.

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