A Charcuterie Comeback

Cathy Pavlos made visiting Italian chefs weep. Not because her food was bad, but because it was good. Too good.

"About a year ago, I had a table of Italian chefs at Lucca for dinner, and they wanted to begin with an antipasto of salumi," says Pavlos, the chef-owner of Lucca in Irvine. "I didn't tell them, but I brought them all American products: prosciutto and speck made by Herb Eckhouse at La Quercia in Iowa; salamis from Paul Bertoli at Fra'Mani in Berkeley; salamis from Armandino Batali at Salumi in Seattle; and culatello from Salumeria Biellese in Hell's Kitchen in New York City.

To read the rest of the story, please go to: The Orange County Register.