Matera: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

14th
Via XX Settembre 14
75100 Matera, Italy
Phone number: +39 329 5974869
Prices: €€€€

It was a cold night, snow falling and wind howling when we found ourselves in an alley across from San Francesco di Paola church in Matera's town center not far from their famous Sassi and UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was the most snow (2+ feet) Matera had since 1956, 60 years ago and most restaurants in town were closed for the holiday (Befana) weekend. To find 14th, enter the alley and follow the signs toward Pizzeria Da Mario, but instead of turning right, turn left and 14th will be the last place on the right ... burgers, sandwiches, cheap beer, friendly service and more. You will not find it otherwise.

A large cavernous place, they have wooden booths, tables and chairs downstairs near the bar and more tables up in the loft that has been erected in the center of the room. They serve mostly hamburgers and sandwiches and a decent selection of tap and bottled beers as well as wine and spirits.

I ordered a 1/2 litre Edinger Hefeweizen (€5) and a Classic Burger (€8) with a thick 1/3 pound beef patty, cheese, caramelized onion, bacon, lettuce. tomato and BBQ sauce (I sub'ed mayo for the BBQ sauce) on a big homemade sesame seed bun and accompanied by handcut fries. The beer was cold with a frothy head and the burger, amazingly enough, excellent even though the bacon was more like ham due to the fact that American-style bacon is relatively unknown and unavailable in Italy.

My wife had a ham, cheese, and mushroom "Club" panino (€7 - "panini", commonly used as singular in the US, is actually plural in Italy, meaning two or more), also accompanied by fries. The sandwich was massive with three thin slices of white toast layered with mushrooms and cheese on one and ham and cheese on the other, then toasted in a sandwich press. The sandwich and fries were good, but both could have been warmer. probably having sat waiting for the two busy servers that were obviously not expecting such a large crowd on a Sunday night after a holiday.

The servers were friendly, but, overwhelmed by the unexpectedly large crowd, service was rather slow. We waited over 30 minutes for our orders while the couple that entered just before us (and told us about the existence of the pub) received their food less than 10 minutes after ordering.

CombatCritic Gives 14th 7 Bombs Out Of 10 With Deductions For Slow Service Untraditional Bacon, And A Lukewarm Sandwich ... More Bombs Are Better!

Seven Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16/'17

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie





... And Don't Forget To Subscribe To TravelValue TV on YouTube

Read Chris S.'s review of 14th on Yelp

Title: Matera, Italy: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

Key Words: 14, 14th, Matera, Basilicata, Italy, pub, bar, hamburger, food, beer, sassi, Sassi di Matera, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: S&G = "Shits & Grins"

Matera, Italy: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

14th
Via XX Settembre 14
75100 Matera, Italy
Phone number: +39 329 5974869
Prices: €€€€

It was a cold night, snow falling and wind howling when we found ourselves in an alley across from San Francesco di Paola church in Matera's town center not far from their famous Sassi and UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was the most snow (2+ feet) Matera had since 1956, 60 years ago and most restaurants in town were closed for the holiday (Befana) weekend. To find 14th, enter the alley and follow the signs toward Pizzeria Da Mario, but instead of turning right, turn left and 14th will be the last place on the right ... burgers, sandwiches, cheap beer, friendly service and more. You will not find it otherwise.

A large cavernous place, they have wooden booths, tables and chairs downstairs near the bar and more tables up in the loft that has been erected in the center of the room. They serve mostly hamburgers and sandwiches and a decent selection of tap and bottled beers as well as wine and spirits.

I ordered a 1/2 litre Edinger Hefeweizen (€5) and a Classic Burger (€8) with a thick 1/3 pound beef patty, cheese, caramelized onion, bacon, lettuce. tomato and BBQ sauce (I sub'ed mayo for the BBQ sauce) on a big homemade sesame seed bun and accompanied by handcut fries. The beer was cold with a frothy head and the burger, amazingly enough, excellent even though the bacon was more like ham due to the fact that American-style bacon is relatively unknown and unavailable in Italy.

My wife had a ham, cheese, and mushroom "Club" panino (€7 - "panini", commonly used as singular in the US, is actually plural in Italy, meaning two or more), also accompanied by fries. The sandwich was massive with three thin slices of white toast layered with mushrooms and cheese on one and ham and cheese on the other, then toasted in a sandwich press. The sandwich and fries were good, but both could have been warmer. probably having sat waiting for the two busy servers that were obviously not expecting such a large crowd on a Sunday night after a holiday.

The servers were friendly, but, overwhelmed by the unexpectedly large crowd, service was rather slow. We waited over 30 minutes for our orders while the couple that entered just before us (and told us about the existence of the pub) received their food less than 10 minutes after ordering.

CombatCritic Gives 14th 7 Bombs Out Of 10 With Deductions For Slow Service Untraditional Bacon, And A Lukewarm Sandwich ... More Bombs Are Better!

Seven Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16/'17

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie





... And Don't Forget To Subscribe To TravelValue TV on YouTube

Read Chris S.'s review of 14th on Yelp

Title: Matera, Italy: Is It Italian? Is It American? It's Pub "14th" And Yummy Burgers!

Key Words: 14, 14th, Matera, Basilicata, Italy, pub, bar, hamburger, food, beer, sassi, Sassi di Matera, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: S&G = "Shits & Grins"

Matera, Italy: Great Food, Good Prices And A View Of Sassi Di Matera

Il Terrazzino

Vicolo San Giuseppe 7
75100 Matera, Italy
Phone number: +39 0835 334119
Website: ilterrazzino.org
Prices: €€€€

Off of Piazza Vittorio Veneto on a small alley on the east side of the piazza, you will find Il Terazzino. Go down the winding stairs to this restaurant and pizzeria of very good quality and reasonable prices with a terrace view of Matera's famous (UNESCO) sassi where Passion of the Christ and other movies were filmed.

A large, nicely appointed interior set in into the cliff has ancient vaulted ceilings and several rooms with plenty of space for 30-40 tables. We were warmly welcomed by the owner who took our order because the servers had not yet arrived. We ordered the house wine (€3.50 per 1/2 litre), a deep red served slightly above room temperature and a good value.

The Tourist Menu is just €18 and includes primo (pasta or soup), secondo (meat dish), and contorno (fries or salad), mineral water, and dessert (spumoni or fruit). I had the Cavatelli alla Boscaiola (€8 ala carte), fresh pasta in a tomato sauce with mushrooms and ham served with grated goat cheese to top it with. The serving was healthy and the flavor delicious. The pasta could have been a bit warmer in order to melt the goat cheese after mixing, but, otherwise, it was a good selection. I also had the Salsiccia di Maiale Arrosto (roasted pork sausage - €8 ala carte) and a side of fries. The sausage was a bit spicy, but flavorful and well cooked, and the fries plentiful, large, and hot.

My wife had the Pizza Ai (Quattro) Formaggi (€7.50) with mozzarella, grana padana, gorgonzola, and emmenthal cheeses and without tomato sauce. The pizza was very well done and comparable quality of those in Naples where pizza was born with plenty of cheese and a thin, yet firm, crust.

We ate extremely well for under €30, the service was excellent and the interior roomy and rustic, and would not hesitate to return in the future.

CombatCritic Gives Il Terrazino 8 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Bombs Are Better!

Eight Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie





... And Don't Forget To Subscribe To TravelValue TV on YouTube

Read Chris S.'s review of Il Terrazzino on Yelp

MENU

Title: Matera, Italy: Great Food, Good Prices And A View Of Sassi Di Matera

Key Words: Il Terrazino, il, terrazino, Matera, Italy, Sassi di Matera, Sassi, pizza, pizzeria, view, centro, Italia, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp

Translation for Civilians: WTFO! = "What-The-Fuck ... Over!"

Matera, Italy: Great Little B&B - Central, Close To Sassi, Hospitable And Reasonably Priced

B&B Pignatelli
Bed & Breakfast
Vico 1st Passarelli 10
75100 Matera
Italy
Phone number: +39 334 3656186
Website: bebpignatellimatera.com
Prices:€€€€
In Matera, Italy, there is a great little B&B that is central, close to the world famous Sassi di Matera (where Passion of the Christ and other films were made) and UNESCO World Heritage Site with owners who are extremely hospitable and is very reasonably priced.

We found this little gem on an international Booking website after a reservation at another Matera hotel fell through and are we glad we did! Not only did we save over €70, we had parking next to the building, breakfast included, and were even invited to lunch with the owners.

In a large nondescript building in central Matera above a coffee bar is a small B&B with three lovely, modern guest rooms with en suite bathrooms with a rate of just €70 per night, including breakfast. The building is very safe (as is Matera in general) with a locked exterior gate and door to the building before climbing one flight of stairs to the large apartment (Not handicapped accessible - no elevator is building). There is a medium size kitchen/living room as you walk in with a sofa, table and chairs for 6-8, and a TV with (Italian) cable. The three rooms are just off of the main living area.

Our room was tastefully decorated with a iron canopy bed, a sleeper sofa, decent size wardrobe, nightstands, a TV, and a chair (no desk). Not big by American standards, there was plenty of room to move around and the queen size bed was very comfortable. The European rolling exterior shutters are electronically controlled for easy use and provide complete darkness for those, like me, who are sensitive to light when they sleep. The room was on the back of the building and extremely quiet. The attached bathroom was of decent size with a large shower, toilet, bidet and sink - everything you need for a comfortable stay. Wi-Fi was free and fast.

Breakfast was traditionally Italian with coffee as you like it (espresso, cappuccino, caffe latte) or tea, cornetti (Italian croissants filled with cream and dusted with sugar or other sweet toppings), water, juice and fruit. The owners are very flexible so you can sleep-in if you like and still eat breakfast when you awake. They are extremely kind people, inviting us for lunch (at no extra charge) every day we were there, even driving us several miles across town to buy tire chains after the worst snowstorm in 60 years hit the city, even though they had to drive their son an hour away to catch a train for Milan to return to college for a critical test.

The neighborhood is strictly residential, but central and a short 5-10 minute walk to the Sassi, restaurants, shopping, and transportation. An excellent value, the owners went above and beyond in making us feel welcome and comfortable during our stay. The building's maintenance man even put my chains on the car for me when we were leaving!

CombatCritic Gives B&B Pignatelli 10 Bombs Out Of 10 And A Spot On My "WALL OF FAME" ... More Bombs Are Better!

Ten Bombs Equates To:

"Phonetic spelling of the acronym HUA, which stands for 'Heard Understood Acknowledged.' Originally used by the British in the late 1800's in Afghanistan. More recently adopted by the United States Army to indicate an affirmative or a pleased response." - Urban Dictionary

"The Department of Military Science and Leadership, University of Tennessee claim HOOAH 'refers to or means anything except no' ... Regardless of its meaning ... the term is an expression of high morale, confidence, motivation and spirit." - WarChronicle.com

"The U.S. Air Force stole 'HOOAH' from the Army because we were part of the Army until 1947 and rather than waste a bunch of time coming up with something new and unique, we said 'fuck it, let's go with HOOAH' ... thanks Army ... HOOAH! - CombatCritic

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16/'17

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie





... And Don't Forget To Subscribe To TravelValue TV on YouTube


Read Chris S.'s review of B&B Pignatelli on Yelp

Title: Matera, Italy: Great Little B&B - Central, Close To Sassi, Hospitable And Reasonably Priced

Key Words: B&B, bed, breakfast, Italy, Matera, Sassi, Sassi di Matera, cave, UNESCO, CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, hotel, guest, house, Yelp, Booking.com, Basilicata