It’s that time of year when Bostonians might see Chef Jody Adams riding her collapsible red Brompton bicycle around town to check in with her empire of seven —soon to be eight—area restaurants. The two-time James Beard Award winner says it’s a great way to zip around Boston’s notorious traffic, and even make new friends.
Chef Jody Adams, pictured here cycling with Tourissimo in the Piedmont, says gastronomic bike tours ... [+]
“Having a collapsible bike is like having a puppy,” the chef told me via email. “Everyone wants to talk about it and touch it.”
It’s a busy circuit for the chef, who serves as culinary director for A Street Hospitality, which operates five casual Saloniki Greek locations, as well as upscale spots Trade and Porto, all scattered throughout Boston and Cambridge. Her newest restaurant, La Padrona, is in the Back Bay at Raffles Boston, smack dab in the middle of that circuit, and is certainly drawing inspiration one of the chef’s other passions —cycling adventures throughout Italy. The highly anticipated spot will feature regional classics from all over Italy, interpreted using ingredients sourced from Italy and New England.
You'll earn that glass of wine by biking the rolling hills of Piedmont on this tour.
La Padrona is slated to open in May, then just a month later, the chef will be hopping on a bike in Italy for a seven-day culinary cycling tour of the Piedmont region with Tourissimo, a specialist in active travel. That trip, June 23-29, 2024, will take guests to the heart of the Langa and Roero regions, which received UNESCO World Heritage status in 2014 and are considered among the most important wine production areas in Italy.
The hills of Italy will be a welcome challenge for Adams, an avid cyclist who enjoys longer rides on her custom SEVEN Axion, sometimes pedaling south of Dorchester into the Blue Hills or west of Boston into the farming areas of Lexington, Concord, Carlisle, Acton, Littleton, and Harvard, riding loops from 30 to 90 miles. “I ride because I love it,” the chef says. “I feel like an invincible kid when I soar down hills at 25 miles an hour, singing! Of course I feel a little older as I climb back up them at eight miles an hour, but the positive payoff is stronger legs and lungs.”
All of it is excellent training for August, when Adams takes on her 14th Pan Mass Challenge – a two-day fundraising bike ride for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute that travels 186 miles from Sturbridge to Provincetown. “Having the PMC as an annual goal keeps me going all year,” says the chef, who has raised more than $250,000 for the fight against cancer over the years. “My husband calls me a beast, in the nicest way. I'm grateful to have the legs to push the bike pedals that raise money for a cure for cancer.”
Chef Adams (second from right) on a trip with Tourissimo to the Casa Artusi cooking school in Emilia ... [+]
The trip with Tourissimo, which includes lots of wine and cheese, and accommodations including a UNESCO site, a family-owned wine estate with a royal past, and a boutique hotel in the countryside, will be a far cry from the grueling Pan Mass Challenge. “I got the lucky golden ticket when I learned about culinary bike trips,” Adams says. “I am addicted to them and have been doing about one a year for 15 years or so, with a few years off for COVID.” Over that time, Adams has toured culinary gems like Sicily, Umbria, and Emilia Romagna in Italy, as well as spots in France and Spain. “It’s fun to travel with a group,” she says. “I’ve made long-lasting friends on these trips.”
The chef has a particular affinity for Tourissimo, noting that she has done several trips with the organization. Co-founders Heather Dowd and Beppe Salerno “have so many friends in the Italian food and wine world,” she says. “Beppe and Heather create trips filled with hidden treasures, charming villages and delicious experiences with these friends. And they ensure we learn about the history and culture of the region with plenty of luxurious down time in our hotels.”
For the Piedmont trip, Adams will cycle alongside guests and play a key role in understanding the region's cuisine and wine, as well as lead a special visit to Pollenzo, the University of Gastronomic Science launched by the Slow Food association. Overall, the group will explore the way the region fuses Northern Italian and French influences, with truffles and mushrooms taking center stage as seasonal highlights, and learn about Piedmontese specialties like tajarin (a type of fresh pasta) and bagna cauda (a mild sauce featuring anchovies, olive oil, and garlic), as well as local dishes more familiar to Americans, like risotto and agnolotti (ravioli filled with a savory mixture of meat and vegetables).
“[Cycling tours are] the best way to learn about a region and meet the people,” says Adams. “You see the world from back roads, stop to pick figs off a tree, watch olives being harvested, visit an early morning fish market and eat mussels fresh from the shell, taste wine at 10 a.m., dive into a porchetta sandwich from a truck in the outdoor market.” It sounds downright magical.
Does keeping up with Chef Adams sound daunting? Don’t worry – if you’re not up to cycling an average of 20 to 25 miles over rolling hills covered with endless vineyards, past ancient castles and hidden hilltop hamlets, e-bikes (pedal-assisted system) are available too.
Tourissimo’s six-night Chef Bike Tour of Piedmont Wine Region costs $7,295, with a single supplement of $695.
