This past weekend when we were in Bari, we took a walk through Bari Vecchia, the old part of town. Even though Bari Vecchia is a warren of small alleys, dead end streets and passages, I pretty much thought I had seen it all. Domenico is from Bari, so I’ve been going down regularly for the last twenty years.
But as we made our way towards lunch (more on that next week) we took a turn down a street I had never been on: Strada Arco Alto. As the name suggests, we passed beneath a low stone archway and then onto one of the many pristine white flagstone-paved streets.
In Bari Vecchia I had become used to peering in ground floor doorways to see entire families living their daily life in full view of anyone who passed by. While there are ground floor stores as well, most of these spaces are actually homes where people live. TVs blare, meals are prepared and eaten, children take naps. You know, life. And since these homes are basically on the street, the streets are spotless. Housewives take pride in keeping the stones in front of their homes as sparkling as the ones inside.
But Strada Arco Alto was a bit different. Yes, there was the obligatory housewife mopping the street. But each little doorway had a makeshift table set up in front of it. When I got closer I saw that the chairs and stools were actually supporting wooden framed drying racks filled with hand made pasta.
Orecchiette mostly, but also capunti, cavatelli and strascinati. Some of the shapes were freshly made and drying, others were already packed up, weighed and ready to go in plastic bags.
And inside the doorways? Women quietly working away in their kitchens, turning flour and water into mini masterpieces of pasta. Not just for their own families, but for sale to anyone who happened to be walking by.
Lucky us. 
Strada Arco Alto opens up off Piazza Federico II di Svevia.
Just lovely. Life brings such wonderful surprises at every turn. Have a great weekend Elizabeth.
how lovely! This post brought back memories of when I used to live in Malta some 30 yrs ago! There was no pasta selling but i remember peering into people’s homes with doors open as I used to walk past. A lot of times people would just sit on their doorstep where they used to chat and pass the time. thanks so much, take care, maryann
Wonderful! Is the orecchiette in the foreground of the fourth picture made from farina arsa?
No, but good guess! That’s what I thought too, that it was farina di grano arso. But it was actually integrale (whole wheat) which I had never seen before. The grano arso ones are actually much darker: http://www.elizabethminchilli.com/2012/03/orecchiette-grano-arso-with-broccoli.html
Thank you, Elizabeth, for the look at life in Bari Vecchia.
Thank you for making the memories come rushing back Elizabeth. Over thirty-five years ago my husband and I walked that very street in Bari and marveled at the “pasta” ladies. I always remember our visit to Bari – the graciousness that we were received with — fondly.
Just loved the view of life in Bari and fresh pasta to buy, you are lucky indeed!!
Interesting! I would love to visit but in my upcoming trip I will only be able to visit Bari in one afternoon. Do the ladies still work in the afternoon?
Since they are basically working out of their homes, they are almost always open!
i work for an italian restaurant in jacksonville florida. We like to serve handmade pastas… how can we have orecchiette shipped from bari vecchia??
Oh goodness, I have no idea! Most of these ladies barely have a kitchen, much less a phone or way of getting in touch with them.
Are they working on Sundays?
Yes, every single day!
How long would the pasta last? Long enough to take home on a plane?
Just ask for it already dried. Tell them you are taking it on a plane.