This is a profile of Caminito Argentinean Steakhouse, located in Northampton, MA, by Preview Magazine.

1. Beef prepared in the asado style, lightly seasoned
with sea salt and cooked on a wood fire
An
Argentine Holiday
Northampton’s Caminito Steakhouse offers
traditional Argentine asado right around the corner.
By Sarah GiBBonS
photoGraphy By paul Shoul
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2. diningview
I
wonder how they do it. Vegetarians, that is. And vegans?
They demonstrate a resolve and will power that would ensure
world peace ten times over if they were qualities shared by
all humanity. If you can avoid cheese, you can do anything.
Except for a two-month stint in high
school that had more to do with enraging Head chef and owner Joe Gionfriddo
my mother than with an ethical diet, I’ve
been a lifelong cheese- and meat-eater. I
can’t help it. I was raised on the stuff.
Northampton’s Caminito operates on
the premise that I’m not alone.
The highlights on the menu would
not appeal to those with the aforemen-
tioned dietary restrictions. A pain-
fully simple grilled round of sharp,
strong, salty provolone is marvelous
with some olive oil and Caminito’s
homemade buttery rolls.
Provoleta, as with much of Argentine
culture, is a transmuted remnant of
Italian influence stemming from an
influx of Italian immigrants in the
nineteenth century. The cheese is
scalded on both sides before it finishes
in the oven, and it takes on a slightly Joe Gionfriddo half-whispers. But the 2002, Joe learned the ropes in the kitch-
charred, smoky flavor. metamorphic nature of melted cheese en at Roberto’s across town. Armed
I know what you’re thinking. “It’s suggests that the dish requires careful with no certified culinary training, the
just hot cheese, right?” Wrong. The attention. Too cool and it’s just cheese; Southampton-bred chef instead majored
layers of texture a round hunk of cheese too hot and it’s a molten puddle of in plant and soil science at UMass, con-
takes on when fried and then baked are grease and protein. “People tell me it’s centrating on sustainable agriculture,
transformative. As the cheese cools the best fried cheese they’ve ever had,” entomology and food crops science.
and hardens, it offers an eating experi- Joe says. It’s certainly a far cry from “I knew throughout my studies that I
ence much different than that offered mozzarella sticks. wanted to focus on aspects of agriculture
by its fresh-from-the-kitchen earlier Something tells me Joe has had occa- that pertained closest to food and the
version. sion to cook his fair share of pro- restaurant industry, with the hopes that
“I don’t really like telling people voleta. Before coming on as a cook one day I will own a restaurant with a
how simple it is to make,” chef/owner at Caminito shortly after it opened in greenhouse, small farm or orchard,” Joe
Preview Massachusetts 41
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3. explains. “This is something to which I still aspire very much
... . I want to be able to harvest fruit as well as fruit woods
to burn in my wood-fired grill and have outdoor space for
truly authentic asado-style Argentine barbecuing,” adds the
chef, who spent some time working at the Mount Holyoke
Botanic Gardens after graduating, while he was also working
full-time at Caminito. For the time being, the restaurant side
of his interests won out, and in 2006, Joe acquired Caminito
from its then-owners Luciano and Susan Sappia.
It was the Sappias who introduced Joe to Argentinean cui-
sine. But he has spent much of his spare time since reading
travelogues, history books and traditional recipes to famil-
iarize himself with Argentine cuisine and traditions. And it
If there’s any
time to enjoy a
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seems his study has paid off. The menu is full of Argentinean
favorites: various cuts of meat cooked in the asado style,
lightly seasoned with only sea salt and grilled over a wood
flame at a lower temperature than at American barbecues;
pasta dishes noqui (gnocci) and ravioli that again reflect the
Italian influence; house-made chorizo grilled and served with
Serving an eclectic mix of
chimmichuri; and, of course, the provoleta
small plates and appetizers The provoleta itself is intensely rich. Splitting it between
two people with a bottle of bonarda would make for a beau-
Grilled entrées are paired tiful evening snack. Prefacing a giant platter of meat needs
with your selection of sauce & two sides more time than my companion and I allowed. But our paril-
lada—a mound of beef ribs, skirt steak, chorizo and veal
Book your sweetbreads—was delicately smoky and had just the right
holiday get amount of char.
together here! Though the country is home to some of the best steaks
in the world, it’s impractical for Caminito to import meat
Creative American from Argentina. “Our steaks are in fact not from Argentina,
Fare
but are actually raised domestically, and sourced to have
Waitstaff
been farmed in a similar style as those found in Argentine
41-A STRONG AVE., NORTHAMPTON • 584-1150 pastures,” explains Joe. The beef is “certified natural black
www.thesierragrille.com
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4. diningview
Angus … hormone-free, vegetable-fed only” and raised in a
at the CORNER OF RTE. 116 & BAY RD. SOUTH AMHERST, MA 01002
“non-caged, cruelty-free” style.
Tel: (413) 253-9528 or (800) 594-9537
The meat itself is only half of what goes into the asado
selections at Caminito. For cooking, the restaurant buys hard
woods like oak, maple, cherry, apple, and hickory from local
Gifts of
farms and orchards. Part of Joe’s vision is to one day grow Good Taste!
his own orchard and use the prunings from those trees to fuel Let Atkins deliver a Specialty
Gift Basket or Gift Box to
his grill’s fires. friends and family locally or
“You need to eat at the Argentinean pace,” Joe coached us anywhere in the U.S.
Food gifts are hand selected and
when we gawked at the prospect of dessert. But we went with packed to preserve freshness
a small helping of slightly bitter chocolate mousse, which was Fruit Specialty Gift Baskets plus
nicely done with fresh whipped cream. At Joe’s suggestion assortments of apples, cheeses,
maple syrup, honey, butters,
jellies, coffees and teas, fudge,
cookies, bakery treats and more.
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Lomo a la Mostaza, a filet mignon
with mustard creme sauce
and noisette potatoes
(“It will help you digest”), we also tried the South American
steeped drink Yerba Mate, served traditionally at Caminito in
a gourd with a bombilla (a straw engineered with a filter to
keep out the leaves). Yerba mate is made from the leaves of an
evergreen and has a bitter, acerbic quality one might expect
from that family of plants. Sipping it piping hot from the bom-
billa almost feels like smoking a pipe. But after the rich meal
of cheese and meat, it made a good palate cleanser.
If there’s any time to enjoy a meal like this one, it’s win-
ter. One seems to feel the energy storing up as one eats; it’s
almost time to hibernate. And while there are a couple of
options for the vegetarians among us (vegans might have a
harder job), the asado productions from the wood-fired grill
are what set Caminito apart from other steakhouses. At
Caminito you can enjoy the meat and potatoes of a classic
American steakhouse, but with the bright and subtle flavors
brought out by buttery Argentinean wine, tart chimmichurri
and delicate smoke. P
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5. diningview
PROVOLETA
“Most people will laugh at how simple this recipe is, but this simplicity is what I want to come through here,” says Caminito
chef Joe Gionfriddo. “Argentine food is best when uncomplicated, and to me the most influential recipes have always been those
with very few ingredients. When this is the case, quality is of the utmost importance, as is the attention the chef pays to the
cooking. For this dish, and for Argentinean cooking in general, the two most important factors are having a well-seasoned cast
iron griddle or pan, and having a comfortable working relationship with medium/high heat.”
INGREDIENTS
Aged provolone cheese, cut into rounds 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch thick
(Get the best, most dense provolone you can find from your local Italian deli or market, and
have your deli man slice it for you to your desired thickness, as a smooth flat surface is key.)
Extra virgin olive oil
Diced tomato
Dry oregano
Sea salt
TO PREPARE
Preheat your oven to 350.
Get your cast iron skillet evenly heated to medium/high,
or just before the point of smoking.
Lightly oil your provolone, one side only, and
wipe off any excess. It should be well lubricated
but not saturated.
Carefully place your provolone firmly, oiled side
down, on your cast iron griddle.
Let the provolone sear for about one minute, or
until the corners of the cheese start to brown
lightly and rise from the griddle.
With a flexible metal spatula, carefully
lift the provolone off the griddle, being
careful not to disrupt the seared surface.
It should not stick to seasoned cast iron,
and should be light to medium golden
brown. Too much searing will result in a
bitter taste.
Place seared side up in an oven-safe
casserole dish. Bake for about
5 to 10 minutes, until cheese
begins to bubble and is soft in
the middle.
Remove from the oven and
drain off any excess oil/
grease. Top with a pinch of
diced tomato, oregano, and a
little olive oil; season lightly
with a small pinch of sea salt.
Provoleta is best when eaten still
warm, with some crusty bread or a
mixed green salad dressed with a simple
vinaigrette.
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