Shelby About Town

At $2,000+ a pound, these white truffles have got to be good

Lady leads Giuseppe Marengo and Marco Wiles, proprietor of Da Marco restaurantin Houston, on a hunt for white truffles near Alba, Italy.
Gloria Wiles
Success! A fresh white truffle in the hand is worth $2,000 in the bank.
Gloria Wiles
The rewards: Pasta with white truffles a pricey dish with aromatic elegance.
Truffles are offered in various forms for sale at the market in Alba, Italy.
Gloria Wiles
Giuseppe Marengo and his truffle hunter, Lady
Gloria Wiles
Another display of truffles at the Alba, Italy, market.
Gloria Wiles

It's the height of the white truffle season and connoisseurs of the aromatic, rough gems from Alba, Italy, are wallowing in the rich delights prepared by just a handful of chefs across the city.

When billionaire Fayez Sarofim stepped out to celebrate his birthday recently, he headed to Da Marco and ordered a full serving, $95 a plate, for starters. Before dinner was over, he was contemplating ending the meal with Da Marco's white truffle ice cream (inspired by a dish from Milan), an unusual treat that requires a special fondness for the earthy flavor.

Da Marco chef/owner Marco Wiles and wife Gloria vacationed (a busman's holiday for sure) in Alba for two weeks in October exploring the center of the universe as far as white truffles are concerned, visiting the forests where truffles are harvested and sampling the dishes of Alba's top restaurants.

Venerable restaurateur Tony Vallone has been serving white truffles to Houston gourmands for more than two decades and has a coterie of devotees who consume as much as three kilos a week. At $2,700 to $2,900 a pound, this is eating way high on the hog. That translates into $135 a plate for the top of the line Alba truffles. Among those relishing the dishes (diner's choice of truffle risotto or truffles with pasta) at T ony's are Sheridan and John Eddie Williams and Carol and Mike Linn.

Catalan chef Chris Shepherd has white truffles, not as a regular menu item, but on call-ahead status. Recently, Shepherd hosted a "Wine Me, Dine Me" dinner for Apex Group owner Josh Aruh and 10 friends featuring seven courses, four of them generously laced with white Alba truffles. He repeated the dinner for the following night for another customer. The rich morsels are also a fall tradition at Arcodoro where dishes include risotto, ravioli, fettucini and more with prices ranging from $45 to $95.

White truffle season runs mid-November through mid-December and wholesale market costs range from $1,800 to $2,900 depending on supplier and demand. You can get your own Alba truffles via the Internet at approximately $263 an ounce or more than $4,000 a pound. Bon appetite!

Birthdays galore

So Thanksgiving week is not the time for big celebrations other than turkey day itself. But what to do when your birthday falls during this time of feasting? You or your friends throw a party anyway.

Maritza and Dr. Vicente Valero, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center breast oncologist, opened their home for two dozen chums of Ileana Treviño to help her celebrate a not-so-special birthday. Husband Michael

Treviño did most of the cooking.

Among the well-wishers were Sandy and Dr. Barney Barrett, Carol and Michael Linn, Soraya and Scott McClelland and Nancy Ames and Danny Ward.

A big one

Attorney Chris Bell crossed the half-century mark Saturday night at Eldorado Ballroom where close to 150 fans turned out to wish him well. Because the space is now owned by Project Row Houses, Bell asked that in lieu of gifts, donations be made to the non-profit. Organizing the bash were the birthday boy's wife Allison Bell plus June Deadrick of Centerpoint Energy and Heidi Kirkpatrick Hedrick of Lone Star Strategies.

Celebrants rocking to the sounds of Commercial Art included a number of politicos such as City Controller and mayoral candidate Annise Parker, Harris County Commissioner Sylvia Garcia, State Rep. Carol Alvarado and state representative candidate Billy Brisco. Also in the mix were the Bells' two children, 13-year-old Atlee and 11-year-old Connally, plus Dave Strickland, Miya Shay, Jim Jard, Michael Moore and loads of former Bell staffers from his City Hall and D.C. days as well as former campaign staffers.

Lady friends

Donna Vallone was caught by total surprise last week when her book club (Tony's Literary Society or TLS) partners threw a birthday lunch at Susan Krohn's River oaks home. The ladies hosting the ladies who lunched were Sandy Barrett, Randa Duncan, Alina Garcia, Carol Linn, Soraya McCleland, Ileana Treviño, Sheridan Williams and Krohn.

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Coming soon to Fredericksburg

Houston restaurant vet serves up Roman-style eatery in the Hill Country

Photo courtesy of Bottega Salaria

Valerio Lombardozzi is opening Bottega Salaria in the former home of La Bergerie.

Valerio Lombardozzi’s culinary career has taken him to the world’s finest kitchens, including restaurants owned by icons like Alain Ducasse, Giorgio Locatelli, and Joël Robuchon. In Houston, he led La Table and Tavola, where he earned a reputation for being one of the city's most engaging front of the house personalities.

But his latest project might be his biggest accomplishment yet. The hospitality veteran is opening Bottega Salaria, a homey Italian osteria and artisan market, in the former home of La Bergerie at 312 E Austin St in his adopted home of Fredericksburg.

Lombardozzi says the restaurant, expected to arrive in winter 2026, fills a gap in the Hill Country dining scene, but, more importantly, it's a reflection of his personal history and time spent working at his family’s restaurant in Rome.

“[It’s about] where I grew up, how I grew up, and how I eat,” he shares.

The three-concept experience is inspired by Italy’s Via Salaria, the ancient route Italians used to transport salt from the Adriatic Sea to Rome. The menu acts as a sort of travelogue, borrowing from the different cultures along the road, and the way village fishermen and shepherds ate.

Lombardozzi is quick to say he didn’t want to open a chef-driven restaurant. Instead, the osteria will serve traditional Roman staples such as cacio e pepe, amatriciana, carbonara, saltimbocca with sage and prosciutto, and branzino carved tableside.

“I was one of the last to be exposed to the old generation of professionals who knew how to carve elegantly for the guests,” he says.

The adjacent bottega will stay open during restaurant hours, offering fresh pasta made on-site, house-made sauces, imported Italian pantry items, cheeses, salumi, breads, and biscotti. Patrons will be able to shop for individual items or put together custom gift baskets.

Outdoors, La Fraschetteria will debut a new hospitality experience in the U.S. The self-guided experience invites diners to grab wine directly from garden shelves, gather a spread of meats, cheeses, bread, or pasta, and linger around long communal tables lit by string lights.

Keeping the chit-chat going will be a thoughtful beverage program anchored by a primarily Italian wine list and imported beer. Lombardozzi says the cocktail menu might be a surprise, offering only gin and tonics, spritzes, and negronis. The latter has been made into a game where diners roll dice to determine the evening's combination of gin, vermouth, and bitters.

After dinner, guests can select an amaro from a rolling cart, sip grappa and limoncello, or sip a neat whiskey.

Lombardozzi shares that he wants Bottega Salaria to be just as comfortable for Fredericksburg locals as it is for destination travelers. Beyond daily service, Bottega Salaria plans community events such as garden wine nights with live music, Sunday movie nights, and hands-on cooking classes.

The space is designed for ease with a warm palette combining olive green and pomegranate reds. The decor blends heritage and modernity, bringing in objects like antique mirrors, plates, custom-made lamps, and even old tablecloths and curtains for an Old World feel.

"We’re not just opening a restaurant,” Lombardozzi says. “We’re creating a gathering place. A home for everyone who loves Italian food, culture, and the joy of sharing a meal with others.”

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