Truffle Season Arrives Early This Year
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The city’s gourmets should be in ecstasy. This year’s white truffle season, usually a two-month dining experience that kicks off each October and wraps up in mid-December, is off to an earlier start this year. In fact, the 2005 season promises to be one of the best ever, several restaurateurs tell me. That’s due to an especially friendly Italian weatherman who is providing plenty of rain, in turn moisturizing the soil, which makes for super-duper truffles.
As a result, this year’s truffles – the best in the world are from Alba, Italy – are sprouting earlier, will be more bountiful and tastier, and will cost less. As such, you’re apt to see more Big Apple restaurants offer them this year because of reduced prices, affording more New Yorkers the opportunity to try this delicacy, which is usually confined to the palates of the well-heeled.
A truffle is essentially a fleshy edible potato-shaped fungus that grows underground and is sniffed out by pigs or specially trained dogs.
The owner of the classy Italian restaurant Primavera on the East Side, Nicola Civetta, figures diners who can afford truffles will spend roughly $20 million this year at dining spots in the city for a variety of truffle dishes.
“I’m amazed at how pungent, aromatic, and really great the initial crop of truffles has turned out to be,” Mr. Civetta tells me. “Truffle lovers will really love them this year.”
Mr. Civetta, whose truffle policy is “to buy the best of the best,” says he’s initially paying $1,300 a pound this year, versus $1,700 to $2,000 a pound last year. Accordingly, his full-portion pasta and risotto truffle dishes, which averaged $95 to $98 in 2004, are being scaled down this year to $79. All told, he estimates his truffle offerings alone should generate Primavera 2005 sales of about $300,000.
At Sistina on the Upper East Side, another leading Italian restaurant, owner Giuseppe Bruno tells me he’s currently paying about $850 a pound for truffles, down from the $2,400 a pound he spent a year ago. As such, his truffle dishes will reflect the lower costs. Last year, for example, his restaurant charged $90 to $100 for a main portion of pasta or risotto with a shaving of truffles. This year’s charge: $65 to $70, roughly 30% less on a year-over-year basis. For a half portion, the price will run $35 to $40, versus $50 to $55 last year.
Mr. Bruno, who has offered truffles the last 22 years, notes there’s growing demand for this delicacy each year. “Business is usually great and some of my customers,” he says, “have been asking about them since July. Truffles are in early this year and we’re already doing a good business in them.” Aside from pasta and risotto dishes with truffles, other popular truffle-sprinkled items at Sistina include veal paillard at $80, fried eggs at $50, and salads at $35 to $40.
Felidia, another Upper East Side Italian delight, is offering truffle dishes and is advertising to alert the city’s diners. Its pricing policy: a $15 supplement for a truffle shaving in a half order of pasta or $29 for a full order.
The baked potato traditionally offered each year with a healthy sprinkling of truffles will soon be available in some of the city’s finest restaurants. At one of the best, the Four Seasons, the price will run about $120. In the past, notably during periods of short supply, the potato has run as high as $150. However, if you’re pinching pennies and can do without truffles and the ambiance, try one of the food carts along Broadway or Sixth Avenue. You can probably pick one up for $2.99.
At Daniel Boulud’s East Side flagship, Daniel, one of the city’s premier dining spots, the word on truffles is “give us another 10 days. We want them to really be great.”
Since restaurants reorder truffles throughout the season, prices often vary from week to week. Because of their appeal and the likelihood that more eateries will offer them, restaurateurs caution that some will likely serve lesser-quality truffles, usually from such Italian regions as Tuscany and Umbria.
So how does one tell the difference between top-quality and lesser-quality truffles? Largely by the aroma. The best truffles will have a great and much stronger aroma, Mr. Bruno explains. Likewise, truffles from Alba will look like a golf ball, whereas those from Tuscany and Umbria will look more like a squashed potato.