Smoke & Fire

at Sant’Egidio

Hosted by The Brick House Cigar Shop, Recap by Mike Duch

When I first walked into Sant’Egidio it immediately took me back to living in Rome. For a few months, a cozy neighborhood Trastevere became my home. Trastevere, with its cobblestone streets and tiny cafes, had the most amazing cuisine I have ever tasted, and Sant’Egidio provided me with this wonderful memory.

There is an immense feeling of coziness and nostalgia upon entering the cozy trattoria. Located on North Broad Street in Ridgewood, NJ, Sant’Egidio is adorned with dark wood, copper ceiling tiles and smiling faces, all the product of its two owners Rocco Trisolini and Tim Hanley.  The blown up black and white family photos and massive hand-built wood burning pizza oven from Naples, both add to the experience, an depict authenticity and charisma. With a consistent clientele, I am amazed that these two guys make time to sneak away to my quaint cigar shop.

On Sunday December 7th, Sant’Egidio and the Brick House Cigar Shop teamed up for an amazing event.There was an amazing spread of food, which included roasted pork (similar to porchetta), charcuterie, speck stuffed with mozzarella, shrimp pugliese style, and personal pies made by  Italian native Chef Francesco Curci .

Guests were able to enjoy both the food and atmosphere indoors, as well as a selection of cigars outside. A sunny afternoon, and a mere 35°, the front patio attracted a crowd who gathered around the chimenea to relax, smoke, and sip on wine.

Each customer was given two cigars, The Toro or Torpedo, and an Arturo Fuente Rosado 54, which is famous for its white band. Also displayed were a of variety of highfalutin cigars, including La Flor Dominicana Chapter One and Capitulo II, Joel Sherman 75th Anniversary, Cohiba Nicaragua, and La Aroma De Cuba Noblesse. All of these cigars ranged from 15-25 dollars and are all
fabulous.

The torpedo and toro that were offered to guests were created by Alec Bradley in the Placentia Factoria located in Honduras. This blend was created for Aldo (my business partner) and I, as a mild to medium smoke. Recently we’ve had amazing feedback. Due to the high demand, The Brick House Restaurant has been selling theses cigars by the bundle.

The most comparable cigar would be the Perdomo Champagne. Beautiful wrapper, black pepper, creamy and fantastically smooth. The ash is also one thing to take into account here… It is as white as a ghost. The burn is beautiful throughout, and the finish is strong and powerful,which adds depths of complexity to
the smoke.

At the end of the day everyone had a great time. It was an amazing group of guys, mixed with beautiful women, amazing food, and delicious cigars. Honestly what more could you ask for?

for more events hosted by the brick house cigar shop please email corksandmatches@gmail.com to join the mailing list!

 

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