As cyclists ourselves, we understand the importance of good nutrition on a cycling holiday. On the undulating Cilento terrain, the days in the saddle can be as testing as you want to make them, but what is certain is that you’ll require a hearty meal at each sit down. With the restaurant at Hotel Mare we provide half-board for every rider. A buffet for breakfast and a sit-down dinner, with local wine provided each evening are sure to keep hunger and thirst at bay. This delicious local food follows the principles of the now famous Meditterranean diet.

It was in Cilento that Ancel Keys, the father of the Mediterranean diet, settled down and devised the principles of the now famous diet. It is based on a rich and generally healthy foods such as bread, pasta, fresh vegetables and fruit. Cheese, fish and olive oil are favoured over dairy products and meat. Wine with the meals is also a must and here the wine flows freely.

Breakfast

The Breakfast Buffet

Served from 7am onward, the breakfast buffet mixes traditional Italian pastries, with breads, hams, cheese, muesli, teas, coffees and juices, along with hearty fare for cyclists preparing for a long day in the saddle.

Dinner

Dinner

Dinner is served from 7pm and the restaurant serves typical local dishes of Mediterranean cuisine, with all ingredients sourced locally. Choices for the 3-course meal consist of meat or seafood accompanied by locals cheeses, vegetables, pizza and of course more pasta. Local wine is also served with the dinner, and the only risk is being too full to ride the next day!

Ingredients to a long life

Keys himself lived in Cilento for some 30 years and lived to be over 100 years old, no doubt due to following the principles he learned here. Cilento is renowned for many different foods. Here are some of the highlights, all of which are important parts of the Mediterranean diet.

Olives

Olive trees can be found all over Cilento, the most widespread delicatessen are olive and chestnut products. The mild olive oil meanwhile meets the top quality standard “D.O.C.”, sometimes even organic quality standards. Taking part in autumn harvesting is possible.

Chestnuts

The mountains above Roccadaspide are covered with chestnut woods, and in the autumn you can pick them up off the road as you cycle up and roast them over the fire in the evening.

Lemons

Lemons have strong antibacterial, antiviral and immune-boosting powers. They work as a digestive aid, a liver cleanser, will help to alkalise your body and much more. They are also used to make limoncello, which is a delicious dessert drink. The Amalfi coast in particular is renowned for its lemons and its limoncello, thanks to the strings of lemon groves perched precariously on the edge of the mountains above the sea.

Mozzarella

The most famous delicacy in our province of Campania is buffalo mozzarella. Buffalo thrive on the flat lands just north of Agropoli, and as mozzarella doesn’t travel well, and only lasts a few days, it can only be eaten in this area. A visit to one of the local dairies can be arranged on your rest day.

Ricotta

Whey protein comes from milk and serves as a source of complete protein, which means it provides all the essential amino acids. Protein powders made from whey are the number one selling food supplement, but here in Cilento we eat it in a more natural form. Ricotta cheese contains the highest whey protein of any whole food and one cup of ricotta gives you 28g of protein.

Wine

“Cilento Rosso” is grown by mainly small producers – i.e. almost every family owning some land. Everybody knows the culinary delights of the Italian cuisine. However, few know where to enjoy genuine, indigenous delicacies in a family atmosphere. We have discovered trattorias in little mountain villages where fruits, vegetables, olive oil and wine are self-produced, lambs self-raised, wild boars caught in the local chestnut woods, and ricotta and pasta (gnocchi!) are homemade.

Seafood

Last, but not least, there is the seafood. Fishing is an ancient tradition in this area and fishing villages with working boats dot the coast. There are still numerous fishermen living along the Cilento coast, whose fresh catch can be bought at fish markets and enjoyed in seafood restaurants. A special fishing tradition, which has been carried on for centuries, still takes place in Marina di Pisciotta: “alici di menaica”.