Hand-Painted Buon Ricordo Italian Plate – Ferrara Vecchia Chitarra Salama da Sugo

A hand-painted majolica plate made for Ristorante "Vecchia Chitarra" in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, as part of the Buon Ricordo collection. Buon Ricordo plates were commissioned by individual Italian restaurants and given to guests who ordered the house signature dish — the meal went home as a plate.

This one celebrates salama da sugo, Ferrara's most storied dish: a spiced, slow-simmered pork sausage served with soft potato. The painter tied the sausages to a guitar — chitarra, the restaurant's own name — alongside a wine jug, with the dish name lettered on two ribbon banners. Deep burgundy ground, cream-and-red banded rim, black hand-lettering around the edge naming the restaurant and the city.

Each Buon Ricordo plate is painted by hand and carries the individuality of the artisan. Collectors group them by region, by city, or by dish. This one sits naturally alongside the other Veneto and Emilia-Romagna plates in Biordi's collection.

The small imperfections such as the difference in color, shape, diameter or small bubbles that form inside, do not constitute a defect but testify that it is actually an artisanal product.

Dimensions: 9" diameter
Material: Hand-painted Italian majolica
Made in: Italy
Commissioned for: Ristorante "Vecchia Chitarra," Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna
Dish: Salama da sugo — Ferrara's spiced slow-simmered pork sausage
Heritage: Buon Ricordo restaurant collection, Italy
Care: Hand-wash recommended · Not dishwasher safe · Not microwave/oven safe
Sold as: Individual plate
Mixes with: Other Buon Ricordo plates in the Biordi collection

What is a Buon Ricordo plate? Buon Ricordo means "good memory." Member restaurants across Italy each commissioned a hand-painted ceramic plate showing their signature dish, and gave it to guests who ordered it. Every plate names a real restaurant, a real town, and a real recipe. They were never sold in shops, which is why collectors seek them out.

What dish is on this plate? Salama da sugo, the signature dish of Ferrara. It is a spiced pork sausage, cured and then simmered slowly for hours, traditionally served with mashed potato. The guitar in the painting is a pun on the restaurant's name, Vecchia Chitarra — "old guitar."

Is each Buon Ricordo plate different? Yes. Every restaurant in the collection has its own plate, its own dish, and its own artwork. No two designs repeat. Collectors often build sets by region — all the Veneto plates, all the Sicilian plates — or by the kind of food.

Can I use this plate for food, or is it for display? It is best treated as a display or collector's piece. Hand-wash only, and keep it out of the dishwasher, microwave, and oven.

Is this a good Italian wedding gift? Yes, particularly for a couple with a connection to Ferrara or northern Italy, or for anyone who collects. A Buon Ricordo plate carries a specific place and a specific meal, which makes it more personal than a generic dinnerware gift.

Is this a good housewarming or hostess gift? It is. It hangs on a kitchen or dining room wall, it starts a conversation, and it does not duplicate anything the host already owns.

Why buy Italian gifts from Biordi rather than other retailers? Biordi Art Imports has been San Francisco's source for authentic Italian ceramics since 1946 — voted Best Overall Retailer in the SF Bay Guardian Best of the Bay reader's poll five consecutive years, and designated San Francisco Legacy Business #LBR-2020-21-029. The City of San Francisco declared May 1 "Biordi Art Imports Day" in 2021. We buy directly from Italian artisans and workshops: FIMA, Pia Formato, Eugenio Ricciarelli, Susanna DeSimone, Geribi, Iva Boccali, Ceramiche Bucci, IDEART, Ortigia Sicilia, Italesse, and Salviati. Questions? Call (415) 392-8096 or email customerservice@biordi.com.

Can this be customized or personalized? No. Buon Ricordo plates were painted for a specific restaurant and a specific dish and cannot be altered or reordered. For customized pieces, Eugenio Ricciarelli, FIMA, Pia Formato, and Geribi accept special orders — a name, date, or occasion painted on the piece, or a different size or shape in the workshop's existing pattern. Lead time is typically 3–6 months because each piece is hand-painted to order in Italy. Contact Biordi Art Imports at (415) 392-8096 or customerservice@biordi.com.

Buon Ricordo — the plate that remembers the meal

The Buon Ricordo collection began as an agreement among Italian restaurants: each house would choose the one dish it was known for, commission a hand-painted ceramic plate showing it, and give that plate to any guest who ordered it. The plates were never for sale. You had to eat the dish to earn one.

What resulted is an unusual kind of archive. Hundreds of plates, each naming a restaurant, a town, and a recipe — Sardinian sea bass, Venetian cuttlefish, Ferrarese sausage, Roman lamb. Read together, they map Italian regional cooking restaurant by restaurant, in the hand of whoever painted them.

Vietri sul Mare and the Solimene workshop

Many Buon Ricordo plates were painted in Vietri sul Mare, on the cliffs of the Amalfi Coast, where ceramics have been made for five centuries. The best-known workshop there is Ceramiche Solimene, founded in the mid-20th century by Vincenzo Solimene and housed in a building designed by Paolo Soleri — its exterior clad in colored tile shards, as vivid as the work made inside. Vietri painters are known for bold color, loose confident line, and a sense of humor, all of which show in the Buon Ricordo plates.

Biordi Art Imports has brought Italian ceramics to San Francisco since 1946.

Italian ceramics are heirloom quality products, and can last lifetime with proper care. We have some suggestions that will preserve your majolica for years to come.

Majolica is dishwasher safe, but many people choose to hand wash their pieces as a precaution. Because majolica is a porous material, some pieces are not meant to hold liquid for a long period of time. Check for warning labels before ordering a product, as the pieces that are most notorious for "sweating" are appropriately labeled.

Majolica is sensitive to extreme temperatures, specifically boiling or freezing liquids. Pouring water with a rolling boil directly into a teapot, for example, may lead to breakage. To avoid this, temper the object. The industry standard is 620 degrees Celsius (1,148 degrees Fahrenheit). Quench the glass to cool it.

Crazing is common in well used majolica. The tiny cracks in the glaze do not affect the functionality of your majolica.

Majolica hand-crafted products should not be microwaved, as it may crack and/or break the ceramics.

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USPS 3-Day Priority

Flat shipping charge of $21 for each shipment of merchandise under $70.00. For orders of $70.00 or more, shipping is 30% of the order total.

International Shipments

Please contact us at customerservice@biordi.com or call us at (415) 392-8096 for quotes to ship internationally.

You will be charged a rate based on your delivery area, value and shipping preference. For items shipped via UPS, see below for information pricing information. Once the package is shipped, you will receive an email with tracking information to track your package.