Which camp are you in?

A: Truffles [1] are earthy little pungent gifts from the ground that should be prized and savored in a meaningful and creative dish.

B: Truffles are overrated bits of hype that chefs use to glam their menus while hiding their technical failings.

Honestly, sometimes I'm in both camps at the same time. I remember my first truffle dish: it was a creamy and soft celery root soup with a black truffle shaving that I had at Gramercy Tavern [2]. Beautiful and subtle, the flavors were never ostentatious or showy. On the other side of the spectrum, I later ate truffle and foie gras ravioli at Ca L'Isidre [3] in Spain. It is one of those taste-memories that I carry with me and is recalled everytime I even smell truffle oil. Lucky me.

But I do recognize the trend of using truffle oil and truffle butter as being a little too easy. Yes, it brings the flavor to the home cook without all the fuss, of that I am glad. I just can't abide certain chefs who think that it should be a feature in every dish, found on the menu of a recent restaurant visit at least twelve times. It looks foolish and amature.

Anyhoo.

Today and tomorrow you will be able to buy authentic Italian tuffles sourced by the Urbani family [6]. Friday from Noon to 6pm at Byerly's [7] in Edina and Saturday from 9am to 3pm at Byerly's in St. Louis Park. The gems will be sold in .03 pound increments at market price.

I might just grab a cup of coffee and go to watch the bum rush ... if it happens.