"It was like a honeymoon," he recalls of the trip that centered on Tuscany after he read Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes. "It affected me so that I plan to go back every summer."

What struck him most was the simplicity of the cuisine. As part of a small group interested in learning more about local cooking, he went to the home of retired Italian chef Carlo Innocenti in the small medieval village of Arcidosso.

"He used only three or four flavors per dish," Szenda explains, suggesting that there is a tendency among Americans to overcomplicate a dish with too many flavors, thus masking a food's true taste. Innocenti made bruschetta (pronounced brus-kay-ta), a rustic Tuscan bread toasted with stewed basil, tomatoes, garlic and olive oil.

Patrons can experience more of Szenda's taste inspirations at two planned winemakers' dinners: one on Sept. 8, and the other on Oct. 13. For $20, there's also an opportunity to learn how some simple finger foods are made when he cooks before a weekly crowd that comes for wine-tasting every Thursday. This week, the hors d'oeuvre party will be held on the patio, where the standing crowd can watch and listen as Szenda concocts three or four finger foods. The appetizers will be paired with appropriate wines from Napa's Niebaum-Coppola Winery and accompanied by an informal lecture. "I like to speak in front of groups," he says, smiling.

Szenda discovered that Tuscany's various provinces each have a distinct cooking style. On Sept. 8, the fish course for the wine dinner will reflect his trip to the coast on the Ligurian Sea at Porto Santo Stefano: a linguini dish loaded with mussels and clams.

His trip to the interior of Tuscany in the Montalcino province will be reflected in the risotto with porcini mushrooms. A veal dish with prosciutto and hard pecorino cheese made from sheep's milk is from the Pienza province.

Szenda, 34, who prefers to go by his initials rather than his given name, owns Viaggio's with Saratogan Karen Grellas. She approached him five years ago when he was cooking for the Plumed Horse across the street and asked him to join her in buying the restaurant, which was going through liquidation. It was a fitting move for the New England native who, right after his graduation in 1987 from New York's Culinary Institute of America, came directly to Saratoga, where he knew he wanted to work. His career has been spent almost consistently in Saratoga restaurants, including Le Mouton Noir (now Gervaise).

A Saratoga resident, he spends his weekends touring both the Saratoga and Los Gatos farmers' markets with his 6-year-old daughter, Melissa, for the produce he uses in his restaurant. "I'm really into seasonal produce," he says, describing how he samples whatever the vendors have to offer. Indicating his tomatoes, he notes, "These are vine-ripened and ready to eat—not like the things you get in a grocery store."

Tomatoes and peaches, he says, are the easiest to assess for ripeness. "I smell them and give them a gentle squeeze; a slight give will determine the ripeness." Some freshly picked strawberries he bought last weekend at the Kika stand ended up that evening in a strawberry mascarpone cheesecake. The rest of his fresh produce comes from Watsonville through vendor Brian Gardiner of America Fresh.

Viaggio's, 14550 Big Basin Way in Saratoga, is open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday, 5 to 10 p.m., and Sundays, 5 to 9 p.m. Sunday brunch is 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Call 408.741.5300 for lunch hours and catering information.