With a few tables on the terrace, this restaurant caught my attention despite its touristy look and feel. I changed my mind as I walked inside: two huge dining rooms carefully decorated in an Italian style open for the winter season. Endless choices offered on the menu; I was ready to try their food.
A restaurant like the ones on the Trocadéro with waiters wearing black ties, white shirts and black aprons. Wooden tables decorated with white runners, white and yellow lights combined and faded music in the background. After a long day and a four hour flight from Lebanon, I couldn't manage making an effort to choose a good place for dinner... let's hope this one serves good food!
Rome is known for its fried dishes - available on every Italian restaurant's menu in the city. I started with the fried zucchini flowers stuffed with vegetables, sardines and cheese. A light crunch, a juicy heart but an excess of salt that really spoils the overall dish.
Good pasta is prepared here! Very well cooked, pleasantly al dente, firm, flavorful and rich. The tuna spaghetti is indeed very good, smooth and creamy, shiny and slippery with a feel of lightness. The lobster linguini is as good, with a completely different taste and texture yet achieving the same minimum qualities you expect; al dente, creamy, smooth and tasty.
The pizza is good! It feels like a Lebanese Manousheh, the bread is soft, no watery patches, and covered with a mix of four kinds of cheese, each adding a different flavor. Blue cheese covers all the others, with a strong acidity, a certain intensity, with Parmesan to add class and richness. Again loved the base - the softness of it, and a thick yet light crust.
Service is slow: exactly like you expect it in a tourist restaurant.
A calm and simple dinner surrounded by several nationalities - three tables from Lebanon. I enjoyed my dishes and walked back for an early night's sleep.
