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2014-01-31
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I came across this restaurant on one of my favorite's food blogger's instagram and saw quite a few pretty pics of the dishes here. Thus, I decided to give it a try and made a reservation for dinner. When I stepped into the entrance, I immediately took a step into a cozy garden housed in Tuscany. The kitchen was situated at the end of the hallway and there was a window to let diners see how the chefs worked meticulously for each and every dish. We were seated at the sofa in the middle of the rest
When I stepped into the entrance, I immediately took a step into a cozy garden housed in Tuscany. The kitchen was situated at the end of the hallway and there was a window to let diners see how the chefs worked meticulously for each and every dish. We were seated at the sofa in the middle of the restaurant, and were offered the bread basket while we started to flip through the menu. There were more softer breads among the selection, and I liked the one with herbs.
For appetizer, we had Lobster Bruschetta with Red Onion, Celery and Cherry Tomato Salad. It was indeed a great choice! Loved the combination and the lobster meat was tender and fresh! I prefer lobster to be prepared with light sauce or to go without any dressing so I could really taste the meat. The other appetizer was Mussels Neapolitan-Styled with Spicy Tomato and Garlic. We requested to minimize the spiciness of the dish and it came out great! The sauce was just right, not too thick nor too watery, and complimented the mussels well with a slight hint of spiciness, just good enough to stimulate your palette! Mussels were of the right size as well, most of them were plump and succulent!
We tried to leave room for dessert, so we had not picked any red meat. Among its home-made pasta selection, my eyes was set on Chitarra Spaghetti, Burrata, Pine Nuts, Dill, Bottarga and Saffron right away. I am a fan of Burrata and Pine Nuts, and was very excited when it was brought to our table. It looked absolutely mouth watering. The spaghetti was al dente, and I loved the texture when it was eaten along with Burrata and Pine Nuts. Though apart from these major ingredients, the rest of the flavor was rather weak.
Undecisive for 2 fish courses, the manager picked this for me - Salt Crusted Sea Bass, which was one of their signature dishes. It was covered under a salt crust when it was presented. The server lit a fire on top of the salt crust for the very one last step, then it was hammered and the fish meat was nicely removed and presented as the picture below. Small cubes of tomatoes were sprinkled on top. Loved the tender meat and the dish tasted healthy! There was not much seasoning except a faint hint of salt could be felt.
The other main was Black Cod Fish with Pizzaiola Sauce and Romaine Lettuce. Cripsy surface with juicy meat, you could almost never go wrong with Black Cod. I would say this was a safe dish.
Unlike most Italian restaurants, its dessert menu was quite innovative and interesting, it took us quite a while before we came up with these two, one creative dessert and a traditional one. The first we had was Giardino - Herb Sponge, with White Melon Ice-cream, Mint Macaron and White Chocolate Sauce. Just by the name of it, we originally were pretty doubtful, but the very first bite completely blew us away! I preferred to eat the herb sponge and white melon ice-cream separately, as the spone was covered by the fresh and sweet melon ice-cream. The herb sponge was awesome when eaten alone. It was fresh in other sense (pertaining to vege) but was also very airy. Don't get me wrong, I was not a fresh cucumber person but this totally became one of my favorite Italian desserts. I seriously wonder where else I could find this!
Just when we thought Tiramisu was a more traditional choice, we were wrong. This version looked definitely mouth watering. Cocoa was sprayed onto the mascarpone cheese in front of us. Fell in love with the creamy silky texture when there were still distinct lady fingers in between. Awesome version.
Our meal was wrapped up by a small plate of petit fours, which were rather dull when compared to the previous dishes. We stll had a great time here, cozy environment, great food and lovely service. The servers were attentive but not too disturbing, and they were able to articulate how things were prepared and tell us more about the restaurant. Even though we were served by different people during the meal, service was consistent. Didn't expect this pleasant Italian surprise in Macau, I look forward to my second visit for more wonderful memories.
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