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La Bottega
del Buon Caffe, is one
restaurant you should not pass
up during your visit to
Florence. Don’t let its tranquil
unassuming exterior fool you,
for La Bottega is quickly
becoming a Florentine legend
that you should not pass
up!
Residing
about 10 minutes by
cab to the east of the Duomo,
(which for all intensive
purposes we consider the centre
of Florence), "La Bottega" is
worth the ride (about 5 Euros),
as it is truly one of the city’s
most inspired restaurants where
the chefs are not just "cooks"
but culinary artists
The head chef,
Francesco creates dishes with
skill and intensity that can be
savoured in every mouthful. I was immediately
overcome with a sense of pride
in how the Chef operated his
workspace and how he worked with
his Sous Chef. Not one
ingredient or utensil out of
place and every preparation
surface immaculate, the mark of
a true professional.
The sense of calmness, coolness
and creativeness that emanates
from the kitchen spills out onto
of every plate La Bottega
presents. There are a handful
of restaurants that I consider
to be great; this is one of
them. La Bottega not only met
but surpassed my every
expectation of a truly great
restaurant. Now, onto the food…
Chef Francesco prepared a
sampler menu of he choosing so I
could really get a feel for his
menu. My sampler meal consisted
of six courses and a trio of
deserts.
Salad is not just salad at La
Bottega. You won’t find the
usual suspects here. This plate
is a wonderful combination of
black cabbage, zolfini beans and
crispy bacon all packaged
together waiting to be
dismantled and enjoyed. Resist
the temptation of eating each
ingredient on its own and savour
each together for the dishes
intended effect.
The second Antipasti; an
elegant display of thinly sliced
artichoke with the finest
balsamic vinegar and a hint of
parmigiano regiano hand shaved
to top it off. The taste was a
harmonious balance of sweet and
savory. This dish awakened my
senses of smell, taste and
sight; I could only imagine what
was to come next.
The first plate in Italian is
Primi Piatti. There are
actually two included in the
sampler, but these are anything
but sampler size. Chef
Francesco chose the pumpkin
gnocchi with pecorino cheese and
rosemary and the pappardelle
with braised veal cheeks (I
suppose it could be considered a
wider version of fettuccini but
don’t let any Italian hear you
say that).
The gnocchi is hand made on
site and is a house specialty.
The texture of the gnocchi is
smooth and the delicate pumpkin
flavour carries this dish to
another level of taste. The
presentation is truly a work of
art and this dish is for the
gnocchi purest.
In speaking with the Chef at
tableside after dinner
(something he does regularly) he
explained to me that he chooses
underrepresented parts of the
animal to add a twist on the
traditional to make it his own
creation. The aroma from the
kitchen preceded this dish and
left me wondering what it was.
I ascertained the lovely bouquet
once the finely diced veal
cheeks tossed in oversized pasta
in a veal reduction sauce
arrived (see photo for further
visual aid). I took a few
moments to just sit and breath
the air before twisting the
noodles around my fork. This is
one pasta dish that surpassed my
expectations of what a pasta
dish should be.
Secondi Piatti. Again, one
second piatti is not
enough. Mallard duck breast
with chestnut honey and
Jerusalem artichokes. What else
can I say that isn’t in the
description of the dish but,
Shalom! Enjoy this culinary
masterpiece at its finest with a
nice glass of red wine, (insert
the knowledgeable waiter’s
opinion here).
The other white meat; pork
tenderloin but this one comes
with spicy rapini and fennel.
The rapini further enhances an
already flavourful tender meat
with a nuttiness earthiness
which is best enjoyed through
the fall and spring months. The
fennel finishes each bite with a
gentle, crisp flavour to cleanse
your palate for your next bite.
If you have room left, La
Bottega offers a variety of
deserts. Chef Francesco chose
the trio comprised of
two-coloured chocolate mousse
served in a shot glass with a
mini spoon, crème brulèe
perfumed with Earl Grey Tea,
lastly, certainly not least
though, is caramelized and
cinnamon scented pear with
zabajone sauce (cream and egg
based sauce similar to crème
brulèe). If I were backed into
a corner by an angry mob asking
me to choose just one, but only
those circumstances, I would
have to say to “bring me the
mousse”.
Capacity: 30 seated
Entertainment: background music
Air conditioning
Major credit cards accepted
Non smoking restaurant
Reviewed by Darcy
Aubin, Photographer, VisitsItaly.com |
