| Ambiance: |  (4 / 5) |
| Service: | (3.5 / 5) |
| Value for money: | (3 / 5) |
| Pizza: | (3.5 / 5) |
By the time we were even thinking about having lunch in Lucca, the hunger demon inside me had definitely come out and my foot was about to start thumping. So, for once I wasn’t fussy about where we ate, all I required was pizza. So, with a name of ‘pizzeria trattoria’ and a free table for five in view, I was sold. I’ve always deemed this approach risky, but as it turned out, our lunch was very enjoyable and the pizza was one of the nicest ‘restaurant’ pizzas I’ve had in northern Italy.
Cutlery packages!
The restaurant was located in the centre of Lucca, in the circular amphitheatre so benefited from a nice people watching setting. Being me, I immediately noticed and liked the place settings – just simple A3 parchment sheets, but with a rectangular branded paper package, containing cutlery and napkin. I’ve rarely seen this being done before, and imagine it’s not entirely cost effective, but I liked the added touch. The menu contained all the classics, including pizza (obviously), a lot of pasta dishes and secondi (meat and fish). We opted for a simple margherita as a shared starter and for our main, Dad and I agreed to share a lasagne and spicy sausage pizza with Dad – this approach being the best of both worlds an’all.
The margherita arrived within ten minutes and was piping hot, with a thin crust and tasted delicious. The toppings were simple yet generous and the only thing I had to complain about was there not being enough!
Mum’s Calzone
Our main courses were served with the complimentary bread, which was actually among the best ‘free’ bread I’ve had since being in Italy. I still can’t fully get my head around why Italian restaurants rarely give you your bread first, as if the average person is like me (aka hungry), surely giving them bread straight away would be a lot more satisfying, rather than feeling like an after thought when served with the food? Or maybe I’m just being too British about it!
Sausage pizza
Lasagne
The lasagne looked and tasted a little like a microwave meal but I was still so hungry, I could’ve possibly have eaten anything. In Italy, lasagne seems to have double the amount of pasta layers to what we tend to be served at home, and the sauce is a lot more tomato based. However, I still demolished my half and mopped it up with the equally good second pizza I shared with Dad.
Recommendation
