We have Dan’s lovely Aunt Alba staying with us (after whom we named the house). We only see her once a year; what better excuse to eat at one of the very best local restaurants: Taverna La Staffa. There is always a warm welcome and the food never, ever disappoints.
La Staffa has a wide menu which includes traditional dishes, local specialities and pizzas, but this was a special occasion so we chose the fish menu.
Deep breath, because here we go…
Antipasto freddo di mare:
(salmone, molluschi, insalata di mare, carpaccio di spigola)
Primo piatto:
(maltagliati con vongole, zucchine, ceci e burro)
Cozze:
Fritto misto di mare dell’Adriatico:
(gamberoni, moscardini, seppie, polipo, calamari e pescetti)
Lumache di mare:
(I separated this fellow from his friends.)
Arrosto misto di pesce dell’Adriatico:
(pesce spada, sogliola, gamberoni, triglie)
Those little breaded balls on the left of the picture are the Olive Ascolane. We also had the house wine from the owner’s vineyards and the ‘insalata mista fina, quattro colori’.
This dish was exceptional: giant prawns whose tails had been shelled and dipped into sesame seeds.
You might be wondering about dessert. We were all too full! Just a coffee and digestive on the front porch.
We had eaten so well that we asked for a doggy bag. So that’s lunch sorted too, because it’ll go with the Panzanella I made in the afternoon. (It’s always better the day after. All the juices from the tomatoes are soaked up by the bread and the flavours are more intense.)
Notes:
Distance from Casalba: 2 kms.
Closed: Tuesdays.
Price: Slightly above the local average, but worth every single penny.
Fish Menu: I’d certainly have this again, but would order less. Every single dish was delicious, but the true stars were the antipasti and the prawns dipped in sesame seeds.
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