Genoa – 2013 restaurant reviews

Da Maria (Elementary B), 14r Vico Testadore (a dark alley off XXV Aprile, which runs parallel to Via Roma)

Mentioned on the Guardian ‘Been There’ site and in Cadogan, this is a super cheap traditional trattoria. Primarily a lunch place (Monday to Saturday 11.45 – 14.45), I must have walked past here in the evening at least five times to see if it was open (only Wednesday and Thursday nights it seems) before finally catching lunch on a Friday when I had a half day. It was very busy at 1pm when I arrived so I ended up in the fourth room on the second floor.
The handwritten menu was quite hard to read so I just went for anything ‘alle Genovese’. To start Minestrone alle Genovese, a murky soup with I presume pesto stirred in. It was fine, but nothing special (B).

Next Polpettone alle Genovese, a mistake as I don’t have much luck with dishes starting with the suffix ‘polp-‘. I order in the hope of getting some nice meatballs (polpettine) but sometimes end up with baby octopus (polipetti) or in this case a kind of local meatloaf. It was dry and unappealing (C) as were the cold overcooked chips that came with it (C-).

I can’t remember what the pudding was called but it was perhaps a kind of tiramisu or rum soaked sponge with icing and a glace cherry, edible but unspecial (C+)

With a quartino of rough house red (C-) and a harsh grappa (C-), the bill came to an amazing €15!
I went back a second time and spent €25, due to forking out for a half decent Gavi (B) which was half the price of what you’d pay in other restaurants. There was no way of chilling the wine at the table (they’re not that kind of place) but my friendly server kept it in the fridge for me and brought it out every time my glass needed filling.

Again the food was no great shakes (C or C+) but it’s perfectly edible, although I wouldn’t go as far as this article does in singing its praises. All the same, Maria’s is a Genoese institution so just going is an experience in itself.

La Buca di San Matteo (High Intermediate B+), 5r Via Chiossone, (the next restaurant along the street from Trattoria San Carlo below), Tel. 010 236 2389, www.labucadisanmatteo.it

A random selection, I came here because it was raining and I’d liked the look of the menu when I’d walked past on an earlier night.

Service was variable, perhaps due to having a table downstairs. The silly young waitress assigned to my table didn’t have a clue about the food and wine served in her restaurant and had to keep asking her colleague, the excellent English-speaking Elmondo to serve me.

I had a bottle of Vermentino Riviera Ligure di Ponente (Durin) which was pretty good (B+).

The local classic, Pansoti in Salsa di Noci; pasta parcels filled with borage or spinach (not sure which) and ricotta in a cream sauce with walnuts (molto ricco!), was the best I had in Genoa (A-).

Next the Gran Misto di Pesce alla Griglia, comprising of a huge plate of swordfish, crayfish, squid, prawns and seabass as well as strips of courgette and slightly under cooked aubergine. I was excited by the wrapped silver parcel in the middle of the plate. A seafood surprise perhaps, or maybe some roast garlic? How disappointing then to receive a small stone cold potato! The rest of the plate managed to get a B+ though.

For dessert, the coppo galoso or ‘greedy cup’ of Bagnati nel Vin Santo, Crema di Marscapone e Fragole, or sponge fingers with sweet wine, cream cheese and strawberries, which was great (B+).

I tried two grappas, the first a plain chardonnay by Fuoriclasse scored just a B, and the second, a barrique gran moscato by Bocchino, got an A. I saw the latter in Makro the other day so it must be a popular one.

The final bill of €70 was about right given all the seafood.

I came back another night to try their one off Menu Campano, which ought to have been great as their chef is from Campania. A printing error on their leaflet advertising the special evening led me to believe I’d get four courses but there were in fact only three.

First a pasta course of Mezzo Pachero di Grangnano con Fiori di Zucchine Glassate al Cognac, or ‘slaps’ of big pasta from the Campanian town of Grangnano with courgette flowers glazed in cognac, which was just ok (B).

With this a bottle of Cinque Terre which I can’t remember anything about, sorry.

The main was Guanciale di Maialino da Latte Brasato al Greco di Tufo con Arance di Sorrento e Nocciole Tostate, or cheeks of suckling pig braised in Greco di Tufo white wine, oranges from Sorrento and toasted hazelnuts, which  sounded fantastic but again was also just alright. (B)

La Classica Torta Caprese con Granella di Mandorle e Cioccolato Venezuela 75% su Crema Diplomatica dessert wasn’t going to go wrong with such good chocolate (A) .

I had this with a glass of Sicilian Zibibbo which I thought I’d swapped for my glass of wine due to me as part of the deal but which still showed up in my bill.

With a super strong grappa the total came to €63, which was probably fair, but not the deal I’d been expecting so I felt rather cheated. Not sure if I’d go again given all the other places to try.

Enoteca Migone next door at 4r Piazza di San Matteo is I think the oldest wine shop in the city. The old chap was very helpful when I went in.

Trattoria San Carlo (Intermediate B), 41-43 Via David Chiossone (just up the street from La Buca above), Tel. 010 2534 294, www.trattoriasancarlo.it

Gleaned from the Guardian’s now defunct ‘Been There’ site.

On my first night I didn’t get out till about 9pm so I came to this place as it was the nearest place on my hit list that was open. The dour owner was not particularly welcoming but I managed to get a thin smile out of him towards the end of the night after a constant barrage of niceness.

It’s a modern place with only a couple of traditional dishes on the menu. Forgot my camera though, sorry. My antipasti was four saltcod fritters, Fritelle di Bacala, which were beautifully fluffy and white inside, although they needed salting (B+).

Craving seafood and not wanting to have the stereotypical pesto with green beans and new potatoes, I went for the non-local Maltagliate con Calamari, Gamberi e Zucchini for my primi which again needed a good shake of the salt pot to bring the taste out. The seafood, two huge prawns with chopped up squid,  was great but the courgette was just uncooked decoration and I could only score it a B. Generally I found the menu a bit misleading here.

The portions were small but the prices were low (compared to Milan and Turin where I’d just come from) so I had a secondo of Orata alla Ligure, baked guilthead bream with potatoes, tomatoes and black olives. By rejecting the fish fork, which is unusable for me, I did learn a new phrase; ‘sono mandino’, meaning I’m a leftie (used for both hand and foot).

The local white wines though were a revelation though. I started with a glass of slightly effervescent Lumassina (Colline Savonese) and followed with Vermintino “Terre di Luna” from Colli di Luni. Both wines were delightfully light and fruity and went down worryingly quickly (B+).

I was still hungry (rather worryingly, I think I’m now at maximum capacity after just ten days in the country!) so I finished with a slice of pineapple, strawberry, blueberry and kiwi tart (B+), helped down with glass of sweet Passito. I had asked for a local digestif but this sweet raisin wine was all they had, but I wan’t complaining (B+).

Total cost €64, not too bad for 4 courses and 3 kinds of wine with good bread and a bottle of water. The food was fine but I wouldn’t come again. There must be more atmospheric traditional places around here somewhere…

Le Cantine Squarefico (High Intermediate B), 3R Piazza Invrea, Tel. 016 3577 0991 (the pic is a beautiful building nearby)

A Rough Guide pick, I got another unsmiling ‘welcome’ here. The cellar has huge stone pillars that appear to be propping up several floors of masonry above although the snooty queen who served me said many had just been installed for appearance’s sake. He told me the room was once the water storage tank for the Squarefico family who lived on the floors above.

Like many places here, the menu was again trad meets modern. Wanting most to try the former, I went for Mandilli al Pesto, which was served on a cold glass plate, a pet hate of mine. Tastewise it was ok (B) but the thin local pasta seemed overcooked and the pesto no better than my own, even though this is the city that invented it.

Next Branzino alla Ligure; seabass stuffed with tiny black taggiasca olives and pine nuts as is the Ligurian style. The fish was small but very tasty (B+). The small cubes of roast potato it came with were delicious (A+) but short in supply.

A decent (B) Pigato (Fontanacota 2012) was a good match with the food if rather overpriced as is often the case in this tourist town.

To finish I ordered a tris of desserts; Crema alla Menta con Scoglie di Cioccolate Fondente (a mint cream ‘jelly’ with chocolate flakes that tasted like After Eight), Tarta al Cioccolato Fondente and a bowl of strawberries. All very nice (B).

I had this with a local amaro, San Maria di Monte,  (A) which contains 36 different herbs and spices, including aloe, myrrh, rhubarb, saffron, absinthe, cardamom and cola nuts. How could it not be good for  you?

Total cost €55, pointedly reduced from €62 (a free amaro?). An atmospheric place with good food but I wasn’t keen on the service or value-for-money so I don’t think I’d go again.

Ombre Rosso (Intermediate), 20r Vico degli Indoratori, Tel. 010 275 7608, open lunch and dinner except Sunday evening.

A Gambero Rosso recommended place. The inside is quite cosy but I opted for a table in the atmospheric garden opposite where a PACE flag was flying. It was slightly chilly on this evening in late May, even for a Norwegian, but I can imagine it would be a great spot on a warm summer’s night. It’s primarily a wine bar so the menu is quite limited, only four choices per course, and quite avante garde with dishes employing cous cous and basmati rice. The wine list takes up most of the menu. It seems to just be a two person operation with the chef helping out the friendly English speaking waiter (or owner?) with serving the food.

I went for the traditional Chicche al Pesto, tiny gnocchi of three different colours; plain, red (with tomato) and green (with parsley and basil). It was very good (B+) but I still prefer my own more powerful version made with the sharper garlic we get in the Asian shops in the UK  whereas the locals prefer it to be milder.

I wanted some fish to go with my Pigato (Durin 2012) (B) but there was none on the menu so instead I had the ham and cheese board (B) instead.

To finish a complimentary glass of Amaro Camatti, another local bitter favoured by the sailors and dockers of Liguria. It’s a bit softer than the San Maria di Monte mentioned above , and tastes even more like cough syrup than usual (B).

Although they didn’t have any in for me to try, the waiter told me that grappa is made from the local Vermentino and Pignato grapes too, although the best ones come from Piedmonte and Veneto rather than Liguria.