From Donuts to Delirium

First of all, to all of my lovelies who just celebrated Christmas, I hope you had a magical holiday. I can’t wait to visit your blogs to see what kinds of goodies you were stuffing your little bellies with, and I can’t wait to hear about all the fabulous presents you got. But today’s post is not about holidays, it is about a super fab restaurant that Mr P and I tried that I just had to share with you. You see, Mr P has been on an Italian kick for a while. So, for a special weekend we spent in London I wanted to scope out a really awesome place for us to have some Italian food. Channeling my patron saint of pasta (Sophia Loren–oh, how I love her), and a few food blogs, I happened across what I believe to be a highly authentic representation of Italian cuisine at Bocca di Lupo (literally translated as “The Mouth of the Wolf”).

You kind of know this place is going to be good as soon as you sit down. How? Well the waiters and waitresses, as well as a large portion of the customers, are Italian–that’s always a good sign. Although the dining room is small, maybe even a little bit cramped, the room was filled with noise an laughter. So instead, it manages to feel really cozy. People are having a good time here. So much so, that one lady feels comfortable enough to pop out a booby (don’t click on that if you are squeamish!) to breastfeed her baby.  Okay, so I guess it’s kinda like a “we are all family here” vibe.

I wonder what Sophia would think.

Didn’t you know daaaahling, boobies are the new black?

Mr P and I get a table against the wall and are greeted with some nice bread, some olive oil for dipping, and a few delicious olives while we browse the menu.

For our starters, Mr P and I had mozzarella bocconcini. That’s fried cheese balls to you and me . Maybe somewhere in that kitchen there is an Italian mama who looks a lot like Paula Deen, no? You just know this is going to be delicious… and yes, it most definitely was. What’s not to like? They were piping hot, crispy on the outside, with meltingly creamy buffalo mozzarella on the inside.

And now for the money shot…

(Alright, so I’m not exactly Mario Testino, but I try.)

For my main, I had a sumptuous Sicilian pasta dish, linguine with lobster, mussels and ginger. It really was the taste of the sea in pasta form: Awesome. If you are a fan of lobstaaaah, like me, I totally recommend it.

Mr P’s dish was equally delish. He ordered the pumpkin and amaretti tortelli with butter and sage. The use of amaretti instead of bread crumbs is truly an inspired idea, something I will keep in the back of my mind next time I make pasta. The sweet crunch that it adds is just lovely. The tortelli combined elements of sweet and savory. It totally hit the spot. One interesting thing I found as I am learning more about Italian cuisine is that at proper Italian restaurants, they serve pasta much more al-dente than I would cook at home. That is something I need to get used to.

With our mains, we got to of the most amazing side dishes evvaaa. Side dishes so good that I’d happily eat them alone.  The roast potatoes with red onions and chestnuts was undoubtedly the most delicious roast potatoes I’ve ever tasted. Crispy on the outside with a fluffy interior, eating them made me feel like I was being warmed from the inside. It was just so damned good and so comforting. I will be dreaming of those potatoes. Mmmmmmmm…. taters!

The second side was an absolutely heavenly Sicilian caponata with aubergine (eggplant), celery, and tomato in agrodolce… with anchovies. Funny thing about those anchovies. I was so worried about Mr P eating those lovely potatoes that I was kind of ignoring the caponata. While I was oohing and ahhing over the yummylicious taters, Mr P ate all the anchovies out of the caponata. It wasn’t until I left the restaurant that I realised I didn’t get any. I think you will agree with me that Mr P should have to take me back and let me sample that caponata property. When I say sample, perhaps you realize that I mean that I will not be sharing my food with the naughty Mr P.  God, I can’t take him anywhere!!! I asked Mr P what he thought about the anchovies. Since I didn’t get to try them, I told him at least he could contribute a comment for my blog. Here were his words of wisdom daaaaahlings, “I liked them. They were good. You might not want to share them.” Hmmm… is it obvious that I did not marry him for his brains?

Glistening in it’s oily glory… Bad Mr P, bad!

I wonder if when Sophia Loren said, “Everything you see I owe to spaghetti,” she also meant desert afterwards. Somehow I don’t think so. HH is a sporting girl though, always up for a desert… or two. When I am not dieting, I totally go to town when I eat out. Bocca di Lupo was no exception. Here we have my desert, an exceptionally rich Cassata Siciliana. It was basically a mass of ricotta, orange and chocolate housed inside a layer of sponge cake and marzipan. Beautiful to look at, and lovely flavours, but perhaps a bit too rich even for me.

Although I liked it, I definitely prefer Mr P’s choice (I should have just snatched it away from him after he ate all those anchovies! I don’t think he deserved it. Yes, he pays the bill at the end, but that’s not the point. Its a matter of principle, you see). Mr P got the Neapolitan inspired brioche ’sandwich.’ It was filled with pistachio, chestnut and hazelnut gelato. The brioche is warm and freshly toasted, and the ice cream inside was a real treat (very good, but not as good as at Grom). The whole thing is dusted in a shower of powdered sugar. It was definitely a winner of a desert. No, now that I think of it, Mr P totally didn’t deserve it.

This was washed down with a Roman style  caffè allo zabaione, or coffee with beaten egg yolks. Yeah, it does sound a little gross, but my goodness, it was superb. I am not a huge coffee person in the first place, but this was so thick and creamy. It was bitter enough to cut through the sweets, but it was almost like another desert in it’s own right. It was truly fabulous.

If you are looking for really amazing, authentic Italian food, look no further than Bocca di Lupo. I will definitely be back… maybe without Mr. P though (nah, not really , I do love that horrid creature).

Overall score: 9/10