Italian caffe

My friend Morna who owns and runs Fancy Dan's had recommended this place.
So, on what must be the sunniest day so far this year it seemed the perfect place for a spot of lunch and to catch up with Damian and Victoria after their Florence trip. It's located in the Merchant City and is an off-shoot of the Italian Kitchen. To call it a 'caffee', is somewhat misleading- it's is actually quite swank.

Although we didn't have a reservation we were shown quickly to a booth and given the menus to look at. We started of with a mixed antipasto plate


to allow us more time to look at the menu which is quite large. The platter was excellent with some good charcuterie, fresh mozzarella and marinated peppers.


The bread selection was also good and provided with olive oil and balsamic.


I chose the beef carpaccio which again was excellent, the saltiness of the grated parmesan working well with the beef.


The salsicca in tomato ragu was also excellent


but the tuna with capers and fagoli beans, disappointing.

I had expected it to be pink but it was over cooked.
Damian had a pizzette which,


going on how quickly it disappeared must have been good and Victoria the swordfish,


which again seemed to hit the spot.
My only gripe and it's a small one is that mostly all of the dishes were doused in olive oil. Now I know that's authentic but it doesn't help with the calorie counting! I just reassured my self that it was the good fat.

All in all, I liked the place, the ambiance and the food. I think it could be quite a good place to come on a Friday night to sit with a bottle of wine and to work my way through the menu.
I would come here again.