New flavorful platefuls at Italianni's

The most difficult thing about dining at Italianni’s is that one can have too many favorite things on the menu.  Everything is just too tempting so that making a choice becomes a major dilemma. The situation is aggravated when one dines as a group. When each famished diner has a tendency to change his mind about what to order just when the others have made their choices, the situation can become a bit confusing. It is a good thing that the restaurant is manned by a service staff that is always pleasant, accommodating and efficient. Aside from the consistently good food, this is major reason why Italianni’s is a perennial placer in our ‘favorite restaurants’ list.

As what usually happens when my family dines at Italianni’s, we end up taking an inordinately long time to order. Sure, we all have our personal favorites and can predict what each one will have first. For example, we know that my youngest brother Enrico will always start with the spinach & artichoke formaggio that is delicious with garlic bread. Or that my other sibling, Paulo can consume, on his own, a ‘sharing-sized’ salad of Sicilian chicken with crispy romaine, mangoes, red grapes and pine nuts with a creamy lemon-Dijon dressing. As for me, I am wont to skip the appetizers and salads, opting instead to dig straightaway into my comfort food of baked ziti, with its strongly flavored Italian sausage (salsiccia.)

You can probably tell by now that we are a family of hearty eaters. And with our appetites partially sated, we can become even more finicky when it is time to order the main course.  We equally love Italianni’s roast beef, rib-eye and the grilled pork chops. Or when we are a bit overcome by a bit of remorse over our excessive consumption of red meat, we are just as happy with the Parmesan fish fillet, grilled salmon oreganato, herb roast chicken, or other entrees. But as what usually happens when you know the menu almost like the palm of your hand, making a choice can be excruciating as the memory of agreeable flavors plays in your head.

Thus, the introduction of Italianni’s Gourmet Specials is a welcome development. “Our inspiration for this is our customers,” shares Donabel Fernandez, assistant brand manager. “Although our guests have stayed loyal to the restaurant throughout the years, we recognize that they have become adventurous.” This, she explains, is why new selections have been added to the menu.  We were especially eager to try the two new Gourmet Special entrees, and decided to try both.

Beef Wellington: What makes Italianni’s rendition different is that the perfectly cooked and juicy beef tenderloin is wrapped in thin layers of crisp filo pastry instead the usual puff pastry Photos by Joey Mendoza

The prawn & chicken prosciutto was served with mushroom arborio rice made even more delicious since it was cooked with what we thought was a liberal amount of wine. We appreciated the fact that while the prawn was kept intact so that the crustacean remained attractive, it was also butterflied so that one can easily extract the firm, sweet prawn flesh from the shell. The chicken prosciutto, on the other hand, was cooked just right: crisp on the outside, tender, juicy and perfectly cooked on the inside. Chef Jonathan “Boom” Jota suggests that the entrée be paired with a glass of Ruffino Chianti, but we thought it best to try this on another day.

As for the Beef Wellington, what else can be said but, “We loved it!” What made this rendition different was that the perfectly cooked and juicy beef tenderloin with porcini mushrooms and caramelized onions was wrapped in thin layers of crisp filo pastry rather than the usual puff pastry. As devotees of Beef Wellington are fully aware, a poorly executed puff pastry that is thick and heavy has a tendency to interfere with one’s enjoyment of good meat, Therefore, the use of filo is an excellent choice.  Paired with tasty, garlicky angel hair pasta aglio olio this dish should be any true-blue carnivore’s favorite at Italianni’s. We raise a glass of Zonin Pinot Grigio to celebrate this new entrée. And surely, we will be back for more!

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Italianni’s has branches at Alabang Town Center, Gateway Mall, Glorietta, Greenbelt, Greenhills, Eastwood, Tomas Morato, SM Mall of Asia, Bonifacio High Street, TriNoma, Robinsons Midtown, Nuvali, Marquee Mall in Pampanga, and Abreeza Mall in Davao City.