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Salvatore Cuomo’s The Kitchen (Kyoto)

May 23, 2013 in Food, Japan, Reviews, Travel

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It was going to be our last meal in Kyoto, and we wanted a good one. Having already ticked off all Japanese delicacies off our list, we decided to wander Kyoto station and see if there was anything that jumped out at us.

In the end, we chose The Kitchen, an Italian joint headed by chef Salvatore Cuomo. It sits on top of Kyoto station at level 10 of the Isetan department store and offers great views over the city.

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I speak the truth

One of the main reasons we chose this place was because of its 1,800 yen buffet lunch (11am-3pm; 80 yen for children aged 3-10).  It’s awesome — you get to choose a main course each (pizza, pasta, fish or meat), all-you-can-eat dishes from the buffet bar, and a tea or coffee. Some of the courses require an additional charge, and desserts (which we did order) are separate. There is also a “special buffet lunch” at 2,800 yen for famished people who would like two main courses instead of the one.

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First, the buffet bar. The variety is pretty good — not huge, but everything is high quality. On this day, there was really excellent onion soup, DYI salad, bread, vegetables (pickled or otherwise) and an assortment of cold meats, fish, french fries, mashed potatoes, etc. The bar area is pretty small so during peak hours there might be a bit of a line, but everything I got was appetizing, especially the soup and the meats.

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Fresh salad and onion soup

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A selection from the buffet bar

The first main course we got was The Kitchen’s signature pizza, which, according to my shitty Japanese, won some type of award at a pizza competition. It’s simple — cherry tomato, mozzarella, and basil — but spectacular. One of the best pizzas I’ve had in Japan, or anywhere, for that matter. I mean, just look at this baby.

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The second main course was chicken with tomato relish and pan-fried risotto and rosemary potatoes. Yum as well. The chicken was tender and I loved the tangy tomato and the crispiness of the risotto. A match made in heaven.

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For dessert, we ordered a special Japanese green tea tiramisu and a sour lemon tart. The tiramisu probably was not quite as good as I expected but I enjoyed the lemon tart.  The dessert was probably one of the weaker elements of the restaurant.

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As for the coffee, I think this is the picture of a bear or a dog. What do you think?

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A dog? Bear? Alien?

Anyway, The Kitchen is a place I would definitely recommend if you are looking for exquisite Italian cuisine in Kyoto, especially its lunch special as dinner could be rather expensive. The ambience is classy, the buffet is delicate and the pizza is sensational. Try it.

8.5/10

Details

The Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo (Kyoto)

Website (Japanese): http://www.ystable.co.jp/restaurant/thekitchen_kyoto/index.html

Address: Kyoto Station Isetan Department Store, level 10

Phone: 075-365-7765

Opening Hours: Lunch 11:00 – 16:00 (LO 15:00); Dinner 17:00 – 23:00 (LO 22:00)

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PaPa Gio’s All You Can Eat Pizza!

December 25, 2012 in Food, Reviews

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It’s been more than a year since my first visit to Papa Gio’ (I remember because my wife went into labour that night, probably from eating too much there during lunch), one of the best and most underrated Italian restaurants in Taipei.

Located in the alley behind the Ming Yao Department store near the Zhongxiao Dunhua MRT station (blue line),  it doesn’t look all that fancy but oozes an authentic Italian feel with its wood-fire pizza oven and Italy-inspired artworks. The a la carte menu is pricey by Taiwan standards so I recommend the business lunch, which ranges from NT299 (AU$10) to NT$800 (AU$26.50) depending on what main course you get. At the very least, you get an appetizer, a salad, a soup and a dessert, plus three types of all you can eat pizza. The more expensive options include an additional pasta or seafood or steak dish.

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(Note: the last time I went there the lunch special was NT$390 and you get all you can eat pizza + a pasta in addition to the other extras except the appetizer, which is replaced with garlic and pizza bread.)

The bread comes with an olive oil and balsamic dip

The bread comes with an olive oil and balsamic dip

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Pumpkin soup

Pumpkin soup

But let me get back to the pizza, because PaPa Gio’ has some of the best pizzas I’ve had in Taiwan. The choices are different each day, but there are always three types and they are all delicious. The chefs specialize in simple but fantastic topping combinations, and the crust is just sublime.

On this day we had a potato pizza, another one with ricotta, roma tomatoes and spinach, and a third with mushrooms and caramelized onions. None of these are on the regular pizza menu. I was surprised that I enjoyed the spinach one the most, but all of them were excellent and I had far more slices than I should.

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We also got two pastas — a cheese risotto and a vegetarian tomato spaghetti. Both were simple but tasty, and a perfect complement to the pizzas.

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We finished off with dessert and a beverage. The dessert today was a panna cotta, and it tasted better than the photo suggests.

In all, a hugely satisfying experience. I am honestly shocked that the place is not fully packed out every weekday during lunchtime. That said, it’s probably still better to book in advance.

9/10

Details:

PaPa Gio’

Address: No. 22, Alley 6, Lane 170, Chung-hsiao East Rd. Sec. 4, Taipei (Zhongxiao Dunhua MRT Exit 5)

Tel: (02) 2711-8720

Fax: (02) 2711-8721

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://www.papagio.com.tw/main.html

Business Hours

11:30am – 14:00pm

18:00pm – 22:00pm

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Casa Della Pasta in Taipei

December 16, 2012 in Food, Reviews

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Casa Della Pasta is one of those places in Taipei that I keep hearing rave reviews about, so I decided to check it out one night at the store on Jinshan South Road in the Da’an district.  Bear in mind, though, this visit occurred last year (shows how far behind I am in my reviews), and for some reason I can no longer find this branch on the restaurant’s official website, so it’s possible that the store may have closed down. That said, it still has at least three other locations, so this review should still be relevant from a food perspective.

Anyway, the branch that we went to was huge and beautifully decorated, giving a sense that you’re walking into some high class joint that will burn a hole in your wallet. That was supposedly the charm of Casa Della Pasta — it only looks that way but the prices are very family friendly.

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I’m not sure about the prices being super cheap, but they are very competitive for Italian food (around NT100-200 per dish). The biggest draw of the restaurant, in my opinion, is the sheer variety of dishes they have on offer. Seriously, the menu is huge and there are all kinds of appetizers, pastas and pizzas. Granted, most of them are just variations of each other — eg, pick a meat, a type of sauce and a type of pasta — but combing through the menu and deciding on what to order can be a time consuming process.

In the end, with just two people, we went with a pizza and pasta to share. The pizza was their popular pineapple with smoked chicken (see below). I’ll be frank — it was hugely disappointing. The toppings and flavour were okay but the crust tasted no better than those you get from frozen pizzas. And the size was not overwhelming either.

Pineapple and smoked chicken pizza

Pineapple and smoked chicken pizza

But hey, it was relatively cheap, and the place is called Casa Della PASTA, so I assumed the second dish, the pesto chicken spaghetti, was going to be significantly better. Well, it was better, but nothing that blew my world. The chicken pieces were a tad large for my liking and the chicken was on the chewier side. The pesto sauce was very rich and creamy, which is good for a while but I soon found myself getting sick of it.

Chicken pesto pasta

Chicken pesto pasta

Lastly, the dessert — a layered cake, the kind you’d find at most cake stores in Taiwan. Again, it was OK, but nothing spectacular.

Dessert

Dessert

On other thing I remembered about this place was that the service was excruciatingly slow. In all it turned out to be a fairly average experience. Not horrible for the price, and I can imagine with its ambiance and variety it would be a nice place to hold a group gathering or family outing, but as far as taste goes it didn’t get the job done for me.

6.5/10

Details

Casa Della Pasta

Website: www.capasta.com.tw/

Lunch: 12pm-2:40pm; Dinner: 6pm-9:40pm

Stores:

Banqiao — No. 136, Section 1, Zhongshan Road (02-29546133)

Zhongxiao Dunhua — No. 23, Lane 233, Section 1, Dunhua South Road (02-27717869)

Zhongshan — No. 7-1, Lane 11, Section 2, Zhongshan North Road (02-25678769)

Bade — No. 1, Section 1, Bade Road (02-23957117)

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Bellini Pasta Pasta (Taipei)

May 13, 2012 in Food, Reviews, Taiwan, Travel

This Bellini Pasta Pasta is at the Xinyi Vieshow cinemas

Italian restaurants are a dime a dozen in Taipei, and a lot of them look exactly the same, so it’s very easy to end up at a place that’s simply not very good. Bellini Pasta Pasta, however, is not one of those restaurants. The restaurant is part of the Humax Asia group that also owns Momo Paradise, so you know it’s gotta be pretty good.

We went there after watching some movie I must have reviewed about four months ago (that’s how far I am behind in my food reviews). The restaurant has a lot of options, including set menus for two and four people. We went with the “Couple Set” below but they also have an a la carte menu

The Couple Set

The Party Menu

With the Couple Set you get two salads, two soups, two beverages, two desserts, a pizza and a pasta — all for which is NT$890 + 10% surcharge. It’s not exactly cheap but it’s not expensive either, and for the quality and taste it’s a great deal.

Inside the restaurant

Check out the food photos.

Surprisingly good salad with croutons, cheese and a fruity dressing

Vegetable soup and cream chowder

The BBQ chicken and pineapple pizza -- looks as good as it tastes!

 

Spicy tomato shrimp pasta

Cheese cake...mmm

And of course, the tiramisu!

The photos speak for themselves but I have to say that Bellini Pasta Pasta (supposedly the double “pasta” represents the doubling of the joy from eating the food??) is definitely one of the better Italian restaurants I’ve been to in Taiwan. Everything was of at least above average quality, with the stand outs being the salad, pizza and the desserts. The service and the ambience were also top class. You can probably find better pizza, pasta and desserts elsewhere,  but not many can offer all three at such a high level.

8.5 out of 10!

PS: They offer breakfast (brunch) and afternoon tea as well.

Details:

Bellini Pasta Pasta

Website (full menu): http://www.humaxasia.com.tw/main/uploads/humaxasia/bellini-pastapasta-tw/ (Chinese)

Stores: http://www.humaxasia.com.tw/main/modules/MySpace/index.php?sn=humaxasia&cn=ZC8343&pg=ZC7354
Includes — Xinyi Vieshow Cinemas (level 2), Fuxing Rd Breeze Center (ground floor), Taipei Main Station Q Square (level 4), Zhongxiao Rd Bisto 98 (level 4) (Note different stores have different opening hours)

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Eat Eat Pasta (Taipei)

December 8, 2011 in Food, Reviews, Taiwan, Travel

Italian restaurants are a dime a dozen in Taipei, and to be honest, most of them look fairly alike, making it difficult to tell the good from the bad and the great from the good.

Eat Eat Pasta is a ‘healthy’ Italian restaurant about a 10-minute walk from the Zhongxiao Fuxing MRT station.  Tucked away in a small lane off one of the busier streets behind the old Sogo (next to a Rabbit Rabbit burger chain), it is a fairly new joint that has menu with an emphasis on fresh vegetables and seafood, and is part owned by some local celebrity.

The layout is pretty nice — simple but chic, with an outside courtyard and a bar on the inside where they make fresh coffees and icy beverages.  The menu is varied but the selection is limited — there are a couple of soups, three salads, and a handful of appetizers, pizzas and risottos, with a wider selection of pastas.  They also have an afternoon tea section, which is only available between 14:30 and 17:00, and a ‘Tea Time’, which allows you to order a small cake or biscuit for NT$60 when you purchase a beverage.

The prices are not overly expensive, but perhaps slightly on the dearer side compared to some of the less authentic Italian joints scattered all over Taipei.  You’re looking at around NT$90-120 for soups and salads,  NT$120-160 for appetizers, and about NT$160-250 for pizzas, risottos and pastas.  For three people you could easily top NT$1000.

In terms of value sets, Eat Eat Pasta offers two: the ‘A’ set, which allows you to add a soup or salad and a drink for NT$90, and the ‘B’ set, which offers a soup AND a salad and drink for NT$140.  We got an ‘A’ set with a salad.

The salad was good — lots of lettuce, alfalfa, corn, tomato, corn and cucumber, topped off with a creamy yoghurty sauce.

For the mains we ordered a risotto, a pasta and a pizza.

The risotto was a tomato chicken risotto with lots of vegetables.  The flavour was just right — not too strong and not too weak, with a touch of spice — but the texture of the rice was a little on the mushy side.  The serving didn’t look particularly big, especially at NT$240, but it’s deceptively filling.

For the pasta we got the pesto seafood fettucine (NT$250) — it was very green and packed with vegetables, which I love, but perhaps there might have been too much cream.

As for the pizza, we also got a seafood one (NT$250), and it was quite different to what I expected.  The pizza was quite small and very thin, but packed with loads and loads of cheese, covering the seafood and broccoli toppings underneath.  The flavour was agreeable but the thin crust was not as crispy as I expected and the cheese made it quite heavy.

The verdict?  Eat Eat Pasta is a nice place to try, especially for group meals, but it’s not the type of place I’d personally go back for repeat visits.  The flavours are good but nothing extraordinary; the menu is interesting but not necessarily for everyone.  And while the food is supposed to be healthier, it actually struck me as kind of heavy in cream and cheese.  Accordingly, taking into account the price and location, Eat Eat Pasta probably lies somewhere in the middle in the Italian restaurant hierarchy in Taipei.

7 out of 10!

Details

Eat Eat Pasta

Address: No. 37, Lane 31, Section 1, Da An Road, Taipei

Phone: (02) 2721-1636

Price: approx. NT$250-400 per person

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