After a late, relaxing morning, my personal guide to Sicily decided to take me to a restaurant that he had visited many years ago for a wholesome, Sunday lunch in the countryside. On this island, the problem with visiting places that you just vaguely remember or have been given directions for, is that the country roads here are largely lacking in significant landmarks and road signage in Sicily is something of a mystery to locals as much as anyone who visits here... with this in mind it took us almost two hours of u-turns and advanced level reversing before we finally arrived at our destination, with the help of two lots of people by the roadside along the way (the journey back to Modica took approximately 15 minutes, as by then Totó (my boyfriend, who I have decided I do not want to repeatedly refer to as 'my boyfriend' every time he appears in a post)* had remembered the way he had been before).
Once we finally arrived, I realised that the journey had been worth our while. We were by a lovely lake, surrounded by hills that glistening in the November sunshine and the old country farmhouse that greeted us looked so warm and inviting. Inside, we were seated in one of the three dining rooms that overlook the lake, beautifully decorated and with tables dressed pristinely with white table clothes and elegant glassware. The only thing not in keeping with the understated elegance of the room and the tranquility of the outdoors scene was the awful pop music being played throughout - restaurants not choosing appropriate background music is a huge annoyance to me, the whole atmosphere is affected.
We ordered a mixed antipasto to begin with. Which was delicious, it included the most wonderful fresh ricotta, that had been slightly baked in the oven, sliced sausage (I'm not a meat-eater myself but Totó enjoyed what I couldn't), Sicilian focaccia (wrapped pasta with tomatoes), a spinach and pancetta dish, olives, peppers and some lovely bread made on the premises. We enjoyed the baked ricotta so much that we asked for some extra before our main course.
Neither of us can really manage the full antipasto, primi, secondi and dessert courses, so we usually opt for antipasto and either a first or second course. Today we both ordered pasta, I had been told that this area was prolific in wild mushrooms and so I thought while in the area I ought to try some. I ordered tagliatelle with local mushrooms, aubergine and tomato sauce, Totó ordered the same dish but with pancetta. The fresh pasta was delightful and the mushroom recommendation lived up to all expectations, a thoroughly pleasing Sicilian pasta.
After a short break, I didn't need much convincing to share a dessert. I had no idea what
bigne was, so Totó felt it only right that he order this. What arrived were two delicate balls of choux pastry, one filled with sweet ricotta, the other with sweet cream. They were gorgeous, scrumptious, adorable and gone in two minutes. It was suggested we order another round of them and I feel I practised an enormous amount of self-control and strong will by refusing.
Our wine choice was Mandrarossa (2012), a Sicilian Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine has a beautiful colour, lighter than many of the regions red wines. While there is a distinct fruitiness about it, the wine is dry and has a pleasing pungent taste. With desert we had not one, but two glasses of one of my favourites, Passito di Noto. A combination of fruit and honey flavours, this is a perfect accompaniment to any Sicilian dessert.
Our waiter was courteous and attentive and the extra ricotta we had asked for with our starter was offered by the house. All was reasonably priced (as with most places in our area), absolutely no complaints regarding food, service or cost.
We spent a little time enjoying the views of the lake before returning (at a faster pace) home to Modica. I loved our lunchtime visit and would really like to return again, perhaps when friends or family visit from abroad.
Diruppo Rosso
Located on the road for Correndola 194 for 7km from Ragusa heading towards Gerratana
http://www.ristorantediruporosso.it/index.html
*I am aware that this is brackets within brackets, even as an English language teacher, I am not sure if this is officially allowed.
No comments:
Post a Comment