Restaurant: La Paranza
Location: Santa Margherita, Italy
Date: June 26, 2011
Cuisine: Ligurian
Rating: Straightforward
This restaurant was around the corner from the hotel, had a typical menu, and appeared very crowded at lunch. So we gave it a try for dinner.
Santa Margherita is really two towns joined at the hip. This is in the center of the western half of the town, which is far smaller than the eastern.
Normal enough inside.
A variety of breads. Some of these have cheese inside.
An amuse in the form of a sheet of fried cheese. Really, who can beat fried cheese?
The endless menu.
This was a very nice (and cheap) light local white. All local wines in Liguria fit the light, cheap, and white descriptors.
Salmone affumicato (smoked salmon). It’s always served with butter in Italy. Go figure.
Tagliata of tuna. I.e. seared tuna with some vegetables.
Antipasto di mare. Mixed seafood appetizer. Smoked salmon on toast. A bit of marinated white anchovies. Some other kind of marinated local fish and a mixed marinated salad of squid, octopus, and shrimps.
Spaghetti pomodoro.
Gnocchi Genovese. This is one of the 2-3 most typical pesto preparations. Pesto in Liguria (where it comes from) is fabulous, but a little different than in the states. It’s milder, but really emphasizes the basil and olive oil. These were nice fluffy gnocchi.
Troffie Genovese. This is THE most typical and traditional form of the dish. Little twists of fresh pasta in pesto with a few green beans and a little bit of sliced potato.
Fritto misto. Various lightly fried shrimps, squids, and mysterious shellfish.
The ubiquitous mixed salad.
Profiteroles. These were stuffed with custard.
Tiramisu.
A few “free” biscuits with the bill.
The bill. Here largely for the restaurant’s address etc.
Each lady got a rose as a parting gift. This kind of stuff is very Italian — if a little touristy.
La Paranza was a good place. Traditional, reasonable, and tasty. But it’s a little staid and straight up, so there are better restaurants in town as you will see in upcoming posts.