ITALIANNI'S Restaurant, Reacquainting with the Old Time Favorite

Way back when I wasn’t a food blogger yet, Italianni's was one of those restaurants I always go to whenever I am cravings for Italian food. Way before I fell in love with Bellini’s and Amoroma, there’s Italiannis to flirt my appetite and my palate with.

Then life happens. I got into food blogging which led me into trying out different restaurants I haven’t visited yet. For a while I wasn’t able to visit some of those which I used to frequent to. That includes Italianni's. But I always knew that whenever I want something relatively familiar to my palate, there’s always Italianni's.

Amidst trying out and discovering new places to dine in, there are moments when I knew by heart that I need to revisit my old time favorite. Good thing that when a good friend and fellow food enthusiast I dearly call Tito Bong, who came from Qatar visited the country weeks ago, I was once again led to Italianni's. It was a simple albeit wonderful evening shared with good friends I haven’t seen for quite a while, in a restaurant I dearly missed.

I wasn’t armed with my usual weapon of a camera since the meet up was rather spontaneous so I used my old and beat up camera which have been sitting in my bag since I don’t know when. We were seated outside their Araneta Center branch in which lighting isn’t too camera friendly unless you are using a speedlight or something to that effect, so pardon the dark photos my dear readers.

Balsamic Vinegar, Olive Oil, and Freshly Baked Tuscan Bread

Our dinner started with the proverbial freshly baked bread that comes with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Crusty on the outside and soft on the inside, it’s already good as it is but when you dip it into the combination of balsamic and olive oil, one basket might not be enough.

Spinach & Artichoke Formaggio (Php 625)

Spinach & Artichoke Formaggio is an old favorite. This is one of their offerings that I cannot miss for the love of anything holy. Spinach, artichoke, and cheese are the trinity that comprises this downright delectable appetizer. It comes with garlic Tuscan bread which are toasted and buttered to perfection.

Sicilian Salad (Php 650)

Sicilian Salad is combination of chicken breast, crispy romaine, mangoes, red grapes, and pine nuts. The creamy lemon-mustard dressing made this salad all the more seriously something that one should not miss when dining at Italiannis, salad lovers or otherwise.

Tre Combinazioni (Php 1,850)

It was holiday when we visit there so we grab the chance to try their holiday platters. We skip the whole chicken platter and opted for variation that the Tre Combinazioni platter offers instead. Tender roast pork ribs, Chilean mussels in white wine sauce, and a slab of aged steak comprise the platter. The photo didn’t do justice as to how hefty the serving was, but the four of us stuffed ourselves silly with this platter alone.

Fettuccine Tartufo e Prosciutto (Php 495)

I’ve always been crazy about their lasagna but I was talked into trying out the Fettuccine Tartufo e Prosciutto which my friend Ceej was crazy about. True enough I was impressed at the balancing flavor between the creaminess of the entire dish and the salty component of the prosciutto. Not to mention the truffle essence that made the dish all the more enticing in so many different levels.

Pizza Abbondaza (Php 625)

If one cannot decide on what flavor of pizza to order, because almost all of them are good, ordering Italiannis’ Pizza Abbondaza is the safest course of action. It is a Sicilian style pizza with three flavors such as classico pizza, pesto mediterraneo, and quattro formaggio. As a cheese lover it’s always the quattro formaggio which graces my plate first, but the other two are also well worth the calories.

We were thinking of the dessert to order but a silent look amongst ourselves clearly indicates that there aren’t any more room for it, so we decided to skip it. I guess that’s one thing I like about Italianni's, the prices of the food are pretty steep at a glance but the serving portion are always big and meant for sharing so at the end of the day, you still get your money’s worth. It was a nice dinner and I didn’t realized how I much I missed it until I actually sat and enjoy their food again. Oh the magic of reacquainting with the old favorite!