Dining in Vicenza - Righetti Self-Service

On this trip I had noticed more of an emphasis on restaurants that have "everything".

If that is a new trend, then the development of a restaurant like Righetti makes more sense, but its web page says it has been around for thirty years. Also, that it has a web page, in English, is pretty different too. Everything about Righetti surprised me.

It is cafeteria style dining. There are counters for different types of food, usually with three or so selections. That makes it very easy to customize the meal, and provides a lot of variety.

This seems like it could be ideal for traveling parties or diverse groups with different tastes, but I am still at the point where it is more that I thought it was interesting than that I liked it. This is somewhat unfair, based on a really bad reaction I had to the meatballs that was probably not the restaurant's fault. The polenta was good.

Still, one of the main things I remember before I had to run and find the bathroom (that was awful) was seeing a big drawer of rolls with tongs where you could fill your own bread basket. The concept was cool, but there were mainly the hard white rolls. I could see one multigrain roll that looked like it would be softer and taste better, but it was buried under so many of the white rolls that there was no way of getting to it -- an interesting idea with poor execution.

I don't think that's not a reason to go to Righetti. The location is convenient, right in the Piazza Duomo. There is outdoor dining and several different rooms inside, allowing for smaller groups to maintain some intimacy.

It is also very popular. At lunchtime the place was swarming, but it cleared out very quickly as the lunch hour ended.

Our cousins paid, so I am not sure what the surprise at the end of dining referred to on the web page is. I know that you don't pay until after you are done. That can be convenient in that you only have to pay once even if you keep deciding to add things, but it does seem to leave the restaurant open to being stiffed. They've stayed in business for thirty years, so it must work out.

Piazza del Duomo, 3, 36100 Vicenza VI, Italy
+39 0444 543135

http://www.selfrighetti.it/inglese/Righetti.html

Dining in Vicenza - they have everything

We went to three restaurants where I was told this, though I only know the names of two.

I kind of wonder of this is a newer thing, to have a restaurant that serves pizza and pasta and meat. I think it may speak to a recognized need to have casual dining that is not a bar or a pizzeria only. Making the pizza toppings available on a regular crust or on bruschetta also seems new, but was pretty common.

I still only have pictures of family there.

Fantasy - Spaghetterria, Bruschetteria, Pizzeria 
Via Torino, 8, 36077 Altavilla Vicentina VI, Italy
+39 0444 370480

 This is my favorite, and I know it because we went there twice.

We went there twice because it is the most conveniently located -- we can walk from one aunt's apartment to there. Because of its proximity and variety of choices, three sets of cousins are there together almost every weekend.

The pictures here do show a little, in that you have a outside dining area that is still covered, and with a large window looking in. This was helpful for the restaurant staff, keeping them able to see us, and allowed one cousin and the owner to gesture at each other. (Some familiarity has developed there.)

I have in my notes that they had free peanuts, but now I mainly remember the bread sticks. I think it was that we ate inside the first night and outside the second time, and the peanuts were inside. You could take them outside, but you have to remember to do so, so look out for peanuts.

They have many good options, but I am going to recommend the gnocchi al quattro formaggio. My mother had it both times.  (And I had it once, but I had a bruschetta delicata the first time.)

I really enjoyed Fantasy. In the States we would not use that name for that kind of restaurant -- it gets used more with "adult" video stores -- but it was good food, prices seemed reasonable, and even some of the closer restaurants still require going up into the hills, making Fantasy's location one of its draw.

https://www.tripadvisor.it/ShowUserReviews-g194669-d3754763-r241400360-Fantasy-Altavilla_Vicentina_Province_of_Vicenza_Veneto.html


Bulldog's Holland Pub
Via Tovo 21, Altavilla Vicentina, 36077 Altavilla Vicentina, Italy
+39 330 485 214

 

Speaking of location, both Fantasy and Bulldog's are in Altavilla, but Bulldog's feels farther, and higher up. I will say that I have not spent enough time to have a feeling for where the different neighborhoods are in relation to each other.

When you enter, there is initially a traditional pub layout, but you can go out and down to a patio with lots of tables, covered by an awning, and with a view over the city on the other side.

I think the selection of beer is wider here, which is not unreasonable for a pub. I am not sure why it is Holland, but they do have more sandwiches than most places, some like subs and I think even hamburgers.

There were two things that were interesting about it. One is that the menu (which is huge) has code numbers for everything, and it is preferable to give the wait staff the number instead of the name. This can be a convenience for guests who don't speak a lot of Italian.

In addition, the food (possibly not every dish, but a lot of them) came with little flags in them. I think the flags were supposed to indicate country of origin, though I question the accuracy. The pizza with the zucchini and the quesadilla both had British flags. My salami and pepperoni pizza had an American flag. I do not remember my mother's tagliatelle Bolognese having a flag, so maybe only the "foreign" food gets flags, but I am not sure I understand the system. Also, the pizzas are square.

We had a great time there, and there are ways in which dining at Bulldog's is more of an experience than Fantasy, though there is nothing wrong with just dining.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g194669-d2691389-Reviews-Bulldog_s_Holland_Pub-Altavilla_Vicentina_Province_of_Vicenza_Veneto.html

Antica Osteria Dalla Croce

I can't find a web site for Antica Osteria Dalle Croce, but there are several positive reviews on Google and Trip Advisor: https://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g668522-d3163660-i193228622-Antica_Osteria_dalla_Croce-Arcugnano_Province_of_Vicenza_Veneto.html.

It is a little out of the way from Vicenza. Not only is it about 11 kilometers away, but the route we took wound back and forth and climbed upward. It was a beautiful driver, but perhaps better for experienced drivers.

This is Lago di Fimon. The restaurant overlooks it in a way, but in a way you don't see it.

There are so many flowers, herbs, and shrubs that unless you go to the wall it is easy to not know that there is anything outside of the garden. The restaurant is known for using local food, and that includes growing their own herbs, and possibly some of the vegetables. Still, much of the flora is there not to be eaten, but to be seen and smelled.

It is a gorgeous place to eat, and as night fell and the lights were lit it was simply enchanting.

The food was very good, but the atmosphere was unforgettable.

It did require going down several steps to get to the garden, and I do not know if there is an accessible entrance. I would call first if there are concerns.

Antica Osteria dalla Croce
Via Santa Croce 93,  Lapio,
36057 Arcugnano, Italy
+39 0444 273088

Antica Osteria De Barco - Lavagno (VR)

Lavagno is a municipality about seven miles east of Verona. It was a convenient location for our next stop at Soave, and it was also just a wonderful place to have lunch.

You can eat indoors, and the web site highlights the windows that allow you to enjoy the view. On a late spring day, it is much more desirable to sit at the covered tables on the terrace.

This allows you to notice that there are charming pathways leading up and down.

It allows you to smell the herbs and the jasmine filling the air, and appreciate the local flowers.

It also allows you to enjoy the panoramic view. With multiple pictures (both with and without zoom) I still can't capture it.

The food was excellent. It looks like the menu may be updated seasonally. I do not see everything we had currently listed, but I did have the Gnocchetto di rapa rossa con ragù di colombaccio and it was delicious.

This is a wonderful place to eat if you are in the area, and it would not be unreasonable to take a detour for it as well.

http://www.anticaostariadebarco.it/

https://www.facebook.com/anticaostariadebarco/