Villa D'Este Italian Restaurant
2 Chapel Street, Marlow,Bucks, SL7 1DD - Tel: 01628 472012
Since the bad weather at Xmas ,I have been catching up on meeting friends and family. The last One!
I booked a table at Villa D'Este in Marlow for 6 people at 8 p.m.It is very easy to park for the restaurant, having 2 pay and display car parks within 100 yards of the restaurant.This evening because I realised a fair bit of drinking was to be expected ,I obtained a lift.
The 6 of us arrived virtually together ,slightly early.We were greeted at the door with a smile and the normal warm welcome ,you would expect from an established family run Italian restaurant.We were offered a drink at their small bar. We decided to go directly to the table. The restaurant was half full at this stage.
After sitting down at a round table which was more than adequate for 6 people, we were given the menus, and asked if we would wish to order some drinks. Bread and grissini sticks were placed on the table.One of the party ,works for a very large wine company ,so I thought he should pick the wines. Mistake!
He ordered a Chianti Classico Riserva 'Petri' ,and a Coliot Pino Grigio.Fantastic wines but at £32 a bottle expensive in my opinion.They have a perfectly drinkable house red and white at £13 per bottle.Still I must admit no hang-over in the morning.Iced tap water was put on the table also. After catching up on news, we finally placed our food order.On top of the menu a specials list is always available.
The starters: 2 Smoke Salmon from The Specials. Massive quantities of salmon surrounding a salad. Too much in fact. 1 Warm Goats cheese with salad and basil dressing.Goats Cheese slightly dry. 1 Salt and Pepper Shrimps.Excellent .Served in their shells and obviously cooked to an old Villa D'Este recipe. Excellent. 2. Mixed salads with dressing.Nothing special.
The Mains: 2 Spaghetti with half Lobster from the Specials.Perfect definitely half a lobster used. 1 Fillet of Veal with wild mushroom and truffle sauce from the specials.Looked a bit sickly to me but the person who ordered it thought it was fine. 1 Gnocchi Potato Dumplings with Mozzarella starter size, and 2 Ravioli Gorgonzola with Radicchio sauce.Thank god they have vegetarian food available. Excellent.
We are now on our 4th bottle of wine.We had no Idea of the cost of the wine, but who cared we were having a great time.
On to the desserts: Now this is when it gets interesting and you can see people eyes popping and mouths salivating as they bring the sweet trolley over.I was able to say No and just had an espresso, but 4 of the others went for it.They had Tiramisu,Apple Crumble,Almond Trifle. There are further chocolatey, orangey,creamy puddings on the trolley.My wine connoisseur, decided he wanted a selection of cheeses ,which was not on the menu.No Problem; up came a plate of Dolcelatte, Gorgonzola,Tallegio surrounded by freshly cut apple.Excellent touch.
Well that was it for the evening and we decided to leave, before we ordered more wine.It was now 10.45 p.m. and I must admit I was surprised how quiet it was for a Friday night, but we had a great time.The staff were ever attentive and friendly.
The bill: £44 starters.£99 Main Course.£132 Wine and £27.50 for desert.£2 for my espresso.They then add 12.5% service charge £38.06.
So it came to a hefty £60 per head: but you do not have to spend that amount!
Aman
March 2011
The Bill
Starters * 6 £44.00
Mains * 6 £99.00
Desserts * 6 £27.50
Wine (Various) £132.00
Coffee £2.00
Service Charge £38.02
Total £342.56