Italian Ecstasy

We were a little Chinesed out by this stage and had finally realized that chasing the dream of Min Jiang Duck was only going to lead to further disappointment (I think at this stage even returning to Min Jiang would lead to disappointment, such has that dish grown in stature in my greedy mind).

So we decided to change tack and took our chances on a free table at Gaia, an al-fresco Italian, without even a mention of Roasted Duck on the menu. We were in luck – there was a free table and we were in even more luck when we tasted their dishes. I’m going to throw my napkin in the ring here and say that this is possibly the best Italian restaurant I have ever eaten at – including during a weekend in Rome.

Every dish had my eyes rolling backwards in ecstasy – I think they call it a ‘Foodgasm’, or in this case, a Multiple Foodgasm, as they were coming thick and fast in this ristorante, let me tell you. We started with Grilled Assorted Vegetables, Melted Casatella Cheese and Aged Balsamic Vinegar, and Creamy Mozzarella Burrata Cheese with Parma Ham and Home Made Dried Tomatoes. Sounds simple enough, and it was, but the quality of the ingredients and the perfection of the cooking and serving of them was what set the eyelids quivering.

Now, I’m going to take a moment here to celebrate the Burrata – this cheese had me so turned on, that as soon as I got home I headed straight to my trusty battery operated device – my laptop – and looked it up on the internet. Never have I been lucky enough to have something so creamy and tasty in my mouth… Ok, enough already, I’ll refrain from prolonging this cringeworthy metaphor and give you the Wikipedia definition I found: “Burrata is a fresh Italian cheese, made from mozzarella and cream. The outer shell is solid mozzarella while the inside contains both mozzarella and cream, giving it a unique soft texture.” So there, now you know what turns the Greedy Glutton on.

Moving swiftly onwards to the mains, where Le Paste dishes caught both our eyes – Mr Greedy Glutton opted for the Blueberry (yes, Blueberry!) Fettuccine with Italian Sausage & Porcini Mushrooms, which started very well indeed, although the Porcini mushrooms started to take their over-powering toll by the end of the dish. I, on the other hand, came over all vegetarian and chose the Paccheri (that’s big fat penne to you and I) with Zucchini, Eggplant, Sun Dried Tomatoes and Smoked Buffalo Mozzarella, which, mamma mia, we both agreed had to be up there with the best Italian dishes ever tasted, molto bene!

Once again, a dessert was quite unnecessary but also proved to be quite irresistible, so we ordered the Ricotta Cheesecake with Raspberries and Blueberries to share…. and cue those quivering eyelids all over again…

Gaia Ristorante, Hong Kong - http://www.gaiaristorante.com/