La Dolce Vita – Italian for ‘the‘sweet life’.
Also a 1960 comedy-drama film written and directed by the critically acclaimed director Federico Fellini. The film is a story of a passive journalist's week in Rome, and his search for both happiness and love that will never come.
Living la dolce vita is something that we’d all love to do; finding the time and the cash to do it is another matter.
Fortunately, the Cayman Islands has quite a range of ways to enjoy the sweet life and in the case of one rather special restaurant, it’s as authentic as you can get this side of Italia herself.
Welcome, indeed, to a fantastic George Town restaurant - La Dolce Vita.
A swift pre-dinner aperitif - prosecco, of course - washes down bite-sized amuse bouches of black snapper ceviche and conch ceviche, plus the simple-but-fabulous bite-sized bruschetta, an overture of freshness that presents tomato, garlic and olive oil with the delightful cleansing mintish tones of fresh basil. It’s enough to wake up anybody’s tastebuds and as Suzy and I make our way to the outside terrace to eat with the backdrop of the night lights of evening George Town, our anticipation is great. The weather’s getting cooler so it’s a delight to be dining al fresco.
Delightful, too, to be slurping down the Pinot Grigio whilst so doing.
Impressive arrayBecause of the amuse bouches, we eschew the antipasti - delicious though they look - in favour of a pasta and a meat course each.
The menu’s got an impressive array of pastas, pizzas (done of course in a proper brick pizza oven) and main courses but on the advice of our very well-informed Italian waiter I plump for one of the day’s specials - home-made gnocchi with home-made sausage. It’s spectacular; the gnocchi themselves are light and fluffy, which chef Ercole Musso explains is down to the choice of potatoes. Oftentimes, gnocchi can be hefty, rich beasts full of egg, butter and all manner of unnecessary additions but these are simply flour and spud, lovingly combined and a wonderful counterpoint to the sausage, made with a blend of beef and succulent pork meat. It’s a little peppery, but robust enough to sing from the gnocchi canvas with arias redolent of Barolo, Musso’s home town.
Meanwhile, Suzy’s yum-ing her way through a large serving of Impepata di Cozze - mussels done in the classical way with white wine and garlic. They’re tender yet meaty and the sauce itself is a heady blend of saltiness, tang and the splendid taste of the sea. We zoom through rather too much bread mopping up this delicious broth.
The meat course throws up a few conundra; I toy with the grilled veal chops, rack of lamb or pork tenderloin before settling on another of the day’s specials - wahoo, which comes also with a pair of juicy prawns - a combination that, added to the red pepper base, does much justice to our oceanside setting. Suzy’s oven baked lobster tail with mushroom and roasted garlic cream sauce is as opulent as it sounds. Interactive, too: cracking the shell to get at the treatmeat at the bottom of the tail was fun.
Explosive flavourDessert, of course, is part of any great meal and therefore Suzy opts for delicate, oozing profiteroles - a long-time favourite - whilst I go for La Dolce Vita, the dish. It’s a quite extraordinary chocolate-toffee mousse which explodes with flavour, particularly when paired with the Irish whisky I’d ordered.
Chef Ercole comes for a chat as Suzy proclaims her espresso to be one of the best she’s had outside Italy. There’s an art to making coffee and it’s pleasing - but not surprising - that La Dolce Vita’s attention to detail covers the coffee too. The chef explains that the melt-in-your-mouth biscotti we’ve been eating are also home-made - another great touch and a very subtle reminder of the skills of the chef. The 43-year old learnt the art of winemaking from his mother’s father, the art of truffle-gathering from his dad’s dad and the art of family cuisine from his grandmother.
The chef subsequently opened his first restaurant in 1996 in Barolo, an area located nicely between the mountains and the sea. Therefore, Ercole tells us, the cuisine is that of the ocean and the hearty mountain fare. The best of both worlds, in many ways.
His reputation became such that he has worked all over the world including Hong Kong, Singapore, Cologne and latterly Grand Cayman. He speaks passionately of ingredients, dishes and above all the atmosphere of a great restaurant - this is more than mirrored in the food.
Make no mistake, this is as far from Italian-American food, or the inauthenticity of pile em high chains. This, friends, is Italian food made by Italians for people who want the real thing. And by juno they do it incredibly well. Life is sweet. WH
Cooking classes
The cooking classes presented at Dolce Vita Restaurant by Chef Ercole Musso, have become one of the most wonderful attractions for all food lover and specially Italian dining. These classes feature the unique food of Northern Italy, especially the Piedmont region. Nestled between the mountains and the coast, the region combines influences of both in its food. It is also famous for its wine, with some of the best reds in Italy originating there.
Traditions
Piemonte is in northwestern Italy and is composed of a variety of striking landscapes, from the Alpine mountains to the soft rolling hills of the Langhe and Monferrato, to the flat plains that line the Po River. Many people argue that Piemonte is best enjoyed during the autumn months, when the forests are at their most colorful and a heavy fog starts to settle over the land. Torino, the regional capital, was also the first capital of the newly formed House of Savoy. The presence of the royal family is still evident in city’s palaces, wide streets and avenues, piazzas, churches and its18th century character. Turin has been called a “mini-Paris”, due to the city’s French-feeling cafes, antique stores and signs of another era.