A Stella Italian in Berlin, Sat 25 June 2011

For those who had been expecting to munch at Munchs in June, well, I have decided to postpone our visit there to September or so as some people whose opinion I value on Norwegian food cannot make it. And therefore, I have decided to do something a little out of character for June...

Some people have commented in the past that I seldom pick Italian restaurants for our dinners, despite the plethora (I call it infestation actually) of Italian trattorias in Berlin. Well, there is an element of truth in that as I have generally found Italian restaurants outside of Italy a trifle inferior and sort of homogeneous and bland. I am also not a huge fan of pasta and it is sometimes hard for me to work up the effort to put on a pair of shoes to go to a Italian joint. Also the decor of Italian restaurants in Berlin are generally, well, I guess a mot juste would be "predictable". So in the past, I have tended to pick the more eclectic Italian places but I will try for a more down-to-earth restaurant this month, and the reason is that the June venue has been highly rated by some people whose opinions I hold in some regard. It is not an expensive place, I guess around 30-40 Euro for dinner including drinks, so it should be a nice inexpensive night out.

So on Saturday 25 June, we will research the Italian kitchen at Stella Alpina, Suarezstr. 4, 14057 Berlin. This place has consistently good feedback and has also been around for a while, so I think the chances really look pretty darn good for a nice dinner in June. Some reviews can be seen on http://www.qype.com/place/19696-Ristorante-Stella-Alpina-Berlin if you don't believe me. And if you don't mind looking at pictures of silly blue-checked tablecloths, their website is on http://www.stellaalpina.de/

As usual, please note the date down in your diary and drop me an email asap if you want to try one of the better Italian places in Berlin on Sat, 25 June. Closing date for bookings is Fri 17 June and all those who make the list will be informed by Mon 20 June latest. We have not booked a big table (and one third of the places are already taken) so please do let me know as quickly as you can, in case we need to revise the booking.

See you all soon!

Chris

How it went on the night...

Well, most people liked it but a few were also not so genuinely impressed, including myself. The pastas were really very good and perhaps one should stick with that if you choose to come here, especially the home-made tagliatelle with truffles, which was really sensational. The meats were tolerable - rather typical of carne outside of Italy, to be honest. Good try, but no cigar. Overall, it was a good night out with several new members (seemingly) having a good time. And it was also very good to see Sandra and also Peter & Pati again after a long absence!

The day began actually earlier for me at the Christopher Street Day parade and I regret that most of the pictures are from that. But scroll right on down and you can also see us stuffing our faces! :o) Oh, and on the next day, we had an ice cream fondue which sounds rather a lot better than it actually was, unless you are crazy about ice cream...

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