Dear Cyber Friends,
Yesterday, my partner took me out for a date to this Italian place in Rotterdam called La Zia Maria. Zia was not there, but the food was lovely. But the owner does have a weird vibe to him, ngl. He's polite I suppose, but it seems a little backhanded and off. But it's an Italian place after all.
The place used to be just an Italian deli, and after some time and by popular demand, they opened a little trattoria, first just for lunch service, then the whole dinner shablam. It was really warm, and I was bloated from my period, but I was all for it, so we arrived there hungry and excited to discover what was on the menu.
The vibe was really immaculate. It's a tiny place, with just a few spots outside and inside. We snatched a lovely little table outside as the sun was setting, and there was a crash on the street. Also, the dudes from the barber shop next door played music right next to you as they took ciggie breaks. It was kind of great, it all added to this busy street vibe, and the randomness of it all, and thankfully all of it wasn't annoying at all - only added to the vibe. We felt like we were in Sopranos. You might think that feeling like you're in New Jersey is not a good thing for an Italian place, but it is. It's just a different vibe. What's the difference? Okay, so, if you're sitting at an Italian place and you feel like you're in Rome, it's one thing. If you feel like it's Milan, it's another. Or Tuscany. It's all different vibes. Rome, I'd say it's a trashy and overpriced vibe, where the menu doesn't have prices but the food is kind of mid, but the staff is acting like it's the most ground-breaking spot you've ever visited. Milan, it's like sushi, coke, fashion, fusion, and vibes, NOT PASTA, more like some Italian dishes you never heard about, and it's fancy, and it's not as expensive, but it's still kind of expensive. Tuscany, it's like a family vibe, outside, sun, ceramic plates, and home-made wine, like more PAISAN, right. But then there's the non-Italian vibe of Italy outside of Italy, and New Jersey is sort of on top of this representation. And since we were there in a super not Italian setting, with Surinamese, and Turkish restaurants, barber stores, phone stores, and bars all around us, with this car crash, and these guys hanging out, it did indeed feel like Jersey. There's your answer. It might not have anything to do with the story, but it's my blog, and I'm gonna do whatever I want to set the mood.
So we got to choose which main we wanted, and we got this board of cheese and ham for the starter. There was also some artichoke and aubergine on it, it was really nice. But it was also really hot so the cheese got as sweaty as us. Yummyyyyy. We also got some rosé, and it was a massive vibe. After we demolished the entrée, we had pumpkin ravioli in truffle sauce. They were so rich, and nice, although to my liking a little bit too sweet. My favorite part of the meal was the dessert though.
We were so full, we asked to take one of them home and shared the other on the spot. It was this cannoli guy filled with coconut cream and sprinkled with pistachios. MAMA. First, I was like, fuck, cannoli, it's always so filling and fat. And, I guess it was, but not as much as your regular cannoli, I'd say. The coconut cream was so fresh and pleasant, with some coconut shreds and maybe even some coconut flakes, the flavor was so smooth and delightful. I loved the addition of pistachios, I'm not a huge fan of pistachios but when portioned right (according to me, which is portioned in a rather modest manner), they hit right, and they definitely hit the spot, adding a little crunch. Perfect dessert for a perfect date!
The dinner was scheduled quite early, as we arrived there at six p.m. Our friend was gonna come visit us, and they were arriving around ten p.m. I thought it was funny because at first, we were going to leave the keys downstairs at our neighbors' place, in case we didn't come back before our friend's arrival. But then even going there we already knew that we would be back surely before ten, and we didn't even bother with the keys. In fact, right after our goodbye limoncello, we were on the tram back home around eight, heading home to watch Sopranos. Doesn't limoncello always taste like lemon dishwashing soap? Perfect evening!
Logging out,
Natalia
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