Restaurants / Restaurant review
Rosemarino – restaurant review
Despite numerous accolades, Rosemarino still feels like a well-kept local secret.
Tucked away between the grand buildings of Clifton, this understated neighbourhood restaurant serves up hearty breakfasts by day and platters of rich Italian food by night, and the welcome is always warm.
Just before 7pm one recent Wednesday evening, a lone diner is just finishing a meal in the corner of the restaurant. Contented and self-assured, it’s easy to imagine she dines here regularly as she takes her time, lingering over a drink.
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At the table, the server enthusiastically talks through the specials, which are scrawled on chalkboards. Nothing is too much trouble for the attentive staff who happily advise on the size of different dishes, wine options and more, while simultaneously pouring out glasses of ice-cold water.
As the compact restaurant starts to fill up, it soon becomes clear that this is an old family favourite for many. “The focaccia is always good,” comments one man, studying the menu before him.
With a range of antipasti platters, pasta dishes and specials of fritto misto or pork loin, it’s not an overcrowded menu, but choosing still presents a challenge as heady scents from the kitchen tingle the senses.
A staple on the corner of York Place for some nine years, Rosemarino has earned a sterling reputation and a loyal following among local diners. The team behind the successful Hyde and Co group of bars and restaurants (including The Ox and Pata Negra) are now running things behind the scenes, a collaboration that could prove to be a winning combination with the best of food and drink, and a dash of quirky style.
All attention soon turns to the basket of focaccia and olives (£3 each), delivered to the table on a chunky wooden board. Soft, fresh and sprinkled with a light dusting of rosemary, the bread soaks up the oil and balsamic like a sponge and melts in the mouth.
It can be no coincidence that all the surrounding tables have also ordered the generous bowls of focaccia and a hub of merry chatter soon fills the airy room, while downstairs roars of laughter come from a large table of friends.
The focaccia, accompanied by olives that are juicy, full of flavour and shine high above any shop-bought counterparts, is a winning start. Frankly, if the meal ended there, we’d all go home happy.
As it is, the dishes keep on coming. Bottles of water and wine are hastily relegated to the floor as the small table is filled with a platter of the fritto misto (£17) and the vegetarian antipasti board (£12).
Lightly battered, hot, crisp and glistening slightly, the fritto misto is cooked to perfection. The grilled courgette and paprika aioli complement the fish well. For the price, the dish could benefit from a few more squid and prawns – the whitebait definitely dominates, but it is satisfying nonetheless.
A work of art, the antipasti board is a delicious clash of flavours and textures. Soft mozzarella, marinated vegetables and the sweetest sundried tomatoes meet lightly grilled courgette, tangy chutney, dips and brittle flatbread crackers.
As we sip the crisp white wine, the ever-attentive server clears the well-polished dishes and leaves in their place a dessert menu, “just to look at”.
It doesn’t take much persuasion to round the meal off with a dish of gelato (£5 for two scoops), tiramisu al arancio (£7) and a limoncello (£5).
Scoops of coconut and chocolate gelato prove light and full of flavour, while the tiramisu packs a zesty orange punch that complements the coffee and orange sponge but is a little too solid in texture.
With the sweet tang of limoncello lingering on the tongue, we head out into summer evening in Clifton with a warm, happy glow. It’s not hard to see why people keep going back to this little restaurant on the corner.
Rosemarino, 1 York Place, Clifton, BS8 1AH
0117 9736 677
www.clifton.rosemarino.co.uk
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