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by Manos Angelakis
Ristorante Antico Pignolo
Calle Specchieri 451
San Marco, Venezia
Tel: (041) 522-8123
Hidden in a little alley, just a few yards off Piazza San Marco, Antico Pignolo is one of Venice’s best restaurants, serving the bounty of the Adriatic and the Veneto based on traditional Venetian recipes. Fresh fish and produce are selected each morning by the chef and the manager and they constitute the majority of the day’s offerings. But what makes this restaurant stand way above many other Venetian restaurants I have visited is their wine cellar. Located on the third floor of the building (you can’t really have a cellar in Venice; any space below street level would flood) it has an amazing breath and depth of some of the best Italian  and French wines. Even the chilled house Prosecco - of which we polished off a bottle with our starters - was creamy and refreshing; absolutely outstanding and certainly equal to the best Cartizze Proseccos I have recently tasted. Straw yellow in color, very slightly off-dry, with a small frizzante bead, it had a lovely bouquet; the elegant scent of wildflowers as well as hints of ripe apples, pears and peaches. But, more about the wines later.
The restaurant is set in a 13th century building that used to house the workshop of a blacksmith for the ducal stables; later on, it became the bakery of a convent and then a spice merchant’s store. In 1930, the Antico Pignolo Ristorante occupied the premisses and was, from its inception, designed to cater to an exclusive and moneyed clientele. The public areas are two large rooms and a lovely, umbrella-covered garden, where we had our outstanding dinner.
The evening started with the ubiquitous glass of Bellini, the signature Venetian cocktail made from white-peach pulp (or peach nectar) and Prosecco. We had been told that one of the restaurant’s best desserts is an outstanding black and white soufflé that we had to order at the beginning, so we did just that. The antipasto was tidbits of the bounty of the Adriatic; crayfish, pickled octopus salad , baby squid grilled on the charcoal, tartar of tuna, scallops on the half-shell and other delightful morsels of sea life. We polished them all off in no time, with the assistance of the house Prosecco. Another rather unusual offering was strips of what I thought was deep-fried Parmesan cheese that were presented with the breadsticks; it turned out they were formed in the microwave, and different shapes of microwaved Parmesan are used in the restaurant in different ways. The next dish “Little Shrimp in a Parmesan Nest” used a formed Parmesan bowl to hold medium sized shrimp in a citrus sauce; a lovely little signature creation (for recipe see Cook’s Corner section).
Fulvio Zanella, the charming restaurant manager and host, presented us with the catch of the day, eyes still brightly gleaming, to select for our main course. I decided on a small grouper to be simply charcoal grilled. Barbara selected baby squid, also for charcoal grilling. As far as I’m concerned, the best way to enjoy really fresh fish and seafood is charcoal grilled, with a simple lemon/olive oil sauce and fresh chopped parsley and coarse sea salt sprinkled on top.
But first, we had to have our primo piatto. Being in Northern Italy, the primo piatto was of course a risotto; a creamy dish dotted with succulent pieces of seafood. There is a raging controversy about seafood risotto in Venice; should the dish be made with Parmesan cheese or not? Paolo Morra, the manager of the lovely  Palazzo Sant’ Angelo where we were staying and who had recommended the Antico Pignolo, was of the opinion that an authentic seafood risotto should definitely not be made with Parmesan cheese. Fulvio Zanella, begged to differ. The question remained unresolved as the risotto that was served to us was made with Parmesan cheese, since Fulvio was in charge of the restaurant. All we can say is that it was very, very good.
Our main courses came and Fulvio deftly boned the grouper table-side for me. The kitchen definitely knows how to prepare fish perfectly: moist, neither undercooked nor overcooked. Sweet flesh, slightly smoky and tangy from the extra-virgin olive oil and lemon sauce. Grilled squid, sometimes becomes rubber-band chewy, if the cook doesn’t know how to prepare it; this was not the case. Barbara’s baby-squid was very tender, smoky, and delicious. We continued with the house Prosecco, as it paired very well with all our dishes.
While we were waiting for our soufflé, Fulvio, who was informed by Paolo of my passion for good wine, took us upstairs to the cellar - three temperature-controlled rooms on the top floor - to show me their wine collection. Over 900 bottles of Grand Cru and top shelf wines, Cognacs and Grappas. The breath and depth of the collection was awe-inspiring. Some of the best wines Opus One, Château Mouton Rothschild, La Tâche, Romanée-Conti (including the 1999 vintage), Château d’ Yquem (including the exceptional 1989 and 1990 vintages), Bertani’s  Amarone; the best were present, some, ten or twenty years vertically. I was frankly salivating.
But word came that our soufflé was ready, and down we went back to our table. Whoever said that “soufflé is just puffed eggs”, had not tasted the soufflé we had at Antico Pignolo. Accompanied by a glass of extremely fragrant and mildly sweet Moscato d’ Asti, a lovely dessert wine from Piemonte (Piedmont), this was one of the best soufflés we have ever had; perhaps the best, since the chocolate soufflé we had at Reid’s Palace many years ago. (Read about a more recent visit to Reid’s just prior to its renovation).
To read a review of an other outstanding Venetian restaurant, please click here De Pisis.
© October 2006 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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