July 2023
Dining Review: Ristorante Al Vicoletto – Trapani – Sicily, Italy
Dinner tonight was at Ristorante Al Vicoletto and as we turned the corner to reach it, the restaurant was romantically tucked away down an alley. We had a good feeling about this dinner.
We were seated outside and started our meal with a bottle of Catarratto Sicilian white wine which is a fruitier version of the dryer Grillo we had the previous night.
Instead of ordering an appetizer, we decided to order two pastas and then share an entree.
- Busicata with Trapani’s Pesto and Clams – When this dish was placed on the table, it was definitely a wow moment as the presentation was wonderful. I certainly expected a pesto like I was familiar with – basil, pine nuts, etc – but this was Trapani’s pesto. Trapani’s pesto is made of fresh basil, almonds, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and cheese. I loved this pasta dish so much – the clams and pasta were perfectly cooked and the Trapani’s pesto was delicious – perfect for bread to “scarpetta” in. Slowly but surely, the once full dish was clean.
- Pasta special – busicata with sardines and fennel. Kevin really enjoyed his dish and liked the balance of flavors for the fish, nutiness, sweetness.
For our entree, we split the grilled stuffed squid with potatoes, capers and bread crumbs. This entree was unfortunately a bit disappointing as the squid was rubbery so I think it was overcooked. Especially since our pasta dishes were so good, we expected this to match them. The potatoes and capers were very tasty though.
And for dessert, we selected the cannolo cheesecake. While I was hesitant on ordering this dessert, our server said it was the best one on the menu and I have to agree, it was so delicious. It was not so much a cheesecake in the sense of a cheese cake – but a cheese (ricotta) as a cake and frozen and worked so well.
Based on our experience, Ristorante Al Vicoletto is a good option for a nice evening out in a private space to enjoy seafood pasta. While our entree was mediocre, it may have been an off night since the pastas were so good.