In a line: A quaint restaurant in the bustling GK market, offering Italian grub.
Cuisine: Italian
Price for two: Rs. 1600(approx)
Address: M-82, 1st Floor, Greater Kailash (GK) 2, New Delhi
Nearest metro station: Hauz Khas Village
Must haves: Souffle alla gorgonzola, tiramisu
One of the most widely adopted cuisines over the world, Italian food has been dearly embraced by India, and this can be testified by the fact that there is not a single cafe that does not have a pasta or pizza on the menu. With all the cheese, hearty sauces, meaty fillings and lots of vino, it’s hard to ignore this gem of a cuisine.
In the hunt for this gem, I landed myself at Amalfi, an Italian restaurant in GK, a few weeks back to satiate my cravings for everything Italian. There’s not much to say about the overall ambience or decor as it has been kept minimalistic and fuss-free. I chose to sit under the stars at the terrace seating where the cold breeze was perfect to set the mood right for some heartwarming Italian food.
Skipping the soup and salads, I commenced my meal with their much talked about souffle ala gorgonzola. Served with porcini mushroom sauce and apple salad, the souffle was light and fluffy, just the way it should be. The speidini di pollo alla pancetta or bacon wrapped sausages were accompanied with a honey prune chilli sauce that had an overpowering sweetness that my palate didn’t approve of. The Tortellini di ricotta e spinaci were also not very pleasing because of the thickness of the pasta layer and because it was doused in a rich mushroom cream sauce, which made the otherwise beautiful pasta, very heavy.
Though on the other hand, the lasagna con ragu tasted fairly nice with all the layers of lamb ragu, bechamel sauce and cheese. The pizza de pollo or chicken pizza had a nice thin crust that was smeared with their in-house tomato sauce and topped generously with cheese, sundried tomatoes and of course, smoked chicken.
To conclude my meal, I got myself a portion of their tiramisu and gelato. The homemade gelatos were something that I was certainly looking forward to. I got myself a scoop of chocolate, strawberry and pannacotta flavoured gelato. It turned out to be nice but weren’t the best that I’ve had. The tiramisu is what turned out to be the highlight of my dinner. The rich and creamy mascarpone layered with espresso dipped savoiardi biscuits with the perfect amount of sweetness and bitterness, this is the dish that I’d want to come back to Amalfi for.
Confession: Overall, my meal at Amalfi had some ups and downs. The excessive use of the prune sauce, a tag bit tough sausages, thick pasta layer in tortellini were a dampener of course, but the souffle, pizza and tiramisu somehow made up for it. The service was attentive, though a little tweak in the interiors or decor would add some liveliness to the place.
Rating:
Food: 3/4
Service: 3.5/5
Ambiance: 2.5/5
Value for money: 3/5
The Food Fanatic 