I've eaten out a few times in Villanova. Last night I went to Al Pescatora. I arrived at 8 when they just opened so was the first one there. All seating was outside. All these 'al fresco' restaurants have plastic chairs because you sit outside. The big dining room inside was void of all furniture. The wait staff speaks very little English which is why I never really know what I'm getting. They all hand me a wine list expecting everyone wants wine. I have tried wine a few times and they all feel like fire going down and I never finish the glass. So I either order beer which would be Peroni or just water. Water is always brought in a 2 liter bottle and left on the table. You order water with or without gas. At Al Pescatora NO meat of any kind was offered. Just seafood. They had just short pasta. No linguine or spaghetti. So I got Cavatelli with white fish and tomato and a salad. The broth for the pasta was not tomato base. No pasta sauce in this area uses tomato paste. It's more like tomato water. Sounds weird but it's tasty. There were tiny bits of white fish barely noticeable around the pasta. It was all about flavor. The salad came as Arugula and halved cherry tomatoes. The bread is always sliced, in a brown bag with Terone', a little twist of dough almost like little round twists of pie dough and a bit crunchy. You're allowed to take the bag of bread home with you if you don't eat it which I do in case I want to fry a piece of bread for breakfast. I don't have a toaster.
The couple next to me brought their little dog, a French Bulldog who stayed right with her mom waiting to be hand fed which she was. The dog was very well behaved but did manage to get his leash all twisted around the chair legs. Another table ordered some kind of fish which was skinned and deboned by the waiter at the table.
The bill for my pasta, salad and water with a service fee tacked on was 20Euro. Not tipping in Italy. I think the service fee of 2Euro takes care of that.
Other restaurants offer veal dishes and sliced deli meats in their antipasto. Ham is always offered on some pizzas. I haven't seen hamburg or sausage offered on a pizza. And Roma tomatoes aren't offered in this part of Italy. Just cherry tomatoes. And so far all the salads are either iceburg or arugula or both. All the ingredients as I see it are locally grown. The arugula last night was exceptionally crisp and peppery. Pizza is usually only offered at night I think because they are all baked in a wood fired oven and it's too hot to start the fires during the day. On the street in Fasano yesterday I had pizza and it was PERFECT. No sauce. Just cheese and on top some halved cherry tomatoes and a bit of arugula (rocket or rucola). It was 6Euro. Beer is 2.50Euro at a grocery store or restaurant. Same price for a bottle.
More tidbits:
Garbage men wearing bright orange and lime green uniforms were out here this morning at 6am.
Adults and children stayed out on the street or on the sidewalk in their little plastic chairs until 1:30 am this morning. Maybe because it was Saturday night. Usually all is quiet around midnight.
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