Lucca Enoteca

Much is to be expected of a sister restaurant to the famed Mistley Thorn, one of the few Bib Gourmand restaurants in Essex. Probably the biggest difference is the cuisine, modern British with a touch of Californian at Mistley, totally committed Italian at Lucca.

Housed in a Grade II building, Lucca is off to a good start, and there is comfortable seating for up to 100 indoors, with an additional 40 in the vine-covered courtyard garden where a wood-fired oven is also located for private parties.

What then of the menu? It would be easy to say that all the well tried Italian favourites are there, which they are. But that would be to ignore the efforts that are made to go the extra culinary mile to produce dishes with just that subtle hint of difference that sorts out the pizzas from the pastas.

Start with a glass of a traditional Italian aperitivo, say prosecco with fresh pomegranate juice, or the ever reliable campari and soda, though for many a good stiff negroni marks the transition from daily chores to serious hedonistic table engagement.

The difference between antipasti and the increasingly popular tapas diminishes daily, but it stops to matter for even the most discerning diner when faced with temptations such as Cornish sardines with tomatoes, olives and olive oil or chestnut mushrooms stuffed with Parmesan, Tellegio, breadcrumbs, garlic and herbs.

Like many a good traditional dish the ever-Italian pizza has suffered the slings and arrows of misfortune, which makes it even more refreshing to find the real thing remains alive and well at Lucca and restaurants like it. Classic pizzas include the much loved margherita, napoletana with tomato, anchovy, capers and olives, or an all time favourite, the pizza con gamberi e rucola, richly endowed with such delights as prawns, chilli and fresh rockets.

Weekends bring the delicious wood roasts, either free range chicken with tomatoes, herbs and fennel or Suffolk pork loin with garlic, both served with rosemary roast potatoes.

Much of the cooking is done by Naples-born pizzioli, Franco Brunetti, and includes a dish of the day, with many of the ingredients sourced from Italy.

The wine list is uncompromisingly Italian, sensibly priced with just a few that a little more than what you would normally shell out.  Lucca Enoteca is a real find in an area not over-blessed with culinary enterprise, and will well meet the needs, particularly of those who like their genuine Italian cuisine.

Check out their Website for further details.