Ristorante Pizzeria L'Abate, Sorrento - Back for Another Good Meal

One of the restaurants my wife and I enjoyed during our 2007 stay in Sorrento was Ristorante Pizzeria L'Abate (http://www.labatesorrento.it/en/) at Piazza Sant'Antonino. I decided to return there with other family members last month. (The restaurant is associated with Maison Tofani, the wonderful hotel where we stayed in Sorrento.)

L'Abate has tables both indoors and outside. On a pleasant evening, like the night of our dinner, sitting outside is the best choice. Fortunately, we were able to get an outside table even though we did not have a reservation.

The other family members had tasty dishes such as Lemon Scaloppine (€9); Calzone Napoli (€10) with mozzarella, ricotta, and salami; and vegetable risotto - Risotto alle Verdure - (€10) .

I asked the waiter if he would recommend a special local dish. He suggested Pezzogna all'Acqua Pazza (Sea Bream in Crazy Water) with a side of fettuccine for (€28). It turns out that this is a signature seafood dish of the Amalfi Coast, and that pezzogna is one of the most popular types of fish for this dish. Pezzogna is very similar to snapper. 

The dish is apparently simple to prepare - freshly caught fish is sautéed in sea water along with a special type of local cherry tomatoes (pomodorini al piennolo), with garlic, carrots, celery, Italian parsley, and olive oil (http://www.aglioolioepeperoncino.com/2009/04/pezzogna-allacqua-pazza.html).  The dish was absolutely fantastic.

I also asked the waiter to recommend a local red wine. He suggested a 2010 Feudi di San Gregorio Rubrato. It is produced with 100% Aglianico grapes, and is made in the Sannio area north of Naples. The wine was decent and cost (€28).