L'Antica Trattoria, Sorrento - Delicious Meal in a Pleasant Setting

Our first meal in Sorrento last July, dinner at L'Antica Trattoria (http://www.lanticatrattoria.com/), was a delightful way to wind down after a long day of driving from Venice. L'Antica Trattoria has been operated by Aldo D'Oria since 1986 and has been in his extended family since 1930. It has an excellent menu and wonderful ambience. The temperature was very comfortable for sitting outside in the evening, despite the earlier heat during the day.

We sat outside on a terrace and underneath a vine-covered pergola. There are also tables under awnings in front of the restaurant and nice rooms inside. The restaurant's name is on a beautiful tile sign in the front.

Entrance to L'Antica Trattoria

We started with an amuse-bouche, which I believe was a bread crumb coated cheese ball with a tomato sauce.

Then we shared a very nice caprese salad (appropriate for being just a couple of miles from Capri.)

Great tomatoes & fresh mozzarella in this Caprese salad

One of us had ravioli with Sorrento caciotta cheese, marjoram, basil, and tomato sauce (Ravioli di Caciotta Fresca e Maggiorana, con Vellutata di Filetto di Pomodoro e Basilico) for €16.

Another had "Mediterranean Concerto" fresh, triangle egg-pasta with delicate Sorrento cheese, zucchini, zucchini flowers, basil pesto, and marjoram. (Triangoli "Concerto Mediterraneo" di Pasta Fresca all'Uovo ai Formaggi Delicati di Sorrento con Maggiorana, Zucchine, Fiore di Zucchine, e Pesto di Basilico) for €16.

Mediterranean Concerto

A third had Antica Trattoria angel hair tagliolini pasta, with prawns, and cream of lemon and spinach sauce with lampfish caviar (Tagliolini de l'Antica Trattoria al Limone con Gamberi Rossi a uova di Lamba Nere, su Vellutata di Spinaci) for €18. She also had the Sorrento Lemon Delight (Delizia di Sorrento al Limone) for dessert.

I had the €38 Menu Sinfonia (Symphony Menu) with four dishes:

1. Zucchini flowers fried in a delicate batter with fuscella ricotta (a cows-milk ricotta produced in Campania), cubes of prosciutto, with sweet Tropea onions (from Calabria) in a sweet and sour sauce. (Fiore di Zucchine con Ricotta di Fuscella e Brunoise di Prosciutto in Pastella Delicata, Salsa all' Agrodolce e Petalli di Cipolle di Tropea)

2. The "Mediterranean Concerto" triangle pasta.

3. Pork medallions with mustard, and herbs, with Savoy cabbage and green onions, fresh Annurca apples (a type of small apple from Campania) in a cream sauce, dried dates, and cranberry sauce (Medaglione di Filetto di Maiale alla Senape, alle Erbe, con Verza al Cipolotto, Fresco Cremoso di Mele Annurche, Datteri Secchi, e Salsa al Mirtillo)

4. Sorrento Lemon Delight (Delizia di Sorrento al Limone)

Sorrento Lemon Delight

We all shared a plate of mixed, home-made cookies.

Home-made Cookies

The red wine I chose was a 2010 Dedicato a Marianna Sciascinoso-Aglianico for €28. It was very nice. Sciascinoso and Aglianico are both red wine grapes from Campania. Aglianico is much more widely cultivated. Aglianico wines are available in the U.S., but I have never seen Sciascinoso wines here.

There were many other dishes on the menu that I would love to have tried.

Our waiter was very nice, and provided excellent service.

The restaurant is located at 33 Via Padre Reginaldo Giuliani, in the heart of Sorrento's historic center. It was just a couple of blocks from our hotel.