La Piazza
Restaurants
By RigaNOW!.
01.12.2015
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Andreja Pumpura 6, Riga, RigaRīga, Latvia
Phone: 371 6730 4412
Working hours: Mon-Sun 12:00,
Do you know what is so called ‘quiet centre’ of Riga? It is the most prestigious and estimable district of Riga. Here, amazing edifices are surrounded by picturesque parks and ponds. Each building is unique and inimitable.
Art Nouveau prevails in this part of the city, and almost every house is highly architectural artistic work. It is the district of respectable offices, fine restaurants and cosy cafés. There are embassies of different countries, as well as offices of international companies and professional lawyers. Here, near the city’s business centre, days pass leisurely and evenings are calm and quiet. The ‘quiet centre’ is located close to the Boulevard Circle, and in a survey approximately half of the inhabitants of Riga indicated the district as the most desirable and respectable place for living in the whole city!
Therefore, the amount of cafés and restaurants in this place is really high – competition is enormous. Recently, a new restaurant ‘La Piazza’ has been opened on Andreja Pumpura Street, few tens of metres from the National Art Museum. As you can tell from the name, which means ‘square’, the restaurant offers Italian cuisine dishes. However, Italians themselves do not consider the name ‘Italian cuisine’ to be a single concept, since until 1861 there were several provinces in Italy, each with its own leader, army, fleet, cultural traditions and attitude towards food. It can be said that not all Italians can cook, but every one of them can eat a lot! The ritual of eating is one more confirmation of ancient Italian ability to transform life into art. A lunch in Italy is considered to be the most significant event of the day. During these two hours, a life stops, and everyone leaves their everyday workplaces and goes home to enjoy a shared family meal. It is possible that this is the reason why Italian and Mediterranean cuisine during the last few years has become very popular in Riga. After all, Italian cuisine differs from others due to its excellent taste features and healthiness – all products are of high quality and because of simple processing, they retain freshness and natural taste.
Owners of the new restaurant named these arguments as the main part of their concept. Mainly because the gastronomy of this European region is familiar to them also from business point of view – ‘La Piazza’ is the second restaurant of the owners. The first, ‘Porto Fino’, quite successfully operates a few blocks farther. Actually, ‘the new Italian’ is with a little Sicilian accent! As the restaurant is situated in the basement, all three small halls have vaults and details in minimalism manner. The interior is made in Mediterranean style with light colours and feelings in furniture – cosily and harmonically. It even resembles a simple Sicilian peasant house.
It is well known that Italians can spend hours eating, and meal usually starts with aperitif and snacks. The choice in ‘La Piazza’ is wide – various snacks, salads, cicchetti snacks and stuffed North Italian flatbreads or crescione. Pastas are prepared in house, and the selection is sufficient. However, if you want something more than just pasta or rissotto, you should check the main courses – the prices of meat main courses’ starting from 12.00 € (chicken breast with spinach, quinoa and lime sauce), fish main courses – starting from14.50 € (salmon cannoli kataifi). In any case, the selection of Italian dishes, snacks, pizzas, soups and main courses is rich – vegetarians, as well as meat eaters would be pleased! Considering the peculiarity of the district – the nearness of different offices and state institution – the restaurant offers business lunch as well. The offer is different for every day of the week; therefore, for regular clients, who want to have a fast and substantial meal, the variants will not become tiresome. Business lunch costs 7.70 euro and it definitely will make you full.
During our visit to the restaurant, we tried morel risotto with white mushrooms and Stracchino cheese /8.00 euro/. The portion is sufficiently big; a waiter also offers freshly ground black peppers. The risotto was pleasantly creamy and mild with strong taste of cheese, which was excellently supplemented with various nuances of mushrooms. While waiting for your order, you can enjoy an Italian bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar sauce, which is prepared here in the restaurant. Desserts also are widely represented in the menu. The desserts, as expected from Italians, are featherlight and pleasantly sweet. It is possible that ‘La Piazza’ is the only place in Riga where you can enjoy a popular Italian ice cream ‘Dai Dai’, which is imported directly from Italy!
The selection of wines in the restaurant is sufficient. Of course, restaurant offers wines from all Italian regions, but it is not all. Wines from the regions of the Old and New World are represented in the wine card.
The new Italian restaurant ‘La Piazza’ does not promise something it cannot give. This restaurant is unpretending and offers only what it promises – fine and tasteful interior, professional service and classical – delicious and substantial – Italian cuisine. It is a good place for lunch or dinner in the ‘quiet centre’!
Ligurian Minestrone € 6.50
Home-made black pasta with prawns, calamari, octopus and tomatoes € 15.00
Mascarpone cream with passion fruit sauce, seasonal berries and meringue € 6.00
