Category: Travel

Ristorante Sadler
Via Cardinale Ascanio Sforza, 77
Milano, Italy
+39 02 5810 4451
Official Site

Give or take a few restaurants that didn’t quite hit the mark during my great Italian adventure, the overall dining experience in the three cities that I’ve visited were wonderful. So to put an end to and amazing trip, I had my last meal at Ristorante Sadler. A two Michelin star restaurant and considered to be one of Milan’s very best. Chef and owner Claudio Sadler is one of the most notable person in Milan’s gastronomy. He was one of the founders of the Jeunes Restuarateurs of d’Europe and a mentor to some of Italy’s notable chef like Thomas Aragonni the other half of the Michelin star restaurant Innocenti Evasioni.

Ristorante Sadler is located along the canals, about 20 minutes outside of Milan’s city center. Unlike New York City, Milan’s public transportation is a bit complicated especially for first time visitors. Dishing out 20 euros for a cab ride (each way) was the best way to get to the restaurant—an extra expense that I didn’t mind spending since the ride also doubled as a sight-seeing tour of the city.

To enter the restaurant you are required to ring the doorbell where the sliding doors are opened. Inside, the Maître‘d was waiting to welcome me. He led me to a series of chambers packed by Milanese diners until I reached my table. In one of the room the kitchen can be seen through its windows.

The setting is intimate, dim lights that drops serenely on covered tables, partnered with comfortable leather seats. The warm vibrant brown walls complimented the abstract paintings carefully placed to complete the contemporary interior of Ristorante Sadler.

There were several choices for the set menu but since this was my last day in Italy, I decided to celebrate and opted for the seven courses 160 euros (with wine pairing included) tasting menu called the “The Creative Menu”. The price was actually a very good deal, especially in Europe.

The Creative Menu:

The meal started with a fabulous bite size snacks to tantalize the taste buds. That was followed by a canapé of cod fish that was salty but in a good way. Their bread offering was the best I’ve had so far in this trip. It was creative and there was a lot of thoughts were put in their bread program. They were freshly made and so soft, served in room temperature.

Raw tuna wrapped around grilled asparagus with crushed nuts and cheese that was somewhat freeze dried was the first course. The tuna was very clean and fatty, the asparagus was fresh and vibrant.

The second course was an Asian inspired tiger shrimp rolls on the skewers that was so meaty and is complimented nicely with artichoke and tarragon mouse. That was followed by a big piece of scallop that has a mild sweetness. While the chard leaves that covers the scallops gives a little bit of bitterness, and the foie gras sauce provides the buttery taste. All three together create a well-balanced dish.

For the fourth course, a mozzarella bubble placed on top of zucchini flowers, brown rice and anchovies. Saltiness from the anchovies is just another additional layer of flavor to an already tasty dish. The fifth course was a pasta dish with an earthy flavor and aroma. It was a Tortelli with the mushroom Porcinni stuffing garnished with black truffles and thinly sliced mushrooms.

Shredded ox tail braised immaculately in Nebbiolo grapes, with mushroom tempura and black truffles for the sixth and the meat course. There were flavors and textures in this dish that did not disappoint my palate.

When it was time for the dessert course, I found myself already missing the next time I could try this menu all over again. To bring this Creative Tasting menu to a wonderful finish, dessert was a tantalizing orange strudel with chocolate sauce and fennel salad, a perfect cleanser to all the savory dishes.

Little did I know that the strudel was just the beginning tease to an abundance of sweets that were placed in front of me. I wasn’t disappointed that I couldn’t bring myself to finish the full dessert, this time I raised the white flag and surrendered. I did however, taste each of them and would have gladly traded the strudel at that point just to consume them all.

The sommelier pairing of Italian wines was on point. The pairing with wines from Italy’s Northern region elevated the taste of each dishes, starting with the appretivo all the way to the end with dessert.

Service at Ristorante Sadler is what is expected for a top restaurant—professional and refined. The staff is willing to engage in a timely manner that is non intrusive. As a lone foreign diner that night they made sure that I was provided the best service and dining experience. During that time Chef Sadler is in attendance and throughout the evening he made numerous appearances in the dining room, stopping by each tables and chatting with the guests.

Wine Pairing:

As the night went on and guest departed, Chef Sadler is at the front to greet them goodbye. Before I left, I chatted with him for a good 20 minutes and he offered me a tour of his kitchen, an offer that I would have been stupid to refuse.

Ristorante Sadler lived up to its reputation as Milan’s top restaurant. The whole dining experienced was top notch and well deserved the two Michelin stars that were bestowed upon. Having my last dinner here was an excellent ending to an already terrific trip in Italy.

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Innconeti Evasioni
Via Privata della Bindellina
20155 Milan, Italy
02 33001882
Official Website

Innocenti Evasioni in Milan was the first Michelin starred restaurant I visited on my week long trip in Italy last month. Located about 15 minutes taxi ride from the city center, this restaurant is situated in a quiet and small residential street.

Two chefs Tommaso Arrigoni and Eros Picco took over Innocenti Evasionin back in 1998, and turned it to a Michelin starred dining establishment. The menu changes monthly and the chefs take on Italian cuisine is an incorporation of their own modern twist. It’s best described as “playful cooking” (in a 2011 article High End Dining in Italy.) by former NY Times food critic Frank Bruni.

Once my dining companion and I arrived for our 8 pm reservation, we were the only ones in the dining room along with sommelier and the two servers. Unlike in the U.S., dinner in Europe usually starts at 9 pm, so for the first hour we had the place all to ourselves.

The dining room is quiet and serene. It overlooks a Japanese garden that serves as back drop. The space is full of round tables covered in white table cloth and red-cushioned old wooden chairs. The walls looked like they needed to be repainted, and red tiled flooring seemed like it was there on their opening night. Though outdated, the décor added to charm of Innocenti Evasioni.

 

 

 

Our dinner started well with an amuse-bouche of fried pasta, with vegetable puree and thinly sliced raw fish. We were both eager to savor our very first meal in Italy, that we decided to forgo the bread basket despite of the aroma and appeal it exuded.

For starters, we had the Octopus and the Cardi or Cardoon, the only vegetarian dish in the menu.Cardoon’s similar texture to a half boiled potato is seasoned accordingly. The octopus meat on the other hand was firm and tender, breaks easily using minimal force. The dish is plated with tomatoes, cheese and powdered dehydrated olives sprinkled throughout the plate. It’s one messy plate of goodness. Both dishes were quite palatable.

Our pasta dishes were the freshly made Ravioli and Gnocchi. I liked the ravioli and it stuffing of mushroom, which was topped with cream sauce and beans. But the gnocchi, with its fish cheek confit and shell fish sauce, also packed a lot flavor.

The Fillet of Beef for the main course is a lovely piece of flavorful beef. The beef’s outer layer was gloriously roasted, creating a crusty texture while the inside is soft and juicy. The sauce added a touch of sweetness to the meat. The other main course was The Swordfish. Presented with pieces of thinly sliced mushroom, it blankets a nice cut of sword fish meat that is moist and clean. In addition, this was drizzled with puree’s of spinach and nutmeg, which provided another level to its multiple layers of flavor.

 

 

We let the sommelier pick a bottle of white. We gave her our budget and wanted something fruity with some acidity. She came through with an excellent bottle of Sauvignon Blanc that paired well with our meal.

To cap off an excellent meal, we had the dessert sampler which was more than enough for two. It consisted of four dessert items from the dessert menu that the kitchen handpicks for the table. My dining companion, who is a devout dessert enthusiast, enjoyed the sampler very much.

We were tempted to go for the tasting menu priced at 68 Euro’s. but instead decided to go a la carte. Tasting menu is usually more economical way to go when dining in Europe, but at Innocenti Evasioni, a la carte prices are reasonable. Between the two of us, we both had three courses each and shared a dessert sampler and a bottle of wine for 157 euros (212 US dollars).

The service was top notch, attentive and polite. Language barrier was never an issue and that night, one of the chefs, Eros Piccos, was present. He introduced himself to us, explained the menu and took our orders. He even brought some dishes to our table. A gesture in which I was unaccustomed to back in the US since I have never had a chef introduce himself/herself before the start of the dinner in my years of dining out. It’s usually during or at the end of the meal, the chef decides to show up in the dining room.

 

 

My visit at Innocenti Evasioni gave me an idea what the dining culture is like in Italy. It’s a slow paced where diners can take their time and not be rushed unlike in places such as New York. In between courses takes a little longer than what I’m used to. The restaurant allows you to digest your previous dish before the next one arrives.

Innocenti Evasioni delivers high quality food with hospitality to match at a reasonable price. A top notched restaurant that is worth the cab ride outside the city center.

Before I went on this trip, I did my homework on the best places to dine in Milan, and yet I was still undecided up until that morning. I guess some things are just better left to the last minute because my experience at this restaurant was nothing short of phenomenal. I was glad that I had my first dinner ever in Milan at the Innocenti Evasioni.

For individuals who are ordering medicines online, there are several significant factors that must be elaborate. Internet is an ideal practice to get medicaments. Several medicaments are antifungal medicines. There are at least some medicaments for each sicknesses. Levitra is a treatment prescribed to treat few ailments. What do you have to regard about cialis vs viagra? When you buy remedies like Levitra you should ask your pharmacist about viagra vs cialis. Many drugstores describe it as viagra or cialis. Many probably sure the forcefulness of Levitra is well documented. In supplement, there are some of explanations and pharmacists are ordinarily able to pinpoint your problem through biological tests. Ordinarily the treatment options may turn on erectile dysfunction medicaments or counseling. Your generic is for you only. Never give your drugs to other folk even if their state appears to be the same as yours.