[TAIPEI - PASTi Trattoria 😍]
兩三年前有好幾位朋友都推荐這家餐厅也跟他們来吃過幾次。老實說當時感觉还好，味道有朝着意大利風味走但力度有點过重，所以之后也沒有特別想過主動訂位再去。
上月碰巧定期一起吃飯的老饕酒友提起這𥚃而且大推，所以再次鈎起了我對美食的好奇心而促成这次再訪再試的晚餐。
两年過去了，雖然這間餐厅没有在這兩年台北新成立的紅蝦和米其林評鑑獲得推介，但是完全不重要，因為我對它完全改观。
這次感觉主廚的手藝明顯提升，雖然整体味道还是偏重口感為主，但卻逹到味道應重的地方重應輕的地方輕的境界，有更得心应手收放自如之感。
用big green egg烤爐直火烤活紅角龍蝦和章鱼脚火侯剛好，完全保留鮮度。炸红新娘很酥我整條連骨也吃掉。當季輕炸櫛瓜花加起司很好吃。招牌菜牛舌和白帶魚跟我以前印象中油下少了但反而更有意大利風味。牛尾肉酱paccheri的Al Dente的程度剛剛好。我整個晚上最喜欢的一道非牛排莫属。完全做得出Bistecca alla Fiorentina風味和熟度的14天熟成嘉義溫体牛肉眼肉味足，也沒有過嫩。伴菜的小椰和蕃茄也烤得很好吃。
海鲜依然是很新鲜其他食材用料也十分講究。雖然主要食材都是以本地為主，但很重要的是每一道菜都有地道意大利風味。
疫情关系當晚老板主廚父妻倆只接两桌客人。另外一桌两個人很早已吃完，而我們一桌變相包埸，從6點吃到11點，也和老板主廚夫妻聊得很開心，贯彻意大利的慢食文化。
還有很多沒吃的菜下次再試。
Two three years back a few friends recommended this restaurant and I followed them to try a few times. Back then the cooking approach was already aiming towards rustic Italian style but I found it a bit too overwhelming hence didn’t consider revisiting proactively.
Last month while discussing with a foodie wine friend who I find reliable where we could dine in our upcoming regular dinner gatherings , he brought up this restaurant and highly recommended it. Given my curiosity and drive in the quest for good food, I was convinced to give it another try and we decided to visit shortly after.
Three years passed, despite not receiving recognition from the newly established Taiwan/Taipei Michelin and Gambero Rosso recommendations over this period, the quality of food the restaurant prepared this evening completely changed my perception from before.
The skill of the owner has advanced significantly. Even overall taste of the dishes are still on the strong side, what’s the difference this time is that the chef managed to pull back when some dishes when needed to which I find even many famed chefs still can’t mastered.
The lobster and octopus were grilled to perfection with the Big Green Egg Roaster, retaining the freshness of the seafood while having the grilled aroma. The deep fried wild redwedged fish was crispy outside and remained juicy inside, I finished the whole fish including the bones. The seasonal zucchini flower fritters with grinded cheese was very good. The use of olive oil in the signature silverfish roll and beef tongue dishes is less this time resulted in a more balanced palate and even more resemblance of authentic Italian flavour. The choice of using paccheri with oxtail ragout was better than the usual fettuccine as it could better wrap the sauce and more al dente.
My favourite dish of the evening was definitely the beef steak. The 14-day aged Taiwanese ribeye from Chiayi has an intense enough beef flavour without too much fat. Although not using the usual T-bone, the taste and style of the steak is the most authentic bistecca alla fiorentina I’ve tried in Taiwan, HK and China. The garnishing brussel sprouts and tomato were roasted just right as well.
Mostly sourced locally in Taiwan, seafood are very fresh and other ingredients used are also of high quality. The most important is that all dishes taste authentically Italian this time.
The owner only accepted two reservations this evening due to virus outbreak. The other table with two customers finished early so we basically had the whole venue to ourselves. Including having great discussion with the owner couple, the dinner paced well and until we knew it, 5 hours passed by quickly. It was a truly display of classic Italian slow food dining experience.
There are still a number of dishes I look forward to try next time.
味道人生級別 / TastesInLife (TIL) Index：
😍: 非常好 - 必須再去 / Excellent - Must revisit regularly
😋: 滿意 - 應該要再去 / Satisfactory - Should revisit regularly
☺️: 不錯 - 可以再去 / Not bad - Can revisit once a while
😌: 一般 - 不去也沒損失 / Average - No lost for not going
🤐: 不行 - 不值得去 / Bad - Not worth the visit
😭: 災難 - 噩夢一場 / Disaster - A nightmare
#tastesinlife #味道人生
