[July 2024] During our summer holiday on the island of Ischia in southern Italy, we planned to go to a restaurant in Serrara to eat rabbit dishes for lunch, and then lie down on a beach called Citara and watch the sunset.
The restaurant in Serrara is in the mountains beyond Sant’Angelo, which we visited the day before, so we took a bus from Forio, where we were staying, to go there first.
While we were on the bus, my husband suddenly thought of booking a table and called the restaurant.
Then we found out that the restaurant was not open for lunch.
The information on the internet said that it was open for lunch.
How disappointing!
We happened to be near the bus stop in Sant’Angelo, so we changed there and decided directly to go to the beach in Citara.
It seemed that we had to change buses, so we told the driver to let us know when we got to the transfer point and sat down.
However, perhaps she forgot to tell us or we did not hear it, but we were already back in Forio.
Second disappointment.
So we decided to go to a restaurant recommended by the owner of the Airbnb in Forio.
Of the two restaurants recommended, one was closed for lunch, but the other, Il Saturnino, was open, so we went in without hesitation.
When we went in, we thought, “Huh?”
We were planning to go to the beach, so we were wearing T-shirts and shorts, but the interior of the restaurant made us feel like we should wear more proper attire.
The price was also for the restaurant with proper attire.
We shared an octopus salad for a starter, had a Risotto Mare for two for the main course, had wine by the glass, and only coffee after the meal, but the total came to €102.50.
It was delicious, though.
The risotto sauce in particular was outstanding.
According to cooking videos that I sometimes see on Instagram, it seems that in order to make this kind of sauce, ingredients such as shrimp shells are blended in a blender to add a secret flavour, so I imagine that similar efforts had been made with this risotto as well.
When I looked later, I saw that the restaurant is also listed in the Michelin Guide.
It doesn’t seem to have any stars, though.
It was a restaurant I would have liked to dress up and visit .
