Category: Reviews | Post by: Andrea Wong
Petone. I've never thought of Petone as a little haven for foodies.
Even though I've visited Wellington numerous times to see family and
friends, I don't think that I've been to Petone except to pass through
it on the way up to the Hutt.
A couple of years ago, I heard that a few good foodie shops have
opened and I'm glad that I finally got there to check out a couple of
places myself.
La Bella Italia has quite a reputation around town. Started by native
Italian Antonio Cacace, he has built the business up from importing
italian goods to a few tables offering food, to a popular business
offering a full Italian deli, restaurant and groceries.
Antonio was instrumental in bringing a lot of italian goods into New
Zealand, which now includes cured meats brought in by the tonne.
My favourite pasta that I get from Nosh, is imported by him. The tipo 00
flour that I use is 'Hand Selected by Antonio'.
I went to La Bella Italia as the last stop of my eating weekend at Visa Wellington On A Plate. We had planned to make some ravioli, which I was really looking forward to. But unfortunately we arrived a little late and the chef needed to get the ravioli made for the lunch trade, so I only got to watch but managed to get some fantastic photos!
I watched as the chef expertly piped the pumpkin and ricotta mixture onto the bottom sheet of pasta, the gently laid the top sheet in place, pressing it down to seal the two layers. He then took the little cutting tool and cut the ravioli up. He made it look so easy, I'm inspired to try something like this at home.
Antonio then showed us his deli cabinet, which was filled with lots of goodies like anchovies, olives, roasted capsicums, cheeses and cured meats galore. His imported goods are sold all over the country and I reckon that half of the Italian made food that I buy is brought in by him. Seeing the array of different parma hams and proscuitto remind me of Italy, where there's so much choice - each one different in age or in cut.
By now my tastebuds are tingling in anticipation - what's for lunch, I wonder? Sometimes I forget how many courses an Italian meal can be. I normally stick with the entree and main combination. Antonio starts us off with a delicious platter containing buffalo mozzarella, tomato and basil; grissini; cheeses and proscuitto. Already I'm in heaven! I've had more bad experiences of buffalo mozzarella than good in New Zealand (because the mozzarellas weren't fresh), but this mozarella was fantastic. It was almost as good as I remember it to be in Italy at a little restaurant in Piedmont called Il Fiorile.
Next up, we were served the pasta that we saw being made when we first arrived: pumpkin and ricotta ravioli with poppy seeds. Yum!
Before we started our meal, Antonio asked what we wanted to eat. I used the trick that Dad uses in Chinese restaurants and asked Antonio to recommend something. He suggested the whole baked terakihi. A perfect suggestion. The fish is baked whole with capers, finely chopped gherkins and olive oil. It's deliciously moist and tasty. I can see why it's a popular dish at La Bella Italia.
What a way to finish my trip to Visa Wellington On A Plate! With a few goodies bought from La Bella Italia and a full puku, I head to the airport and home to Auckland. Grazie for a memorable meal, Antonio.
Thanks to Postively Wellington Tourism for hosting me for the opening weekend of Visa Wellington On A Plate.