Rome with A view

Italy Beyond Pizzas Cibo in Connaught Place is about grand Roman interiors, fresh pepper and parsley, and pastas you may've never chomped on. We stopped by, and stepped out charmed

Italy Beyond Pizzas Cibo in Connaught Place is about grand Roman interiors, fresh pepper and parsley, and pastas you may've never chomped on. We stopped by, and stepped out charmed

If imagination comes easily to you, Cibo would happily take you out on a Roman Holiday. A grand example of Italian gastronomy, the place also scores high on style.

This, of course, doesn't come as any surprise, when the owners are designers Rohit Bal and Alok Aggarwal. We walked in to munch on morsels from Milan and beyond. Here's the verdict.

Food: Done by ace Italian chef Andrea Sposini, the menu here is divided into five traditional Italian courses, which opens with appetisers, moves to first course, then switches to meats, followed by salad, and finally wrapped up by dessert.
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Our starters comprised supplu00ec con ragu00f9 di pollo (a fried rice preparation made with chicken ragu00f9, parmigiano cheese and mozzarella; Rs 375) and mix di vegetali alla griglia (seasonal vegetables grilled with virgin olive oil and Italian parsley; Rs 450).

Did they live up to their fancy names? Yes. Then, we scrolled through the lasagna section and opted for lasagna al pesto (Rs 575), which isn't all cheese.

We also dipped our forks into umbricelli al sugo di magro (eggless fresh pasta with pure vegetarian spicy tomato sauce; Rs 450).
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In main course came the pollo alla diavola (a chicken preparation marinated with lemon, salt and black pepper cooked on red hot embers; Rs 675).

You may also dig into a range of pizzas like pizza ai funghi (Rs 490), pizza al pomodoro fresco (Rs 490) and pizza marinara (Rs 490).

For weight-watchers, there are salads like insalata di pomodori all'aceto di vino e pepe nero (Rs 175), insalata mista all'italiana (Rs175) and insalata di pasta Rs 275.

Now, for our favourite part the dessert. The Cibo fondante (a hot and cold dark chocolate combo; Rs 300), proved a good choice.

Drinks: The bar, which opened around a week back, serves all leading brands of wine, whisky and beer.

For mocktail lovers, there's the lychee delight, blue lemonade, refreshing watermelon and spicy green apple all served at Rs 275 each.

Ambience: The chic du00e9cor of the restaurant echoes the beauty of Renaissance Italy.

A large antique Italian door at the entrance, the beautiful grape motif adorning the walls, a giant grapes sculpture and spectacular water bodies epitomise extravagance.

The strategically placed gigantic Roman statues in gold leafed marble lend a whimsical touch to the restaurant's outdoors.u00a0

And indoors, gold tones dominate the central island bar with beautiful antique Italian titles highlighting the walls.

The furniture, in shades of gold, blue and black, defines uber luxury. In all, flamboyance is the top flavour.

Cibo
Hotel Janpath, Janpath road, Connaught Place
Ring: 43029291
Timings: Noon to 3 pm, and 6.30 pm to midnight
Average meal for two: Rs 2,000 plus taxes