We have a large extended family and without exception, we love to eat and dine out. The family is always a great resource for suggestions of places to try. A niece and I have been trying to find an available date to dine together at one of her favourite spots- Nicolino’s Cucina Italiana. She knows that I love well prepared Italian food. Recently, an opportunity came up for me to visit with a friend. I couldn’t resist and my niece was absolutely correct-I wish I had discovered Nicolino’s decades ago!

Chef Fabrizio Rossi originally hails from Rome and the family who own and operate the restaurant originate from Muro Lucano (making up the arch of the boot of Italy nestled between Campania, Puglia and Calabria). I cannot say that I have visited their hometown but have definitely been in the vicinity on a couple of occasions and I love the food from Rome and further south.

On this day, my friend and I were going to share our plates. She loves all Nicolino’s salads and decided upon the Feta. I looked over the extensive pizza selection but wanted to test a pasta.

Our helpful server suggested the spaghetti and meatballs and although I was willing to go with something more adventurous, my friend and I were blown away! The veal meatballs were a lovely consistency, tender and juicy. The pasta was perfectly al dente and the sauce…oohh, the sauce! I could taste the rich tomatoes, garlic, basil and love in the sauce.

The Feta Salad was unique in that the feta had either been very finely crumbled or grated so that there was plenty clinging to each and every romaine leaf. Chopped tomatoes, purple onion and pitted black olives also dotted the salad.

We had plenty of just baked bread sticks to mop up our plates and then took to eating the rest of the basket with little specks of butter on each segment.

I cannot wait to return to Nicolino’s and hope to join my niece for that elusive dinner. Hopefully the construction in front of the building will be complete so that I will not drive past it as I did recently.

Kath’s quote: “Everything you see I owe to spaghetti.”-Sophia Loren

Love never fails.