Delicious

Once in a while you just want to go somewhere that is comfortable. A place where you can walk in and the only sound you hear is the pleasant background chatter of happy diners.

But often when you open the door the feeling of instantaneous noise is akin to being hit by a freight train. While that might be desirable at the Neighbourhood on Friday night, it's not ideal on a slow winter evening when one could just as easily eat a home-cooked meal.

Except you haven’t the energy to cook it.

This is when you should go to Delicious. How fortunate we were that evening to be lead upstairs to a padded bench seat. When the table next to us vacated, the waiter asked if we would like to ‘spread out’. It was just like sitting on a couch.

We had been in good hands all night. At the bar during the short wait for a table, I indulged in a bellini. How exciting to see prosecco on the menu! The barman offered us complementary pickled garlic which made a nice change from peanuts. The surprisingly subtle flavour didn’t linger as you might expect and I still have the manfriend to prove it.

At Delicious you eat pasta, it’s as simple as that. But not the kind that you get at La Porchetta - this is light as a feather, intensely flavoured and real fresh pasta. Thick ribbons of parpardelle in ragout, pillows of lemon ricotta ravioli and the token chicken risotto – all well priced and very tasty.

They also have fabulous desserts in the cabinet and I’d already made up my mind as I walked past that tiramisu would be consumed that night. When in Rome…

I love Italians and I love Italian food. One I have had a great deal of experience with, the other not so much. While there is always time to be groped in Naples, I have found good Italian eateries to be in short supply in Auckland. A mama’s trattoria it is not, but Delicious is definitely a wonderful restaurant to go for a quality supper that will leave you feeling as warm and cosy as the place itself.