Written by: Aysha Mati
Posted on: December 03, 2019 | 
| 中文
The Pizza
Nestled in a busy corner of F-7/2, Streets of Milan is a new restaurant in Rana Market in Islamabad, focusing on bringing the Italian food experience to Islamabad. The restaurant is associated with Café Lucio, much like China Town is associated with Jade Café. The most eye catching thing about the eatery is the purple theme, which travels from the logo to the interior décor, making it an instantly memorable environment.
The restaurant from the inside
The bulk of the seating arrangement is outdoors, with only one table inside the building in a dimly lit corner. This could be viewed both as a plus and a minus, given the hot climate most of the year round, but it’s a beautiful outdoor setting to have dinner in the autumn and winter months. An unfortunate factor is the minimal parking space, which is discouraging.
The restaurant terrace itself is quiet and generally not crowded, with the furniture and formal table setting accented with their purple theme. It looks over the parking and main road, the perfect illusion of a view.
The menu has an assortment of dishes in appetizers, mains, desserts and beverages. Most are associated with what is thought to be typical Italian food; variations of pasta and pizza. For those looking for something a little different, an assortment of toasted sandwiches and paninis are available too. All these items were quite heavy on the pocket, with an average of around Rs 1100, exclusive of taxes.
The staff was polite and considerate, with the concierge even asking whether we enjoyed our meal, and if we had any criticism to offer. We were all hungry and so we ordered a Caesar Salad, a Spaghetti Con Polpatte Bolognese, a Margherita Pizza and a slice of Carrot Cake for dessert. Everything arrived within 20 minutes of ordering.
The Caesar Salad proved to be a bit disappointing, given that it tasted bland, however, the portion size was decent and the shreds of cheese added another layer of crisp flavor and texture. The presentation of a poached egg on top of the salad was aesthetically quite pleasing.
Caesar Salad
The Spaghetti Con Polpatte Bolognese looked the most visually appealing due to its intricately laid out pasta. The Bolognese sauce tasted great, but we couldn’t help but wonder whether we could get the exact same dish of pasta and meatballs at a much better price elsewhere.
Spaghetti Con Polpatte Bolognese
The pizza was the winner and standout in the bunch, with its sharp spice and flavor, making for a very enjoyable experience. It proves to be miles apart from pizzas across town, which focus on layering cheese and toppings, whereas this one was delicately cooked with a thin crust, full of flavor.
The last item we tried was the Carrot Cake in which we were disappointed. The frosting seemed too sweet and overpowered the rest of the sponge, pulling attention away from the actual taste of carrot. The portion size was quite small too, and we decided better Carrot Cake could be found in other cafés and restaurants.
We’d also tried a Blueberry Chiller as a beverage, which we found to be quite refreshing, for it added a sweet and sour taste to our palates at the conclusion of the meal.
Carrot Cake
All in all, the food was good but not worth the money, because the same standard of food may be found in a more affordable price range elsewhere. However, the external seating area is visually appealing, and may become a hub of social activity during the winters!
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