LA LUCCIOLA - THE ITALIAN BY THE SEA
La Lucciola has fame by its side, along with the sea. It’s one of the must-eat restaurants of Bali, and not just Seminyak. The place looks like a million bucks, and a decent meal also costs a million bucks (in their local currency, that is). So is it all worth it? Read on to find out.
We’d made reservations for around 8:30 pm. And has luck may have it, Bali decided to make things interesting by having the biggest downpour it had in over a week. We were having second thoughts. Should we just order in instead, we wondered. Turns out, that our will to savour fine cuisine was stronger than the rain, and saying so, we were on our way. Our first taste of true hospitality came just as we stepped out of our taxis. A staff member was waiting for us with an umbrella, guiding us towards this sea-facing delight. The place was straight out of a romantic novel. We wish we had visited this before, so we could return for lunch too. This place would have looked lovely in the day, and would have also given us an opportunity to show you guys the view and the food. Unfortunately, it was our last night in Bali and the light was really bad for photographs, and flash is simply unflattering for food shots. On the flipside, the candlelight was just perfect. It was almost like the restaurant wanted us to enjoy the meal, and not waste time clicking it. So, in this old-fashioned favourite place, we called for beers, Maahi Maahi, a Coconut and Ginger Panna Cotta and a Soufflé. But the one dish that stood out, the one we'd love for you to try out, is the Ragu Lamb Pasta. Now you’re asking, why just one dish? Well, you know that feeling that you very rarely experience? The one where with every bite, you thank your stars for giving you the chance to have this dish? This was one of them. The Crab Risotto we had at Maldives was out of this world, and after that, it was this lamb. The lamb was melt-in-the-mouth, and the Pappardelle Pasta, and its sauce, oh my my! The way it all came together in a spoon was divine. We would fly all the way back just to have a taste of it. I wish we had a photograph to tempt you in, but unfortunately, we don’t.
By the time we were done, the rains had stopped, but the smiles on our faces hadn’t. It’s not every often that food does that, but when it does, it’s a feeling to savour.