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Aqua Italia Bristol: Tasteful new design and décor, a large alfresco heated terrace and prime location
Aqua Italia
Welsh Back
Bristol BS1 4RR
Web: Restaurant information and menus available at http://aqua-restaurant.com/
Food: Italian
Atmosphere: Lively, contemporary
Service: Good, staff a little overrun at times
Ethics: Locally sourced where possible
Cost: Starters from £4.95, mains from £9.95, deserts from £5.25
Ever since my parents took me to Italy on holidays during my childhood, Italian food has always been – and always will be – my absolute favourite, particularly if there is something to celebrate.
So when my fiancee and I had the chance to celebrate a fantastic piece of good news last week, then there was nothing for it but to splash out and try Aqua Italia on Welsh Back.
The restaurant became an Italian speciality in February, and follows in the footsteps of its sister outlets in Bath and Clifton.
With tasteful new design and décor, a large alfresco heated terrace and prime location on Bristol’s historic cobbled wharf, Aqua offers a prime setting to enjoy a summer evening.
Typically then, the evening was wet and windy, so no chance of any al fresco dining, so we took our places inside to choose from the classic and modern antipasti, meat, fish, pasta and pizza dishes made with ingredients that are locally sourced and organic, where possible.
For starters, we went for the Cocktail di gamberi – tiger prawns and crab with tomato, cucumber and grilled artichokes, topped with basil and lemon mayonnaise – and the Funghi al gorgonzola, a huge Portobello mushroom topped with pine nuts, sultanas, breadcrumbs and glazed with gorgonzola cheese.
The flavours were exceptional, helped no doubt by the prosecco, but there was a real mark of quality with the food. The tiger prawns were particularly good, with a firm and juicy texture, and a subtle taste of the sea.
For mains, we went for the Pollo limone – a chicken breast roast with garlic, lemon, thyme and pancetta with green beans and portobello mushrooms – and the Vitello milanese, a veal escalope, breadcrumbed with tomato spaghettini.
Again, beautifully cooked and presented, the flavours were not overpowering and brought out the best in the meats.
The restaurant was by now getting busy, with single diners to groups of eight taking their places. For a Wednesday night, it seemed pretty full and – if there was one criticism of the night – they could have done with perhaps one more waitress on hand.
No matter, like the restaurant we still had room for one more. The dessert menu is full of sweet, traditional Italian concoctions, but I am a real sucker for cheese, so I went for the selection of Italian and local cheeses with breads and chutney, while my fiancee indulged on the chocolate and amaretto iced frappe – and iced chocolate mousse with crushed amaretti biscuits.
The mousse was lovely, well balanced, but very rich – too much for her to finish off. The cheeses meanwhile disappeared very quickly as, again, the selection complemented rather than overpowered what had gone before.
Owner Richard Smithson said: “A good Italian restaurant is neighbourly but distinctive, lively but romantic.” Aqua Italia is living up to that aim and, while it was a shame the weather forced us inside, I would recommend an evening of fine dining there any time.
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