May 2017 www.womanthismonth.com 50 The latest menu at this fashion-forward venue takes its lead from the island’s annual cultural extravaganza, with a little sweet charity to assuage the guilt. The Spring of Culture menu is Cavalli Caffè’s seasonal offering and is very much an homage to regional flavours, fused with the venue’s Italian heritage and put together with skill and love in the kitchen. I went along to try out the dishes on a balmy evening and sat outside to enjoy the ambiance of a greenery-shrouded terrace and gentle musical sounds emitting from within. To start with I chose the Caprese Melt, an interesting take on the standard layered mozzarella, tomato and basil salad. Served on a bun with the salad to the side, the cheese was, as the name suggests, gently melted to exaggerate the already super-creamy texture. In my view, mozzarella is often overrated and a bit tasteless, but this treatment actually brings out the subtle flavour and the melted gooeyness adds a fresh and exciting textural element to the equation. The cheese sat atop a base of basil pesto which was both sweet and donated to the Royal Charity Organisation. Once again a fusion of Italian and Middle Eastern, the baked apple bore the unmistakable hallmark of European comfort food with the mhayara pastry – a mixture of semolina dough and vermicelli – invoking souq breakfasts. A sweeter pastry would have made this dish overpowering but, once again, restraint, in not soaking it in the customary sugar syrup, allowed the rough and smooth texture to shine along with the flavour of the apples. The kunafa is served with home-made ice cream and, for me, it’s a tragedy that this sublime creation does not have its own place on the menu. Chunky and rich, it’s a small burst of happiness on the tongue which put a huge smile on my face. I’d worried about saving enough space for dessert but restaurant supervisor Miloš told me: “Don’t worry, this doesn’t go to your stomach, it goes straight to your heart.” He was not wrong. Call 77 788-877. piquant enough to have me raiding the garden herb beds on my arrival back home. Standard basil pesto usually includes garlic – which is one of my favourite things in the whole world but perhaps not the best accompaniment to mozzarella’s subtle charms – for this version, the knowledgeable chef having either left it out or toned it down sufficiently not to overshadow the cheese. For main, I went for the house recommendation of prawns and fresh spinach risotto. A good risotto is a thing of great beauty; the process of slowly adding broth to the Arborio rice being a labour of love and patience almost as much as skill. This certainly didn’t disappoint. Creamy and smooth, the spinach obviously fresh enough to impart a good hit of flavour and the seasoned prawns retaining a certain tang of chariness from the grill, I could have eaten only this and gone home happy. But, fortunately, that was not to be. Since, for dessert, it was almost obligatory to try the café’s new socially responsible endeavour, Mela Kunafa, from which all profits will be The latest menu at this fashion-forward venue takes its lead from the island's annual cultural extravaganza, with a little sweet charity to assuage the guilt. SPRING FLAVOURS showcase
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