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Il Sapore, grown up Italian in Limassol (Photo by Melissa Reynolds)

In times of fiscal belt tightening choosing where to part with your hard-earned cash in Limassol is becoming more like a game of Russian roulette. While tourist areas offer favourable odds of finding a candidate for Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares, it’s reassuring to know that there are restaurants that still manage to provide comfort and good quality food at reasonable prices.

Italian restaurant Il Sapore does exactly that; justifying its flavoursome name with some old fashioned quid pro quo by consistently serving up dining experiences surpassing those of many of its rivals along Ayios Tychonas’ tourist strip.

Years ago we were regular diners but having only eaten in the restaurant’s popular outdoor terrace in summertime it was a pleasant surprise to discover a cosy interior perfect for a cool spring evening. Tasteful and unpretentious, the decor achieves understated elegance with its obligatory red table linen, exposed brick and dark wood against walls adorned with oil canvasses depicting fruit and rustic scenes. Combined with the hushed chatter from a regular flow of customers, the restaurant presents a convivial, yet intimate, dining experience.

Service was brisk, and though our waitress was not overtly friendly she was nonetheless efficient, with two white rolls and a tray of tapenade appearing at the table within minutes of being seated. The dips - sundried tomato and olive – served with garlic and herb butter, were delicious, however it was disappointing they were not accompanied with authentic Italian bread.

I ordered a very nice house Chianti, albeit a little pricy at €5.98 a glass. The full bottle is a more tolerable €20.50, a price considered reasonable this far from Tuscany at any rate. Alternatively, the wine list offers an extensive and descriptive choice of Italian appellations from the Montalcino and Veneto regions alongside French, New World, Greek and Cypriot varieties.

Antipasti dishes are priced from around €8 a pop, and if memory serves their beef Carpaccio is well worth the price tag. We skipped appetisers after perusing the dessert menu, a fortunate decision as all patrons were given a complimentary bowl of celery soup anyway.

Although pasta dishes dominate, the restaurant also offers a good selection of fish and meat courses, featuring sea bass, beef, veal and Welsh lamb among them. It’s refreshing and a little romantic to see a menu written in Italian. We plumped for ‘Panzerotti ricotta e spinaci,’ or the less grandiose ‘Ravioli stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese with cream sauce,’ and for me the almost poetic, ‘Risotto con salmone affumicato e asparagi.’

“It’s not fresh-fresh,” my partner announced through his first mouthful of pasta, drawing on years of experience quaffing the stuff in a city where deli-fresh pasta is as easy to buy as the morning paper and a pint of milk. Even so, the ravioli was mouth-wateringly good, filled with the perfect ratio of cheese and spinach and served with just the right amount of cream sauce without drowning out the combination of flavours.

Scrimping on ingredients in pasta and rice dishes is a common restaurant dodge, hence I was delighted to find every forkful of my generous portion of creamy risotto liberally scattered with deliciously-crisp asparagus and plenty of fish, cooked to a flawless shade of dark pink.

Both portions were more than enough and we managed half before requesting a doggy bag for the rest, immediately prompting motherly concern that we had found fault with our meals. Quite the opposite; we intended to roll out of the joint like over-stuffed barrels and were merely conserving our almost full stomachs to squeeze in one of the desserts on offer.

Il Sapore’s dolce temptations include perennial favourite’s tiramisu, crème brûlée and several varieties of pannacotta. Some were unavailable on the night, however it didn’t take too much persuasion to try the fresh strawberries served on mascarpone infused with Limoncello liqueur; a clear winner which left even the chocolate soufflé standing. Presented with more than a splash of artistic brio, the latter would satisfy the most discerning chocoholic’s cravings with lusciously rich chocolate oozing from a perhaps slightly too crisp casing but matched with a very passable vanilla ice-cream.

Overall, when compared to many of its local competitors, Il Sapore is the sensible grown-up on the block – less interested in an uber-cool image but infinitely safe, reliable and comfortable in its own skin.

VITAL STATISTICS

SPECIALITY Italian

WHERE Shop 12, 59 Amathus Avenue, Ayios Tychonas, Limassol

WHEN Open for dinner every evening from 6pm, last orders 11pm

CONTACT 25 313184

PRICE Two courses from around €19 per person