On the face of it, there are few obvious similarities between the village of Kirkton of Skene and the famed Amalfi coast – apart from a brilliant ray of Italian sunshine beaming out from Da Giorgio restaurant.
This little gem is only a short drive from Aberdeen and sits alongside the village main street just beyond Westhill.
There is actually a starter dish on the menu which pays homage to the stunning Amalfi coast – a serving of Gnocchi all’ Amalfi potato dumplings coated in a rich tomato, white wine and mascarpone sauce. We resisted its temptations though.
A former pub lounge has been transformed into Da Giorgio, but the other half of the building still trades as the old public bar, so it’s an attractive combination.
In fact, on the Saturday night we were there, it became the scene of a chance reunion with an old former colleague, who was in the bar.
He confided in me that he was imbibing with water only as he was in training for a big family event in his social diary. I was so shaken by this revelation that I gulped down some wine to steady my nerves.
In the calmer waters of the Da Giorgio dining room, we drank in the scene.
We were placed nicely near a large window, where we could gaze out at the peaceful village scene and watch various comings and goings. The decor and seating was cosy and welcoming as we settled in with menus in hand.
It did not take long for me to choose, as I felt a wave of delightful anticipation rippling over me, something like having a winning poker hand.
All my cards were aligned with my perfect three-course Italian dinner lined up: minestrone soup with cheese-topped garlic bread, followed by a seafood pasta and rounded off with tiramisu pudding. Perfetto, indeed!
For my wife, lightly battered scallops and prawns, followed by steak, but without the usual chips and onion rings. Instead, she asked for her steak to come with tomato salad and mushrooms.
They also laid on a special tomato-based sauce for the steak, which was not on the menu, which was a nice touch.
My starter was a sumptuous affair, with a bowl brimming with red, richly-seasoned minestrone vegetable soup. Thick melted cheese on delicious Italian bread came with it as a side dish. What a joy it was. My wife, who often has scallops as a starter, said her scallops and prawns were as good as anything she had tasted before.
Two polite and friendly young lads were in charge of waiting duties and they were a credit to the establishment.
They had a good system worked out: one would meet and greet and take drinks orders, while his pal waited in the wings, menus at the ready. As soon as waiter one withdrew, waiter two would march forward.
It was a small thing, but it showed they were working hard, and it made a refreshing change from the slapdash, inconsistent approach you sometimes find elsewhere. Well done to them.
I was admiring my main of linguine frutti di mare, in a rich tomato and white wine sauce, with a selection of mixed seafood (mussels, prawns, white fish and squid rings) and a touch of chilli. The richness of the sauce, the seasoning and generous portion of seafood were a knockout. I have tried this before elsewhere and found it a bit bland at times, when it should be a show-stopper – this really hit the mark. Every mouthful was a delight.
We rounded off a lovely night with a classic tiramisu pudding and banoffee pie.
The owners would not let us go without sampling their Limoncello liqueur. The Amalfi coast is famed for its production of Limoncello as the location is heavily into lemon growing. They say in Italy it is not a real Limoncello if not made with lemons from the Amalfi coast. We didn’t ask, it seemed impolite.
As we left, my eyes came to rest on a rather attractive Italian woman on a wall poster, smiling broadly as she poured olive oil theatrically from high above her head, which cascaded onto a bowl of salad. “Mamma Mia!” exclaimed the poster. Just what I was thinking.
