Just a few streets away from their former outpost, Milano-Sicilian couple Federica Mancioppi and Fabirizio Ferrara revived firm Parisian favourite the Caffé des Cioppi at a new address on the Rue de Dahomey in summer 2016. A year after closing the old place, the Caffé already feels like home, with its elegant counter, swish wooden furnishings and large windows creating a light-filled space that strikes a cool balance between very much with-it contemporary trends and a more classic trattoria feel.
A charming Sicilian sexagenarian is our host for the evening, bringing us a menu packed with delightfully fresh Italian classics. These range from a super-smooth Puglia burrata laid on a bed of beetroot, fresh peas and rocket to a dish of ‘Monograno’ spaghetti in a sauce of sumptuous, just-caught mussels and clams (which are shamefully lacking in a lot of Italian restaurants in Paris these days). A fruity Venetian white wine, Benavides Vignale Cecilia (2013, a blend of Garganega and Moscato grapes), is exemplary of the fine selection of Italian bottles on offer, while even the espressos prove a winning final touch. Superb.
TRANSLATION: HUW OLIVER