It wasn't the most salubrious of arrivals, our first night in Ravello. We had flown through thunderstorms above Rome and waited for two hours for our luggage at Naples airport before being driven at breakneck speed through heavy rain southwards to the Amalfi coast. To be deposited unceremoniously in Ravello's wet and deserted square and left to pick our way through the town's black, cat-filled alleyways to find our hotel: the Villa Maria.
Late, bedraggled and damp, we were shown conspicuously to a table in the elegant dining room, filled with people who seemed mostly to be finishing dessert. The waiter handed us menus and pressed us to order before the kitchen closed for the evening. I don't remember what we ordered – pasta I think. But we weren't in the mood to enjoy it. Tired and irritable, we quickly finished our meal, skipped dessert and coffee and retired to bed. We drifted to sleep to the sound of rain spattering our window, thinking of the clear skies and sunshine that we hoped the next day would bring.
It didn't. At breakfast the view from the enormous windows of the dining room was shrouded by a dense curtain of mist and rain. The plastic canopy over the dining terrace blew wildly in the wind, and the waitress shrugged and shivered in exaggerated reaction to the cold. Breakfast itself was brighter. There were fresh juices, rich coffee and herbal teas, home made biscuits, freshly baked bread, pastries and cakes. There was Parma ham and salami and cheese. And delicious, really delicious fresh fruit. Things were looking up.
Heartened, we borrowed umbrellas from the hotel and set off to explore Ravello. By late morning the rain had stopped, the sky was clearing and the sun appeared, quickly drying the pavements. The square came to life, as canopies were raised and tables and chairs were arranged outside cafés. The hotel now took on a brighter air too, and over the next few days we came to feel completely at home here. Our room was quite small and simply furnished, but adequate. The public rooms of the hotel were elegantly furnished, with beautifully tiled floors and tall windows.
The hotel's piatto forte is undoubtedly its outdoor dining terrace, a beautiful vine and bougainvillea covered area with stunning views down towards Amalfi and the Mediterranean. And the food...? Simple dishes, simply cooked and simply presented. And none the worse for that. It's the quality of the ingredients (many of them from the hotel's own organic vegetable garden) that matters here. We enjoyed delicious grilled lamb cutlets, home-made pasta, fabulously fresh fish, vegetables simply dressed with olive oil and lemon juice, amongst other delights. All served with charm and professionalism and a genuine respect for local ingredients.
From a very comprehensive list of Italian wines, we were invariably steered towards a local, inexpensive option. (Perhaps they thought we looked cheap!) That a wine made half a mile up the hill in the next village should perfectly partner a dish of fish caught half a mile away in the other direction off the rocks of Amalfi seems completely logical to me.
Villa Maria, Ravello, Costa d'Amalfi
Tel 089 857255
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