L'Amico Ristorante Italiano

A Night of Fine Dining at L'Amico

By C. Donovan Smith Translated by Katy Huang

As always, it was a friend's recommendation that led me to L'Amico's door. Despite the fact it had been open for 12 years, I had never gone there, so I knew it was time to check it out. Entering past the attractive tree-shaded exterior, one is presented with a candle-lit restaurant with a dark wood and stone interior. Uniformed staff stand ready to guide you to your interesting-looking, high-backed chair.

The menu is long and presents almost too many appetizing possibilities. After considerable thought, I settled on the zuppa di funghi misto (Italian mushroom cream soup - NT$220) and the con pollo spinacio e funghi (chicken, spinach and mushroom in cream sauce - NT$360). I dug into my food, which was served with a flourish not often seen these days. The soup was a pleasant surprise, nicely seasoned and well-balanced. Next, a metal cover was pulled away to display my pasta dish, which was also enjoyable.

Knowing I had quite a night ahead of me, I complimented my meal with a beer--an unfortunate choice, as I was later informed that L'Amico has 60 varieties of wine to choose from.

Speaking with general manager and Hong Kong expatriate Andy Liung, I learned that L'Amico has a loyal customer base of both foreigners and locals. Some of the most popular dishes include aragosta e funghi (lobster and mushroom pasta in cream sauce - NT$450) and the alle vongole veraci (clam, garlic, chili and white wine pasta - NT$360). Pasta dishes range from NT$340 to NT$450 and come with a wide choice of pasta noodles. Meat dishes (NT$600-780), seafood dishes (NT$629-720) and various appetizers, soups and salads round out the menu. Interestingly, no pizzas are on the menu.

If you plan on dropping by, lane 55 is just east of DunHua (TunHwa) North Road, across from the BNP Paribas bank.