I first met Scaccomatto one year ago. When Rick Stein was in Bologna, he was looking not only for classic bolognese restaurants, but also new cuisine with ideas, quality ingredients and passion for great food. Mario Ferrara’s restaurant in Via Broccaindosso was one of my tips and it ended up in the final show. Scaccomatto is one of my best fish restaurants in Bologna but from late spring to fall, on some lucky nights, it moves to a very special location.

Gli Orti di Via Orfeo
A small door at Via della Braina 7 unveils a place out of time. Closed for more than 10 years, this VII century’s vegetable garden, where in the past a monastic community cultivated land and gave asylum and education to deaf kids, is now back to bolognesi thanks to Mario Ferrara. Gli Orti are an unexpected oasis between the red walls of the city centre where you can spend an amazing dinner near an old well and an almond shaped fish basin.

The food
Scaccomatto became worldwide famous for the “plin” ravioli with Parmesan and sweet onion made for Rick Stein, but Ferrara’s cuisine is much more than that. The chef travelled from Brazil to Japan and he combines in its cuisine his roots from the south of Italy with bolognese tradition. At gli Orti you find a fixed menu that changes every night, mostly based on fish and seasonal ingredients.
The shrimps with cauliflower mayonnaise and vanilla oil are a must and I was lucky to have a perfectly cooked tub gurnard with grilled onion and turnip. A bavarese dessert with strawberries and passion fruit and an infused coffee by Leonardo Lelli closed the game.

Why go there 
It’s probably the most romantic and intimate place to spend a dinner in Bologna. A few tables, the silence of the vegetable gardens, soft lights create a special atmosphere you can immediately feel at the entrance. It’s still a secret place that a lot of bolognese don’t know, but it will be surely on everyone’s lips in a few time. 

Why not to go
It’s hard to give reasons not to go, but if you are in a low-budget trip, 45€ can be too much for a dinner. Also if you have a just a long weekend in town, maybe you prefer to discover everything about bolognese cuisine. 

Info
Scaccomatto agli Orti
Via della Braina 7, Bologna
Tel. 051 263404
info@ristorantescaccomatto.com
www.ristorantescaccomatto.com
Open: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 

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