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Cortona: Osteria del Teatro

Via Maffei n, 2 , Phone: 0575/630556
www.osteria-del-teatro.it
Closing day: Wednesday

Reviewed by: teaberry from PA, review #3245

When: 2009

Favorite place to eat in Cortona. Go there for a special meal.

The inviting walk up to the front door is lined with flowers; many photos of theater companies and productions decorate the walls. There is beautiful furniture and some old pieces throught the restaurant.

Our menus were in Italian, but our server was very helpful, patient, and instructive.

The food - delicious. We all shared a delicious array of spreads on crostini, and a fabulous antipasto dish of fresh meats and cheeses. SIL enjoyed grilled lamb with rosemary - mmmm; I had risotto with mushrooms and saffron, which was out of this world.

Before we left, they gave away a humongous chocolate Easter rabbit to a lucky diner, after distributing raffle tickets to each table. We didn't win, but it was fun just the same.

Reviewed by: Kevin Clark from Italy, review #2414

When: 2007

A wonderful lunch and ST GTG in a very nice restaurant in central Cortona. The food and company were terrific.

Directions: Just around the corner from Piazza Signorelli

Osteria del Teatro was recommended by everyone we told we were going to Cortona, so it was no surprise when Alessandra also suggested it as a place for us to meet for a small lunchtime GTG. In the end, there were nine of us - Alessandra, Kim & I, Kim's parents, Tania & Keith, and James & Deborah.

The restaurant is lovely, with a few tables out front and a large dining room inside. The service was extremely friendly throughout - no doubt helped by the fact that Alessandra is clearly a regular there - and lasted long after I suspect they would have liked to throw us out so they could close (it was a long lunch!).

The food was equally enjoyable with a varied menu containing some interesting combinations and influences from both Tuscany and Umbria (strozzapreti, for example, which I haven't often seen in Tuscany). At Alessandra's suggestion, we all began with the fonduta al tartufo, a creamy cheese fondue with truffle shavings on top, served with toasted bread. It was very rich, but delicious, and three servings were enough for the nine of us.

Kim and her father then had strozzapreti con ragu di cinta senese e rape while her Mom and I had tagliolini con anatra e finicchio selvatico. Both pastas were fresh and delicious. Rather than secondi, we decided to have dessert, so I had the semifreddo di cioccolato e cocciole and Kim had fagottino di frutta con salsa cioccolato (a pastry "sack" filled with mixed berries and covered with a delicious dark chocolate sauce).

It was a delightful GTG, both in terms of the meal and the company. I didn't see the bill, but the menu prices were similar to most places we visited in the area.

Reviewed by: Bob Sculley from CA, review #1536

When: 2005

Located in the heart of Cortona the Osteria is, in my opinion, the best restaurant in town. A real gem!

Reviewed by: jgk from FL, review #1364

When: 2005

DON'T MISS! One of the best meals we had. Beautiful setting, food, and service. Recommended by Alessandra. Try tortellini with black cabbage and truffles!!!

This review is the opinion of a Slow Travel member and not of slowtrav.com.

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Cortona: Osteria del Teatro

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