General manager Giovanni Tre Re pictured at Piccolino in Weekday Cross, Nottingham city centre.(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)

Nottingham Italian restaurant get a chic revamp to match the delicious food

by · NottinghamshireLive

New dishes have been added to the menu including an exquisite dessert

It's nearly 20 years since Piccolino opened its doors in Nottingham and since then it's become a firm favourite for its time-honoured Italian dishes and warm welcome.

After a stylish makeover, it's even more appealing. The tired and dated decor has been ousted by a fresh new look. The red seating has been replaced by chairs, banquettes and high stools at the bar in a lighter shade of duck egg blue.

Sparkling chandeliers hanging from the ceiling and big pot plants help to transform the surroundings into an airy, inviting space for some of the best Italian food in the city.

General manager Giovanni Tre Re, who has worked at the restaurant, in Weekday Cross, since 2018, said: "This is the first makeover after 18 years.

"It was only closed for five days — they were working day and night. It's going well. The number of seats has increased from 124 to 144 plus the bar seats."

It's not just a new look. There's also some new faces that have appeared at the restaurant recently. Piccolino has recruited some of the staff who lost their jobs when Caffe Rizzoli closed down in Victoria Centre to make way for the redevelopment on the upper floor.

The menu has also been fine-tuned. Instead of 120 dishes, it's been scaled down to around 80 with some new additions, while existing recipes have been improved.

Diners can kick off their Italian feast with starters of bruschetta, arancini, stuffed with crispy truffle and mushroom risotto, carpaccio for the meat lovers and calamari for seafood fans.

A new pasta dish is rigatoni alla vodka with spicy tomato sauce, which can be ordered for one or a bigger portion to share.

Paccheri all'amatriciana, a famous Roman dish with large tubes of pasta, crispy guanciale (cured pork) and tomato sauce, is also new to the menu.

Classics such as lasagne, carbonara and tagliatelle bolognese remain on the menu as do steaks, including chateaubriand for two.

When it comes down to Gionvanni's personal recommendations, he said: "The polpette, beef, pork and onion meatballs, are one of my absolute favourites."

The Neapolitan pizzas are always a winner. As well as spicy diavola and traditional margherita, spagna is a newcomer. Topped with chorizo, blue cheese and trendy hot honey it's an explosion of flavour.

Diners can order wines from across Italy and the rest of the world by the glass and bottle, but the real connoisseurs need to look out for a page devoted specifically to 'Super Tuscan' wines which are recognised as some of Italy's finest, with prices ranging from £94 for a bottle right up to the exceptional Sassicala 2020 at £500.

The beer list revolves around Birra Moretti, Peroni and alcohol-free Estrella Damm and Lucky Saint lager and IPA.

The cocktail list is abundant with classics such as Negroni and Bellini alongside signatures of Lilt Italiano and Strawberry and Lychee Martini plus an alcohol-free selection.

Dessert lovers won't be disappointed. You can't go wrong with tiramisu but the new zeppola is something else, like a Birds elephant food on steroids. A choux bun is filled with vanilla and Nutella ice creams, is topped with chocolate sauce, poured at the table, and decorated with hazelnut brittle.

The big push now is getting ready for Christmas, when the restaurant will be open on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day and New Year's Eve.

The stylish new look(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
The chandeliers add extra sparkle(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
The restaurant's bar serves beer, wine, cocktails, and soft drinks(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Beef carpaccio with rocket and Parmigiano Reggiano(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Arancini filled with crispy truffle and mushroom risotto(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Caprese salad(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Ravioli Granchio with crab, prawns and lobster sauce(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Server Petya Staneva used to work at Caffe Rizzoli but is now at Piccolino(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Margherita pizza(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Tiramisu is a classic Italian dessert(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
A new indulgent dessert zeppola and limoncello to finish(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Piccolino in Weekday Cross(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)