Italian food is my comfort food, I eat it when I am happy and I eat it when I am sad. In fact I can eat Italian food every day. This time when I was craving for Italian food, I decided to visit Tomato & Basilico, a cute little Italian restaurant in Jumeirah Lake Towers.
Located in Cluster I of JLT, Tomato & Basilico is open for lunch and dinner. The restaurant has a vibe of a cozy and homey Italian bistro. The outdoor dining area offers the beautiful view of the lake and the JLT neighborhood.
This is how their concept was born:
During our years away from our homeland we always found ourselves missing our native food and hunting for great Italian restaurants….but no matter how good they were, they always lacked something which wasn’t quite the same as home, the nonna-seal-of-approval if you may.
In the hunt for this familiar taste, which we so deeply yearned, my brother Francesco and I started playing with the idea of opening our own place and finally give it that “missing ingredient” that we were looking for.
On arrival we were offered complimentary platter of Toasted Bread and Italian inspired Hummus Dip. The hummus dip was way better than the regular Middle Eastern Hummus, we liked it.
To drink, we ordered their super healthy and fresh drink- Finocchiella. For starters, we ordered Parmigiana di Malanzane and Arancini. The Parmigiana was a moreish dish which tasted amazing where as the Arancini was quite bland and lacking in taste.
Tomato & Basilico has a huge variety of pizzas, we decided to try their Pizza Alla Pala where we can enjoy a taste of upto 3 pizzas in one. It is a 75 centimeters of sheer goodness and we can have a choice of 3 different toppings.
As we are vegetarians, we chose 3 veggie topping like Ricottina, Bufalotta and Vegetariana. Each of them was loaded with deliciousness and great flavor. The size is pretty large and can be shared between 3-4 people.
Their homemade Gnocchi with tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil is a must-try. It was rich, creamy and oh-so-delicious.
To indulge in our sweet cravings, we had their homemade chocolate cake with almonds and it was served warm. This scrumptious dessert goes by the name of Caprese and it is worth trying.
We ended our lunch with a cup of freshly brewed Macchiato.
Tomato & Basilico offers good Italian food and if you’re in JLT or surrounding vicinity, you can give them a try.
To order call: 800 Basilico (800 22745426)
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