Cilento Fairy Tales: Sunday Lunch

Hubby, Amy & F

Today we had the pleasure of dining at Ristorante Nettuno
in Paestum with our 'Twitter daughter' Amy & her BF. They'd stayed overnight at Il Cannito
http://www.ilcannito.com/ so that Amy could write a review for a small & exclusive travel guide and as Paestum is only 30 minutes or so away from Il Sogno, Amy had suggested that we meet up - Sunday lunch was favourite.

Ristorante Nettuno

Hubby had booked a table for 1 pm but we arrived 30 minutes early. We sat outside in the warm October sunshine to await
Amy & F's arrival. Once they arrived, there were huge grins &
big hugs all round - Amy's smile is infectious. We went in through the main entrance, despite knowing our table was in the bar annexe - Amy & I wanted to walk through the 'posh' dining room (it was reserved for the hosting of a christening party).

Scaloppa di Vitello pestana

Seated at our table, with menus open in front of us, we began to chat away in a mix of Italian & English, discussing our choices. F was sticking with fish (& chips), but hubby had read several reviews praising
the Scaloppa di Vitello pestana; Amy & I both decided on the Scaloppa di Vitello al vino bianco.

Pesce mista

Scaloppa di Vitello al vino bianco

Patate e verdure grigliata

I contorni consisted of 2 plates of patate together with 2 of verdure grigliata, to be shared amongst the four of us. Conversation flowed easily whilst we waited for our meals to arrive, chatting about F's
work as a computer 'whizzkid', trips back to the UK, the machinations of applying for residency & the
things we miss most about the UK (High Street shopping was number one on the list).

Lunch duly arrived & was consumed as we continued to chatter. Amy tried deep fried alice from F's plate for the first time, nibbling at it gingerly whilst F & I egged her on to 'shove it all in'; was she glad that no-one else in the restaurant spoke English! F's mixed fish, consisting of calamari, alice & gamberetti, really did look mouthwatering but Amy & I agreed that the vitello was awesome
- it simply melted in your mouth.

Main course consumed, Amy chattered away to F in Italian but hubby & I were pleasantly surprised to realise we understood the conversation - the last time they'd visited Paestum they'd been to a bar/gelateria for a coffee & this visit they'd quite like to try a gelato. So off we set in the beautiful sunshine to walk to the gelateria and feast our eyes on the vast selection of flavours before making our choices & then sitting in the shade of a huge ombrellone to eat them as they swiftly melted.

A walk back to the car park, a couple of photos taken & then it was time for goodbye hugs, smiles & kisses. Arrivederci Amy & F, alla prossima!