Ristorante Enoteca Ristretto — Restaurant in Modena

We were very much looking forward to stopping for lunch in Modena on the way to bologna. We came a very long way, and Unfortunately, this was the only experience we had in this town. We ordered two pastas, very clearly stating which ones and it was confirmed by the waiter. We got a bottle of wine, and received the first pasta after 20 minutes. We then waited for over an hour and no one had checked on us. No bread, no one asking if we were okay or if we wanted something else… no update us on when to expect the ragu. We finally asked after an hour and 30 minutes for an update on the second pasta and found out it was never put in. We left still hungry and having no more time to explore the city. There were only 7 tables so I don’t think it was an issue of being too busy and it was not due to a misunderstanding or gap in translation. We did enjoy the first dish, which almost added to the frustration because we would have liked to try more. They tried to make it right by putting it in once we asked after an hour and 30 minutes of not being checked on once in a tiny restaurant, they still did not offer to make it complimentary. It’s a shame as this was our first and likely last...

We read somewhere that if you can’t get a reservation to Francesca, you should eat here. This place is delicious!

We had the paradelle with ragu, their “special” pasta, a fish tartare, and their fried seabream with green beans and the custard with blackberry sauce.

The ragu was slightly salty, but my kiddo loved it and devoured the entire bowl. I don’t care for the raw tuna and shrimp in top of the special pasta, as I didn’t think it added much to the pasta. However, I love the el dente-ness of the pasta and the sauce. There was so much flavor and depth. Easily one of the best pasta dishes of my life.

I thought the seabream with crushed pistachio with green beans was delicious! And the custard was amazing! Not overly sweet and very creamy. It was so good, we had to order another...

Great lunch, lovingly prepared with top ingredients. Very nice waiter who gave good recommendations. The tartare di manzo (handcut) was beautiful, pickled red onion - ansjovis and mustard to spice it gave great tasting sensation. Scallops nice as well. Then came beautiful lamb for my husband who loved it. I had the spaghettone which was a fantastic dish, raw red shrimp tartare on spaghetti was a revelation. Accompanied by a nice bottle of red wine advised by the waiter. And the dolci were also great. We sat outside as weather was nice, but inside looks great as well! Thanks for a memorable...