Il Sorpasso — Restaurant in Rosignano Marittimo

We came across this place after googling the best burger in Castiglioncello. What awaited us, though, was a fabulous fine-dining experience (they actually do burgers by the pool during the summer season!). The approach to the complex is a odd - it's a ways out of Castiglioncello itself, and the last stretch is on about 250m of white road which, at the time of writing this (shortly after the March 2025 floods impacting Tuscany), was in shoddy condition. But once you get to the complex, all is well. There is plenty of parking, and a short walk to the restaurant.

We were sharing the place with another couple, and were amazed that there weren't any more people there. The staff were lovely and welcoming.

The menu is curious. There are 3 tasting menus, or you can select any two dishes a la carte from any of the 3 menus, giving you a decent set of plates to choose from. We all went down the a la carte route.

We ordered our food and wine, but what came out first was not one, but a trio of amuse bouches - each one a layered mini-meal. Clever stuff, and well-constructed and presented. We each had two courses (I had a pasta mix with provolone, white truffle and potato cream - amazing, my wife a breaded cauliflower floret and our friend a raw shrimp risotto) - we all had a small fillet of croaker for our main (perhaps a little on the too-small side). I had a dessert of focaccia-style aniseed cake with homemade gelato). We finished up with different variations on coffee. The wines (one glass each) were produced at the location, and the red was fab - a good match for the richer foods.

Between courses, we were treated to amazing bread and soft, fluffy home-made butter. We couldn't get enough of this!

The chef came out and we had a good and funny chat with him, and the waitress was wonderful and put up with my strange sense of humour too - there is no snobbery here!

We will be back. In the summer, and maybe finally have that burger by the pool.. and of course another visit to that fine-dining restaurant. Bill amounted to about...

To be honest, nothing special... Yes, very well cared in the form, and in the presentation of the dishes, but the flavors are too refined ... a little pretentious! The cuttlefish were chewy, clearly badly cooked. The pasta with pomodoro, mozzarella and basilico was not bad, but frankly a bit anonymous, with no clear flavour. Orecchiette al nero di Voghera with anchovies is a nice dish, but not special, no flavour to be remembered, a "washed out" dish. Many dishes are of Apulian origin (btw we love Apulian cousine) (the cook is from Puglia), but it is not clear why in a restaurant called Sorpasso, and located in Castiglioncello, one should eat Apulian dishes or pasta, and no Tuscan...

We had a great time here. We were welcomed with a small greeting from the kitchen, a free sip of prosecco and warm slices of home baked bread with amazing olive oil. We would have been happy with that alone but it was only the start. The flavors were unusual and delightful. I never tasted a wasabi apple cream before and it fit perfectly to the sashimi. Same with the octopus. The underlying potatoe mash was unusual in color and consistency but in a very good way. We have been pleasantly surprised by the food and the service alike! Thanks a lot for a...