Ristorante da Nilo — Restaurant in Unione dei Comuni Valdichiana Senese

On the other hand, Tuscany never disappoints. Yesterday, three of us had Sunday lunch in a restaurant, called Ristorante Da Nilo in Cetona, south of Siena.

In fact we had meant not to eat there, having consulted TripAdvisor first and found a smattering of negative reviews that had been apparently rudely countered by the owner/chef, including the remark, ‘you don’t give sugar to donkeys’. Confusion in organising the reservation, however, meant that we in fact booked into Da Nilo rather than the alternative we’d chosen in the same town.

Once before, I chose to eat in restaurant that had poor reviews because the chef had answered them with supreme confidence in the quality of his own products and style of cooking and in that case I was not disappointed. I have to say that was also true in this case too.

It was a cosy dining room, perhaps with more a provincial French feel to it than Italian and despite the initial welcome being less than enthusiastic, the vibe was good.

I choose the onion soup to start, which was deliciously sweet from the beautifully cooked white onions topped with a piece of fontina cheese, a semi-soft cow’s milk cheese from the Val d’Aosta, and a very fine bread crisp. It wasn’t a runny onion soup, like the French do, but really thick with very little liquid discernible at all and could easily have been eaten with a fork instead of a spoon.

Next up was Nodino di maialino al forno con arance caramellate e cuori di finocchi. This was a nice chunk of suckling pig with the subtle taste of caramelised oranges in the ‘gravy’ and a tiny portion of fennel and orange salad on the side. The salad was so small I wondered if it was really necessary, but in fact it added so much to the dish in terms of contrast to the meat, that without it, the whole dish wouldn’t have been half so nice. The meat was perfectly cooked, soft and juicy with a lovely crisp, salty crust. I’d gladly eat this dish again.

I’d say, if you’re in the area, this place is worth seeking out, despite some of the TripAdvisor comments. As for Bavarian food,...

We were amazed! Our first night in Cetona/Sarteano area we received a luke warm recommendation for Ristorante da Nilo from a vegetarian friend. As I walked up to the restaurant and saw their Michelin plaque (recognized, but no star YET), I was excited, but concerned that I might have selected a place where we would spend a few hundred Euros.

When they brought the menu I was shocked. The prices were not just fair, but cheap. We were puzzled.

The menu was extensive and interesting. My daughter started with carpaccio, my wife their Tuscan appetizer, which included a chicken liver (and other organs?) Chopped topping which was astonishing.

I had suggested that hat my wife and I share a glass of red and white wine, and when I returned from the bathroom, there was a bottle of each. I was annoyed (with my wife), but when the bill arrived and they were only 12 Euros each I didn't care any longer!

The winemaker happened to be at Nilo that evening and we had a long conversation about his winery.

All of our meals were fantastic, and the pistachio topped dessert was wonderful.

We...

It was nice to have dinner at the terrace even if the high bush blocked the view to the piazza. The service was very friendly. My starter carpaccio came with a lot of mustard which was not a good match for the high quality meat, I would have preferred just a bit of olive oil. My husband started with the typical vegetable soup that was very tasty. I had pici pasta with tomato and garlic sauce that was delicious. My husband had tagliatelle with rabbit that was good as well. My main course was lamb that was well prepared and not dry at all. I had the beans with sage as a side and liked them a lot. The wine list looked extensive but we had simple local Chianti that was available by glass. The desserts looked very basic so we changed to the cafe next door that had nice gelato and delicious looking cakes as well.

Overall, I guess we had too high expectations reading all the positive comments so we were not 100% satisfied, even if the price quality ratio...