Verona Trattoria — Restaurant in Petaling Jaya

Never trust a skinny chef

There’s a saying that if the chef is skinny, he/she doesn’t eat much of his or her own food. But that doesn’t apply to Chef Enzo, a chef that I had been following since his days in Pizza Uno @ Centrepoint Bandar Utama. Those who lives in PJ long enough will definitely remember this popular Italian restaurant in front of the neighbourhood mall (now a Japanese restaurant). Anyway, no offence to the chef ok? He’s a nice guy.

He has since parted way and established his own restaurant in Section 17 PJ called Verona Trattoria. I’ve always loved his creations and once in a while I’d go back to eat his food.

▪️marinated olives to nibble on while waiting for our food to be served. ▪️Italian Seafood Soup @ Napoli - fresh seafood and hearty tomato broth could never be better combination. Love the soup’s texture and taste, and the seafood was very fresh. ▪️Al Gorgonzola cheese e Pancetta di Manzo - risotto rice served with Gorgonzola rice & pork bacon. My default order everytime I came to this restaurant because I couldn’t find other places that make their risotto this way. So good that one plate was never enough as the kids would always fight for their share. ▪️Margherita @ Napoli pizza - Italian sauce fresh Parmesan cheese, cherry tomato, mozzarella cheese & fresh basil. Not the usual margherita pizza that you’d find as they top their crust with minced fresh tomatoes, but flavour-wise on point. ▪️Special - Pork Fillet served with their homemade brown sauce, wedges and salad on the side.

The dinner was complemented with a superb CDP which a dear friend was so generous to sell a bottle to me. Wished that I bought an extra bottle.

The food quality has been consistent on my visits throughout the years, but price-wise it is not as consistent because the price has risen up to a point that it takes special occasion to visit...

I have been here many many many times throughout many years.

I always, ALWAYS have their Crostini as a starter and their tiramisu as the dessert.

Two days ago, I brought my wife and two friends to the restaurant. Had the same two items mentioned and had mains. I had the pork sausage. My wife had the pork belly with ravioli. My friends had the roast pork belly main and his wife had lasagna.

The starters/appetizer Crostini has always been the 'go-to' for me. Comes with a fresh prawn and good sauce. I always loved this appetizer.

This time round. It was a bit disappointing (for me). My friends said 'was okay' but for me. I had tasted it before and this time round it lack flavour and was a bit watery.

Previous times it was thick sauce with full of flavour. It was not as good.

The mains were slightly disappointing for me. My pork sausages were underwhelming in size but had flavor. My wife and friends were 'okay' with their respective food. The lasagna is VERY good.

The dessert. Thankfully, this dessert did not disappoint at all. Loved it. Ordered two and it was still very good to the taste. Absolutely love it still.

Summary I hope, my next return, the Crostini would be better. On the whole, it was...

Came here for Christmas dinner, had their Christmas menu special. Slightly pricier than their usual menu, but hey, its Christmas. Simple and pleasant Italian food.

Lamb shank in tomato sauce was nice, mash potato had a tad bit too much cream for my liking. Fettuccine with pork belly and Italian cream is a classic fave, can't go wrong with that. Pork loin with mushrooms is good, the deep fried potato was a nice Alt to fries. Penne with seafood and tomato was awesome, might be sour for some but I like it that way. The Italian parma salad with honey dew was pleasant to have. Personally preferred the baby spinach with bacon and pine nuts salad.

Service was great, Chef Enzo himself was manning the place and chatting up with the customers as well, sharing candid tidbits of his life, demonstrating Italian hospitality. Staff was very attentive and helpful. Interior design was simple and homely with limited tables so it was a good thing we booked beforehand. Might come back to try the wine as there seems to be a fine collection in-house. If you bring your own wine, corkage fee is RM45 per bottle, for whiskey it'll be RM60.

Charming place, will come back to try the other foods on the...