姥義麵 La pasta di nonna 義大利小館 — Restaurant in Da'an District

First things first: In Italian it is not "La pasta di nonna", but "La pasta della nonna". You can say "La pasta di Carlo". If you use grandma or grandpa it is "La pasta della nonna" or "La pasta del nonno". You also say "Il cibo del cane" and not "Il cibo di cane". That's called genitive case in Italian. Then, let's talk about the food: At best, the pasta was "average" according to Taiwanese standards: it is eatable and a loveless Taiwanese interpretation spiced up with incongruous night market herbs and spices (if you know Taiwanese night market food, you know the flavour I refer to). At worst, it can be seen as an insult to the majestic Italian cuisine that requires the right amount of flavour, a lot of passion, expressed in all its simplicity. The espresso was rather an Americano and had little to do with an Italian espresso: way to long and watery. I could see that the owner tries hard and I appreciate that. That's why there are 2 stars, not 1. If this place is supposed to meet the Taiwanese traditional taste of food, then it might be successful (hence the high ratings...); but if this is supposed to be authentic Italian cuisine, it largely failed (as can be seen in the restaurant's name). Then I would recommend the owner to take a day off and eat the carbonara at DiVino - and learn. (No, I am not affiliated to DiVino, but I...

This is a comfortable neighbourhood Italian restaurant that doesn't pretend not to have some local influence on the dishes, in some ways it's all the better for that.

The Serrano ham and rocket (arugula) salad was very good, and excellent value for money. The pasta dishes tasty and the portions generous to the point that we entered food coma soon after coming home. We shared a dessert (Torta Caprese with vanilla ice cream, essentially a brownie) which was also enjoyable. Everything was stunning value for Da’an District.

Set menus are available for individuals and groups of 2 or 4. Based on the professionalism of the staff and one table for 8 - 10 I suspect they could also sort you out for a larger event.

House wine was acceptable, and the sparkling rosé made a pleasant apéritif. A choice of digestif would have been a nice addition to the menu. Corkage is also low, but as their limited wines by the bottle wouldn't break the bank, I'd be interested in trying them.

We left booking to the last minute and judging by the number of people that either arrived with a reservation or were turned away were very lucky to get a table at 17.30 on a Saturday evening.

Highly recommended, but make...

I've ordered their meals from UberEats many times before, but today I had the opportunity to visit them in person. Love the attitude and atmosphere of this establishment. The truffle pappardelle was our favorite, but the milanese cutlet was also excellent, so I'd suggest trying both! This place serves excellent Sicily coffee, as well as home-made ginger ale. Tiramisu was among the finest in Taipei. I can't wait to try more of the menu when we come back for a delicious dinner. Recommendation given...