Going through the Entertainment Book, the 64% rated Belluci's in Manuka wouldn't have been my first choice but I'm slowly running out of closeby options. I've often found I don't necessarily agree with low ratings that are often given for service and the 25% discount offered here seemed like as good a reason to try this place.
- Insalata Panzanella (fried sour dough, heirloom tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, green olives & roast peppers) - conveniently only a few days before, Jamie's 15min meals had shown me this salad for the first time. It tasted every bit as good as I had imagined whilst waiting Jamie;
- Tortellini all' Anatra (hand made duck parcels with mushrooms, asparagus, pistachio & smoked ricotta) - $30
- Galleto alla Diavola (grilled spatchcock with Calabrian spices, buttermilk slaw & hand cut potatoes) - $36
I must admit from the delicious fresh-tasting salad, to the rich heavy duck pasta and the spiced bird (which needed a little more salt/seasoning for my liking but was still good), that I actually like the food here. I do appreciate that the prices are extremely high for Italian - $30 pasta and $36 poultry. The most expensive Italian places I've eaten are Caffe E Cucina (Melbourne) which is a small step up in price and big in atmosphere, and The River Cafe (London) which is an enormous step up in price and reputation. Given this, it is difficult to justify Belluci's without the Entertainment Book discount.
Maybe it's just me, but I find it difficult to pay high prices for Italian generally (eg. never going to Grossi Fiorentino) unless they have decidedly high world reputation (eg. nearly ended up at Combal.Zero in Turin if it wasn't for the drenching rain).
