Comfortably situated on a Frishman corner close to the sea, Boccaccio offers a sophisticated and classy Italian dining experience. Shoshana Friedman samples the goods and describes with flair.
Boccaccio is a Tel Aviv restaurant that has withstood the test of time. With its prime location on the corner of HaYarkon and Frishman streets it offers tourists and locals a classy Italian dining experience. The restaurant has a very relaxed and sophisticated vibe with interesting sculptures and art throughout. We were warmly greeted and taken to a nice quiet corner table. We arrived a bit early, at 7pm, and by 8pm the restaurant started to fill to capacity with families, couples and tourists.
We decided to drink their monthly-featured wine: an Italian red. Soon thereafter delicious foccacia bread with aromatic herbs, onions and drizzled olive oil arrived. The rosemary was especially present in the bread, a special appeal to Lindsay. We chose two appetizers, the Formattini and the Melanzane. Formattini is a baked goat cheese pastry with pesto and red peppers, served with a yogurt dill sauce and vegetables on the side. The portion was generous and the appetizer, while being rich, was not too heavy and struck just the right balance. Melanzane is a grilled eggplant with buffalo mozzarella and roasted tomatoes with a generous amount of olive oil. This dish felt authentically Italian. The tastes of the warm eggplant and the chilled cheese complimented each other and presentation was noteworthy as well.
Lindsay decided to go for pasta - you can choose what shape you want with any of the sauces offered or some of the suggested combinations. She went for the strongly flavored anchovy sauce prepared with olive oil, tomatoes, roasted peppers and delicious salty anchovies prepared on a tagliatelle pasta, accurately described by the waiter as shaped like little radiotors. This dish is definitely a pungent and salty choice; but for those who love salt as Lindsay does, it is the perfect meal. I ordered the Lamb Ossobuco, which the waiter had likened to the “Flintstone” dish due to the large bone. The lamb shank was stewed and served with root vegetables in a tasty wine infused stock. The meat was tender and slid off the bone, as it should when slowly cooked. At this point, we were completely stuffed. However, we could not resist trying at least one of Boccaccio’s desserts. We chose the pear tart with almond cream, which satisfied our sweet tooth and was a light alternative to the other rich desserts offered.
A visit to Boccacio will be well worth your while for a warm Italian meal in a creative and relaxed setting. This restaurant can host families very well and is certainly English and traveler friendly.
