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Mom and pop trattoria serves authentic Italian fare
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By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
February 14th, 2007 issue

Jan Přerovský/The Prague Post
Rossini's staff is justifiably proud of everything it brings to the table.
Ten guys, all speaking Italian, piled into Rossini one recent Saturday evening. Think that’s a good sign? You’re right.
This serendipitous moment occurred during my second visit to the step-down corner place opposite Riegrovy sady. The radio, typically (and inexplicably) locked onto a Czech station playing American hip-hop, quietly gave way to a CD of old-style Continental favorites.
Czech radio, American soft-core rap, Italian dishes and Belgian beer. Cramped room, one waitress, floor scraped by shifting chairs — just overlook the incongruities and minor discomforts. As orders arrived and each guest in the large party took their first bite, conversational commotion faded into scattered murmurs. At Rossini, food is clearly the attraction.
Rossini

Chopinova 26
Prague 3–Vinohrady
Tel. 222 729 041
Open daily 10 a.m.–11 p.m.


Food HHH
Service HH
Atmosphere HH
Overall HH

Food
Service
Atmosphere
Overall
The antipasto platter drags you on a meandering course through marinated bell pepper slices, olives, cheese and cured meats. Selections of this sort generally foretell little about courses to follow. Rossini’s kitchen, however, throws in a couple of eye-openers: a hunk of real Parmiggiano Reggiano and grilled eggplants drizzled with a balsamic reduction. The former is not stravecchio quality, but still a fruity, modestly piquant treat for those weary of “Parmesan” imposters. And the effect of condensed balsamic striking blackened scars from the grill turns wilted eggplant slices into something extraordinary, resounding of earth and brimstone and sour candy.
Unexpected flavors also pop (quietly this time, like a soap bubble) from an appetizer of grilled calamari. Burnished points where hot iron bit into triangular pieces of squid yield a hint of what can best be described as butterscotch. Capped by slices of marinated yellow bell pepper, the combination is clean and nice. Acting on a hunch, I dusted a couple with black pepper, lending a sharp undertone without beating down the delicate taste of the centerpiece.
Before any of this, the sheer simplicity of a gratis bowl of homemade potato chips knocks you off balance. Natural sweetness enhanced by a careful dash of salt indicates that, well, this place is different.
Not flawless, mind you. Pork cutlets surrendered their flavor to mistreatment, emerging from the kitchen overcooked and bone-dry. If you’ve lived in Prague long enough to grow accustomed to fossilized meat, no problem. Otherwise, the sauce — a rich reduction of cognac and cream sparked by a handful of briny peppercorns — is complex enough to rescue a plate of crushed brick.
From the Menu
  • Antipasto Rossini 170 Kč
  • Grilled calamari 180 Kč
  • Penne pancetta 135 Kč
  • Risotto 150 Kč
  • Pork cutlets 170 Kč
  • Tiramisu 80 Kč
  • Cappuccino 40 Kč
  • Stella Artois 35 Kč
In retrospect, Rossini’s faults seem minor. The risotto, though not boiled into a gloppy mass (a failure common to many restaurants here), was on one visit allowed to slide past al dente. Yet it still met traditional standards and the mixture of spinach and gorgonzola belts your palate with salvo after salvo of pungent bitterness, calmed only by cream. Penne pasta also skipped just beyond al dente. Once again, however, an irresistible assault of tomato, pancetta and herbs overpowers your senses, diverting attention away from problems caused by inattentive line cooks. The sauce is amazing: fresh basil pricks from the murky mélange, a waft of olive oil rides around the edges. But pancetta is the heart of it — grabbing the bright taste of crushed tomato and wrenching it to the ground, uppercutting herbs with strokes of salt. It’s dense, glowering, dusky, hearty and miraculous all at the same time.
Desserts include tiramisu, presented in an oversize martini glass and drowning in a pool of zabaglione. At least they’ve soaked the ladyfingers properly in very bitter espresso. And the coffee itself? Perfect.
No wonder the place lures some of Prague’s Italian expats. I wavered between two and three stars for food (primitive software precludes awarding halves). But it doesn’t matter, really. If ever a restaurant said “mom and pop Italian trattoria” without fuss, without gimmickry, it’s Rossini.
And it’s well worth a visit.

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


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