Adriatico Ristorante & Cafe (1st and Baltimore Ave.) is a Rehoboth institution, serving Italian specialties since 1976. With a full menu and a prime downtown location (and outdoor seating in the summer) it's no wonder Adriatico has been the destination for so many for so long!
Anthony DiDomenicis, a co-owner of the restaurant, was our wonderful waiter. He was incredibly helpful with our selections, and in describing the day's specialties. I like to try something new every time I eat out, so when Anthony suggested that we start with escargot, something I normally wouldn't consider, we agreed. And, since we eat calamari every chance we get, that had to be our second choice. The escargot were sauted and served in a rich buttery lemon marsala sauce with mushrooms and garlic, and were very good. It was a great suggestion! The calamari, perfectly done, were served with a marinara sauce for dipping. We were sure off to a great start.
We had heard that when dining at Adriatico, garlic bread is always a must, so we ordered a half loaf. We ended up eatingwell, never mind how much of this we ended up eating, let's just say we ordered more. It was buttery and warm inside, crusted with parmesan, garlic and herbs, and we could have eaten much more if we didn't know our entrees were on their way. Yum! We also had a delicious house salad with a large side of bleu cheese and wonderful Italian vinaigrette.
For entrees, well, there's a good selection of pasta, veal, chicken and seafood, plus the specials. We opted for the Scaloppine al Limone, a great veal dish with generous portions of tender veal served over penne pasta in a light lemon and butter sauce. I tried one of the specials of the day, all of which sounded mouth watering, a chicken breast stuffed with amazing crab meat and mozzarella, served on a bed of fettucine alfredo. As usual, we were stuffed and very happy by the time we were done! But did we save room for dessert? You betcha!
The desserts all sounded so good we had to try something. There are the standard Italian desserts such as tiramisu and spumoni and cannoli, and as tantalizing as that sounded we wanted something a little lighter. We opted for a tangerine sorbet that is served in a tangerine, complete with the top of the tangerine put back on top. This was outrageous and a perfect end of the meal, and if I hadn't had so much garlic bread I would have had another one. We also had the tartufo, a globe of chocolate ice cream with nuts and marshmallows, rolled in cocoa and nuts, which was just to kill for. Next time, I'm starting with the dessert!
This time of year there are some great specials going on at Adriatico (like lower priced menus and prime rib on Fridays), so check it out! And tell Anthony we said hi! We'll be back, as there are many more dishes worth trying.
Adriatico is located at First Street and Baltimore Avenue. For reservations, call 302-227-9255.
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 11, No. 2, Mar. 9, 2001.