We returned to our hotel to clean up before our evening meal which a friend of Karen had recommended, although the friend was unable to eat there. La Tagliata Positano. Via Tagliata 32B, Positano.
The restaurant was a long distance from our apartment, so we arranged through the restaurant to be picked up at Hotel Poseidon, which was a five-minute walk. The bus wound its way through the streets of Positano eventually going higher and higher and actually entering a separate area known as Montepertuso which overlooks Arienza rather than Positano.
The restaurant has spectacular views being so high up, especially of the sunset. After many pictures, we sat down for the first course of our meal, totally unprepared for the torrents of food to follow. First to appear was a bottle of white and a bottle of red, which we were told the restaurant has produced for it. The label was the same as the name of the restaurant and was apparently a house wine. No one was impressed by the wine, so we asked if they had prosecco. Two glasses were delivered which in our estimation was the best of the wines they served.
As we were completing our appetizers, we noted that a couple next to our table had not been served. We brought that to the attention of Tony, the host and co-owner with his cousin. Tony learned that the couple was getting engaged at that very moment. He then announced to the whole restaurant that the couple were celebrating their engagement and we were celebrating our anniversary. Robin took pictures of the newly engaged couple on their cell phone so they could Instagram all their friends and family. The couple went to another area for more pictures and returned about a half hour later.
The plates have written upon them Fattoria Tagliata. We joked as the evening progressed that Fattoria must be a Trattoria for fat people, because there was just so much food. Only after the evening did we take the time to look it up only to find that Fattoria is Farm or Farmhouse. This would have changed our entire impressions of the evening.
The initial dish was the usual meats and cheeses, although one was a firm ricotta which was a nice compliment to the mozzarella. Next came the blizzard, as a dish of spinach was followed by a creamed broccoli, cooked peas, chick peas, flat beans with bacon, zucchini and peppers, eggplant, and plate of bread, quiche and meat loaf.
Two entertainers from Naples performing typical Neapolitan songs came through twice during our meal. The entertainers consisted of an accordion player and a tambourinist. They did an interesting song where they simply asked the audience to clap along with the tambourinist. Of course, one member of the audience always clapped once too many times for the first three attempts, which brought many laughs.
This was all in preparation for the Primi Piatto which consisted of dishes of gnocchi in red sauce, long penne in a white sauce, a lasagna-like dish, and cheese ravioli. The Secundo Piatto consisted of two platters, one with a huge steak and the other a collection of different meats to include chicken, pork, sausage, chicken skewers and one or two other cuts that we weren’t sure of only to learn later that one was rabbit.
At this point we were so full we asked for the check, but were told that the bus to return us to our hotel was still 20 minutes away. Tony suggested we should just relax and enjoy the desert and rest of the wine on our table. A few minutes later a plate with slices of different dolci appeared. It included chocolate mousse, cheese cake, white cake, and a white cake with layers of chocolate filling.
What we discovered was that the restaurant was more of a trattoria than a fine dining experience. We simply did not investigate sufficiently to understand the nature of the dining experience since it had been rated number 19 of 81 dining experiences in Positano on Trip Advisor. The overall evaluation from all but one of our group was it proved to be a fun evening, the music and the family style serving were the highlights, but the overall quality of food and wine was that of a trattoria. While the final bill, which included the transportation, was not bad, one needs to approach the views, the entertainment and the culinary experience in total as this is not a typical vacation experience.
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