Tucked inside a quiet Ballygunge Place lane is Alla Bella Mozzarella, the newest Italian restaurant in town. My friends Poorna and Shikha were speaking very highly of this new restaurant so on Mother’s Day, I dropped in with my parents. It’s only been a couple of months since Alla Bella Mozzarella opened but the restaurant has already become really popular. We went in around 1 pm and only a few tables were available. Within 15 mins those got booked too and then, there were people standing outside waiting to get a free table. Queues in front of a restaurant can only mean one thing. Good food and yes, Alla Bella Mozzarella serves really good Italian food!
The place is quite small but it has a very cheerful and bright atmosphere that instantly livens up the spirits. The food is simple and fuss-free. You get all your basic Italian fare – lasagne, pizza, pasta etc. Don’t expect Dominos and Pizza Hut style pizzas with the thick crust here. They only serve wood fired thin crust pizzas and you can see the process of making a pizza right in front of your eyes because the huge wood fire oven is pretty much bang in the middle of the restaurant.
We started off our meal with the Red Bell Pepper soup which my friends were raving about and now I know why Thick, creamy, cheesy with the smokiness of the red bell pepper made me go in for a second helping. Next, we had the Caesar Salad. While the taste was lovely, I would have preferred less dressing because that made the greens kinda soggy. We obviously had to try a pizza and went for Pizza Al Alla Bella, with a topping of bell pepper, olive and caramelised onion. The slight sweetness of the onions with the crunchy and hot bell pepper was a combination I quite liked. This pizza is also not overloaded with cheese. Just the way I like it!
No Italian meal is complete without a pasta and we had the Pasta Arrabiata. The tomato sauce was rich and coupled with the grated parmesan, added the perfect flavor to the dish. We finished off the mains with the Risotto Al Funghi – arborio rice cooked in a button and porcini mushroom sauce. The perfect creamy Italian Risotto!
The Wood-Fired Chocolate Fondant ended a wholesome and extremely satisfying meal. Eating the chocolate fondant is an experience in itself. Oh the pleasure in watching the rich chocolate oozing out of the fondant when cut open!
Alla Bella Mozzarella serves good Italian food at very reasonable prices. If you live in and around Ballygunge Place, you can also order and get the food delivered.
Address – 99/5/2A, Ballygunge Place, Near Kotak Bank, Ballygunge, Kolkata