"The first evening of my stay in Amalfi town, I had attempted to partake in dinner at a restaurant other than Locanda del Marinaio. This restaurant shall remain unnamed but suffice it to say, I was waiting in line outside said restaurant and the owner indicated the couple ahead of me was the cutoff for entering the restaurant. It was 7:30 pm. I was welcome with open arms at Locanda del Marinaio, tho it was substantially less busy than its counterpart. I received exemplary service and food, but it is the second visit I write about now. I didn’t catch the name of the gent who seated me, but he made me feel welcome at once…a feeling I wasn’t sure I’d experience again after the previous two restaurants had stared at me when I indicated I was dining and traveling (for that matter solo. “Stick her in the back near the column” or openly roll eyes at the request for a table for one, I assumed would be my experience for the duration of the trip. This particular server said to me “Better to spend time alone than to be in bad company.” I knew from that moment that my experience was to be a good one. I was soon greeted by Carmine, who I could presume was the head waiter…he was a delight the entire meal. I ordered a glass of house red and they brought the bottle to my table and treated me to the ceremony of bottle opening and tasting, tho they knew I’d likely only drink a single glass. I ordered an appetizer, melanzana alla parmigiana and while I had enjoyed this very dish two other times on this same trip, Locanda’s version was exquisite…it was all about the eggplant and the tomato sauce was so rich in flavor…I literally ate every single bite and cleaned my ramekin with my bread. My next course was Ravioli with buffalo mozzarella tin a sage butter lemon sauce. Every….single….bite surpassed the previous one in taste and enjoyment. I was in love with this dish and I took small slow bites to savor the experience. I left a single ravioli , not my ideal situation for a gal who’s long been part of the clean your plate club, but I was so very satisfied with the food and drink that I couldn’t imagine putting another bite in my expanding belly. Plus, this wasn’t my first rodeo, I wanted to save room for dessert and limoncello. I ordered the traditional Amalfi lemon cream cake and was treated to a gorgeous little dome of fluffy lemon sponge cake filled with a lemon-ee cream and dipped in more lemon-ee cream. Not too sweet, so very tart and oh so perfectly creamy, I all but cleaned my bowl with my tongue and didn’t want the experience to end. Of course I enjoyed my cake with a little limoncello and by the time I asked for the bill, I was on a little food buzz…or a real one (as I had been drinking back at my apartment in the hours leading up to dinner. I told Carmine it was my best meal in Amalfi to date and said I would happily write a google review. I asked him to spell his name so that I could call him out personally, but, like every extra special employee, he deferred praise to his team and asked that I didn’t single anyone out. I had too, of course, because he was an absolute gem and he and his colleagues ensured I was entertained, well fed, and anything but lonely on my solo journey on the Amalfi Coast. Go there, eat there, and leave feeling pretty wonderful."
