When you enter his restaurant you can feel the genuine Dolce Vita atmosphere, and Alberto Stefanelli is always there to greet you with his charming smile and mustache. A photo of Marcello Mastroianni is above the old wooden counter. Just like in a Fellini’s film, you smell the essence of Italy everywhere. The wooden shelves full of fine Italian wines, the wooden tables, the red and white checked tablecloths. It is exactly how you’d find an Italian trattoria in Tuscany. And it just so happen Alberto comes from Montecatini, nearby Pisa and Florence.
Alberto started Bacco Tabacco e Venere as a wine shop fifteen years ago. Then gradually, he started adding a few small bites to accompany the wine: salame, prosciutto, finocchiona, pancetta. Little by little, this typical trattoria became what it is today. Alberto only uses high quality ingredients and his recipes are his grandmother’s, and the same food she used to cook for him when he was a boy.
Don’t expect to choose from a menu what to eat here, yet rather just prepare yourself to eat through many courses. Alberto will make the decisions for you. You’ll love the surprise element when a delicious and fresh burrata, pappa al pomodoro, with tomatoes and bread, a typical poor dish of the Tuscan countryside, or a homemade tagliolini, ravioli or pasta turns up on your plate. The dishes served change every couple of months, influenced by what produce is in season. When it’s truffle time, you can feast on tagliolini al tartufo, or superbly made eggs with truffle scales. The desserts are also outrageously good, whether it’s the tiramisu or the coffee mousse. Just like La Città delle Donne, the kitchen is Nicoletta’s domain. Nicoletta is the creative, young and gifted chef here, while she’s also the soul of the restaurant.
Smoking is permitted, meaning the place is typically in a haze, and this is the only thing which strays from the typical Italian atmosphere. But it seems unavoidable, as the restaurant’s name is part of an Italian saying: “Bacco tabacco e Venere … mandano l’uomo in cenere” meaning “wine, tobacco and love turn men into ashes”. Every rose has its thorns.
The Mamma Mia dishes Mila recommends: Be sure not to skip the appetisers: crostini, parmigiana di melanzane, baked fennel, fried artichokes, frittata with zucchini.
We recommend… to book a table in advance, it is a well-loved, tiny place.
We also love… the small ice-cream specially made by the Schwedenplatz Eis Salon, available in Spring and Summer
