Ellis Cameron: Piazza-ing

As it’s nearly time for me to move back to Glasgow, I wanted to make sure I made space to go out for dinner to Piazza as I’ve been working there all Summer. I’ve spent about 3 months eyeing up all the food on the menu, so Mum and Dad very kindly offered to take me and Mark out to dinner with them last Friday.

We headed off to take up our table at 7:30. Me and Mark shared a bottle of Chardonnay while Mum and Dad shared a bottle of red.

We all had starters, which arrived super quickly – I had the stuffed courgette, Dad had meatballs, Mum had the Mozzarella Salad and Mark had the Focaccia  bread with tomatoes. For my main I had my all time Piazza favourite – the Salmon Linguine with prawns. It’s so rich and creamy and as I love seafood it’s the perfect choice for me. Mark had a Bolognese Calzone pizza, which was also very tasty (I may have stolen a bit of it…) while Dad had a 4 Seasons Calzone and Mum had Puttanesca. We finished off the meal (yes, we somehow had room for pudding!!!) with a homemade Lemon Cheesecake (Mum) a Mamajama a.k.a Piazza’s Knickerbocker Glory (Dad) and two Chocolate Sundaes (Me and Mark). It was a lovely evening and even although it was obviously very a busy Saturday night we got excellent and speedy service. It was so nice to be on the other side of the table in the restaurant where I work and be reminded how good the food and the service really is. All in all a lovely (and tasty!) night.

If you’re ever passing by Piazza  in Oban I’d recommend popping in for lunch or dinner, as they have so many tasty pizzas and pastas on offer.

Here’s a few ideas if you just can’t choose.

If you’re a veggie:
Check out the Giardidiera pizza, as even from a non-veggie point of view, it’s colourful and really delicious – it’s full of  mushroom, olives, red peppers, red onions, sweetcorn & and fresh tomatoes – super tasty stuff.

If you just want a quick bite:
The Bruschetta is the perfect snack size, which is handy if you want a small lunch or you’re maybe in a wee bit of a rush.

If you’re more than a little hungry:
The Spaghetti Bolognese is the best bolognese I’ve ever tasted, I can guarantee you that you won’t regret trying it! A good favourite that suits pretty much everyone’s taste buds.

If you want to try something a bit different:
The Linguine Speciali is a little spicy and looks and tastes delicious. It’s also a good option if you’re not keen on heavy sauces, as it is sauce free.

If you want an ‘old favourite’:
The lasagne is so filling and a real winner – the perfect home cooked meal, out!

If you want to share:
Starter wise, the antipasto is a great dish to share, and it wont fill you up too much, so you can still really enjoy your main course.

If you want to top it all off with a pudding:
The Tiramisu and the Cheesecake are both home-made winners, and the ice cream is gorgeous – so that one, I shall have to leave up to you!

I’ve only got a week left working at Piazza but I’m sure I’ll be in when I’m back from Glasgow at Christmas for some food – hope to see you all there.

Ellis Cameron: Young in Argyll Correponsdent

The photographs accompanying this article are by Ellis Cameron.

Editor’s Note: This article should have been published last Sunday but a very nasty vomiting virus ( yes, too much information – but it may reassure others who start unnecessarily interrogating what they’ve eaten) that seems to be doing the rounds laid staff low. We apologise to Ellis Cameron for the delay and to everyone for the slender coverage this week. And even today, publishing Ellis’s photographs of plates of food has had to be done wearing dark glasses.