Our Summer Dinner Series is under way and the first dinner was a smashing success. Our restaurant was bustling last Wednesday with locals and travellers alike, delighted by Domenico's surprise summer menu.

Above: Pre-service with Domenico and all the staff, tasting each dish together with Osman's wine pairing.

Our next dinner on Thursday, 28 July is already sold out. But there are still seats available for our last dinner on Thursday, August 4. Don't miss it! Go online and reserve your table online now.

Wednesday, 20 July Recap

As soon as our guests arrived, they were treated to one of Ali Ersoy's signature cocktails; this time a colorful melon margarita: sweet, juiced cantaloupe shaken with tequila and a splash of smoky mezcal, served with a salted rim and a single wild flower petal, picked from the Roman countryside by our friends Valentina and Alessandro. Guests enjoyed the cocktail together with some of Domenico's signature zucchini fritters.

The first three courses feature summer fruits and vegetables.

To start, a tris of three plates: smooth goat cheese from Fattoria Ma' Falda in Umbria, covered with a selection of wild herbs and flowers, including wild marigolds and cornflower, marjoram, sage, rosemary and purslane; on a separate plate, pickled beetroots; and on another, fresh watermelon with a light drizzle of basil oil. The trick here was to try to get all the flavors together in a single bite.

To follow, Domenico prepared a striking smoked aubergine in a tahini sauce, topped with crispy rice and red shiso leaves.

The third course (the dish featured in the opening photo of this article) was just four simple ingredients: Sicilian organic almonds, blended with water into a smooth cream; a mix of confit tomatoes; capers and fresh purslane. The mix of flavors and textures is quintessentially Domenico's style of cooking.

For the meat course, Domenico slow-cooked pork neck with the same herbs and spices featured throughout the menu until the meat was left juicy and tender. The meat was then simply torn apart and served like this together with a fresh Greek-style salad of cucumbers, red onion and tomatoes.

The meal ended with scoop of Sofie's delectable buttermilk ice cream, made of course with housemade buttermilk, plum compote (using wild plums from Valentina's plum tree) and a crumble of honeycomb.

As for wine, guests who chose to let Osman guide them through the evening with his wine pairing weren't disappointed with his choices. They tasted Sicily for the first three courses - a lightly macerated Grillo by Giuseppe Cipolla, a robust red made with indigenous grapes by Francesco Guccione to complement smokiness of the aubergine, and a rose blend by the Sicilian master of natural wine himself, Frank Cornelissen. For the pork neck Osman brought them back home to Lazio with a local Grecchetto Rosso and Sangiovese blend.

Join us for dinner!

Domenico creates a new menu for each dinner event, and it's a surprise until you get here. Sit back, relax and leave your evening in our hands.

Reservations are required and pre-paid (€65/person). Vegetarian/vegan menus are available - please make a note in your reservation.

Our first two dates sold out quickly, but there are still seats available on Thursday, August 4! 

 Any questions, write to us at ciao@marigoldroma.com. We hope to see you soon!