Bringing good and honest food from Naples to Edinburgh, Locanda de Gusti is designed to be a place where you can relax with friends and enjoy superb food. Ingredients are imported from Italy, paired with the best meat, fish and seafood from across Scotland and traditional Italian techniques to ensure that you will have the most authentic, enjoyable experience. Occupying premises that were once home to Bella Mbriana, Locanda de Gusti maintains the Italian theme – although it adds some sharp, modern bistro decor for good measure.
Lunchtime starters include large ravioli parcels of fresh egg pasta with the filling of the day, tossed with butter, fresh sage and nutmeg, along with baked sweet Sicilian red peppers that are stuffed with aubergines, fresh basil pesto, bread and parmesan. The charcoal grilled Italian pork sausage is another popular starter, with the burrata Puglian cheese with anchovy fillets and chilli.
The main menu is pretty simple, ensuring that those they do serve are of the highest quality. The pasta option includes fresh ribbons tossed with vegetables, San Marzano tomato passata and provola smoked cheese, then there are monkfish tail bites in the rich Guazzetto of Italian cannellini beans, Vesuvian piennolo tomatoes and a slow cooked rare breed of Scottish pork cheeks with mixed mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, basil and garlic. The torta salata is a Neapolitan baked sandwich layered with zucchini, cured ham from Parma, provolo, egg and parmesan. Dessert is equally as simple, with hazelnut and vanilla ice cream, Caribbean lime sorbet, coffee and Baileys cremoso and pistachio panna cotta.
The evening menu is more lengthy, with several options for pasta rather than just the one, including ragu, genovese strozzapreti, mushroom ravioli and whole Scottish lobster linguine. Pasta is a dependable call, desserts might feature Nutella-garnished rum baba, & the wine list includes some serious Italian reds.