Pizzeria Virtu, Birchstrasse, Zurich

Happiness is when you find a great place and are the first one to write about it. Anything that elevates the reputation as being a truffle swine of gastronnmy, capable of discovering the hidden gems tucked far helps in keeping the ever-increasing competition at bay. Pizzeria Virtu is a five minute walk from Oerlikon train station, just near Regensbergbruecke. While many italian places call themselves ristorante, most of them are more a trattoria or an osteria. The Virtu would qualify as a perfect example for a neighborhood trattoria, you can have a full menu, but it’s geared at the local neighborhood and sports a simpler, low-touch interior.

The antipasti plate was pretty fabulous, none of the pre-fabricated, oily junk you get in a lot of other places. There were some surprising components such as the Polpette di Tonno ai padrone. A tasty, slighlty reminiscent of a crabcake concotion of tuna, very nice to have such a surprising and innovative element on the dish. Flat breads covered with flavorful toppings, excellent eggplant & zucchini tibits, cured meats, cheese, made a truly good plate. The only thing which is slightly detracting is the fact that the toppings drench the flatbread and make it a tad soggy.

The main course didn’t disappoint. Homemade Casarecce alla Siciliana, every component was well seasoned, the sauce had depth and even the small touches were near perfect. The pepperoncini laced sauce was rightly advertised as beinv very spicy and homemade by grandpa from Sicilia. Certainly scorching, but still distinc in flavor. Looking back Virtu is exactley the way a neighborhood eatery should be, simple dishes, good combinations, care, high quality ingredients, love and flavor, flavor, flavor. A true gem. And guess who found it ? 🙂