When you walk into this place you’re greeted with humble yet intriguing decor that really leaves a lasting impression on the restaurant. They really try and give you a taste of Sardinia and I think they succeeded. Although they may have succeeded, I’m not sure if I’m too fond of the “traditional” Sardinian cuisine. Firstly, I had the calamari platter. It was one of the best textured calamari I have ever eaten. Cooked in a way that perfectly balanced the rubberiness and tenderness to accomplish a delectable mouthfeel. However, I felt as if the batter was bland and the marinara sauce was from a can. The shrimp were tasteless. If you get this, ask for another type of sauce and put some salt on them. For the main course I had the Cassulli di Carloforte which apparently is one of their signature dishes. This is probably my taste but this particular pasta felt like I was scarfing down maggots! Also, there was simply too much sauce and it was very runny. They could have added more clams as I felt it didn’t really enhance the dish as much as it could have. The reason I don’t give this place 3 stars although I’ve had okay food is because my godmother who was eating with me had the Fiocchetti di Ricotta e Tartufo. She let me have some. I’ve tried lots of truffle based pastas and although runny sauces seems to be a common thread in many of the dishes here at Zona Blu. the balance achieved between all the ingredients was that of a harmonious orchestra. Lots of places mess up their truffle meals because either the truffle is too powerful or too nonexistent and the other flavors get taken over and washed away or don’t mix well at all with the lack of truffle flavor. Zona Blu was able to overcome all that with this dish and it was really beautiful. I had the limoncello semifreddo ice cream in a cup thing for dessert and it was really good. They definitely use real limoncello. I just wish it was a tad less sweet as I taste some artificiality in the sorbet or whatever (I forgot). Additionally, their wine selection is quite great and the bread they serve to start is superb. Furthermore, their staff are friendly and wholesome and our waitress made us feel like family. Overall, this restaurant deserves more popularity and I would recommend it to people who want the taste of an authentic Italian restaurant rather than something slightly authentic like casa di Angelo...
4/5