I was looking forward to a meal at one of Hatch End's Italian restaurants, main dish and vegetables, when I was at a restaurant overseas which served me chicken with no vegetables. I was also daydreaming, wishful thinking, of a chocolate with the bill in the UK, dreaming, when overseas I received the bill without a chocolate. Nobody said goodbye or thank you as I left.
However, I enjoyed exactly what I had daydreamed about when I returned to Hatch End in North West London and had a meal for four at an Italian restaurant which is one of my old favourites, Casa Mia.
Don't get me wrong, I loved the overseas restaurants. They were good and interesting. Learning a new menu language was a satisfying challenge. I'd forgotten how much Italian I knew until I returned to an Italian menu and could translate so much more.
What would I drink in an Italian restaurant. Of course, I started with a glass of Prosecco. After a week away overseas without spsrkling white wines, or even sparkling rose wines, it was great to see Prosecco on the menu.
It was served in a tall glass. Bubbly, Champagne style, but without the Champagne high prices. It wasn't the best Prosecco, but it was good enough.
We asked for tap water, too. Our servers made no attempt to insist that we had bottled mineral water, unlike some posh places overseas, who have not heard of the British legal requirement that you must serve water with alcohol. Why is this law? To reduce drunkenness leading to the potential for road accidents, fights or medical episodes.
Up comes the water with the drinks. A perfect start. Water to get you relaxed straight away. Palate cleared. Perfect.
Our shared starter was garlic pizza which came up fast enough to keep a two-year-old contented. The restaurant even had two heights of high chair - she chose the highest. Next the manager moved us up from a table in the middle of the room to a table by the wall, so baby was out of the way of the to and fro waitresses.
I thought we should have brought some toys to amuse baby, and insisted on her staying in the high chair, or being carried around the table from her mother to her father, instead of toddling around on her own. Eventually something happened. The high chair fell on top of her. She cried.
Until a dummy was produced and soon recovered. Her father shrugged and said, 'Don't worry, she falls over every day. I don't suppose she'll ever come to any harm."
I thought, 'Sorry, I disagree, My cousin's kid fell down steep stairs, It wasn't even a straight flight. But hit his head on a grandfather clock on the bend. He ended up so badly brain damaged that my second cousin said it wasn't a good idea for my son to be taken to play with him." But I wasn't going to get those negative thoughts get in the way of a jolly evening out.
Main Courses
So I smiled brightly and said, "Just what I wanted. Veal with potatoes and mushroom in white sauce. "
I have a slight preference for chicken, but I'd had chicken at home twice in 24 hours, so I felt like a change. I can buy roast chicken from my local supermarket any day. When I go to a restaurant I am always pleased to have something I could not have at home, for a change.
A non-meat alternative chosen by one of my family was a pizza.
Desserts
When It came to dessert I was very good. I agreed to share profiteroles with one of the others, and a spoon of the tiramisu, not overloading the calorie count and sugar by ordering another dessert. All the desserts were tempting.
The tiramisu is home-made. Tiramisu, and ice creams, were the Italian items on the menu.
Non-Italian English favourites such as chocolate dessert, and, the recent British concoction of Banoffee pie, were other sweet temptations. So many that I did not have an overall favourite and agreed to do along with my share of the other two.
As we all agreed, the meal was not exceptional, not Michelin quality. But what it does, it does very well. Good value. All the ingredients I wanted. Filling food. Smiling attentive staff, with a family feel. A chocolate for each of us to sweeten the bill.
The place was full - but found me a table when I booked the previous lunch time. They had three birthdays during the evening. Lights dimmed, the white jumping, shooting candle, a recording of happy birthdays, and we and nearby tables smiled and calpped for the birthday table.
I once read that birthday parties are the prime money spinners for restaurants Also that restaurants make more money on the wine than the food. So if birthday parties order Champagne or drinks, that figures.
I like my favourite London Italian restaurants just the way they are.
1 Ten per cent service charge means you need not leave a tip. (Unlike the USA.)
2 Most of the family restaurants serve a standard set of vegetables included in the price of all the main course meat dishes.
3 Tap water is free.
4 You get a chocolate or mint chocolate with the bill.
5 Staff either see you to the door, or, if the door is open in summer, they watch and notice you leave, and if you turn to nod, they wave or nod back and say thank you.
Well done, Casa Mia.
And lovely decor. Warm and cosy.
Where will we go next time? Back to Casa Mia, or one of Hatch End's other opportunities? Watch this space.
Useful Websites
https://casamia-restaurant.co.uk/
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