Smallish in size and with a slightly unfortunate interior decoration scheme (think fake stone wallpaper), Palatino is an Italian-owned restaurant serving Roman-style pizza, along other more general Italian dishes. Walking into Palatino from hectic Changle Lu outside, it looks like there’s barely enough room for a restaurant. Stools and high tables line one side, with a glass partition separating the pizza kitchen, where pizzaiolos busily toss spheres of dough into the air. Upstairs lies the main dining and bar area.
Palatino aims to differentiate from other Italian restaurants by specializing in ‘Roman cuisine,’ which broadly translates to especially thin pizza crusts and a handful of Roman favorites such as spaghetti alla carbonara (RMB88), bucatini amatriciana (RMB88, below) and mains like saltimbocca alla Romana (RMB158) - pan-fried veal with Parma ham and sage.
Aside from these, the menu is long, rambling, and in actuality contains more general Italian dishes than those typically characteristic of Roman cuisine, like Caesar salad (RMB58), which in fact traces its origins to an Italian-American immigrant in San Diego.
Quality-wise Palatino’s food sits squarely within the mid-range. The Italians we brought with us vouched for the authenticity of the pizza Palatino’s (RMB128, below) slightly charred, thin Roman-style crust, topped as it is with mozzarella, gorgonzola, parma ham and black truffle.
And they had praise for the homely flavors in the aforementioned saltimbocca . However, we think better (albeit marginally more expensive) versions of bucatini amatriciana (RMB88) can be found at places like D.O.C Gastronomia Italiano. Similarly, the mozzarella on our cherry tomatoes, parma ham and olives bruschette (RMB48, below), while imported and Italian, was hard and chewy.
Overall, Palatino is a modest success, and while not all of its dishes are good enough to return for frequently, it’s a pretty decent spot for casual dinner with friends if you’re in the neighborhood.
Price: Approx. RMB200 per person
Who’s going: Mainly locals and Japanese businessmen on our visit
Good for: Casual dinner
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