Scarpello and Co,
20-22 Buncrana Road,
Derry,
BT48 8AB
028 7121 1046
We were in here one morning a couple of weeks ago, my daughter and me, killing time while waiting for my brother’s gym session to finish. We were only there for a coffee and a hot chocolate but, inevitably – I’m not sure who dragged whom – we found ourselves face-to-face with the traybakes and treats cabinet.
Enticing blondies and brownies, honey-coloured and chocolate-rich, puffed-up croissants, gorgeous Breton biscuits, and Monto chocolates, gleaming in their swirled cases, holding all manner of inventive flavour combinations.
Two things struck me; three, if you count my daughter’s elbow when she saw me drooling. One was the quality, thought, and effort that goes into every single product made and sold here (just look at the faces of the staff in the open kitchen: focus, concentration, care). And two, it’s been ages since we’ve come here for a meal.
That last matter was sorted the other Friday evening when my daughter and I turned up again, this time with my brother and wife. We were seated by the window, towards one corner of this broad restaurant, from which we got a good view of the constant activity – the cooks in the kitchen, the throng closing in on the sweets counter, the waitresses inning and outing to and from the car park, delivering takeaway pizzas to car-bound customers.
There’s been a bit of a shift in Scarpello since we were last here, with a new kid having arrived on the chopping block. Well, Paco Mesa isn’t so much a new kid as the former head chef of Arzak, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in San Sebastian, who is married to a local woman and now living in Derry.
He’s Scarpello’s new chef and director of operations. Given his CV, he was always unlikely to direct operations towards stuffing the pizza crusts with cheese and making tobacco onions a compulsory topping.
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The menu is slimmer than I remember it, apart from the Antipasti section, which is where Paco Mesa’s influence seems to bear most strongly. We managed to wangle plates of olives and pickled vegetables and these were delicious. I hate olives, resenting the fact I’m not sophisticated to enjoy them, but I really enjoyed these, and the pickled vegetables were fabulous – crunchy, sharp, sweet, and impossible to stop eating.
The pizzas here are the best I’ve ever had (although Walled City Slice is coming up on the rails) but I summoned up what little is left of my strength of character and instead ordered the sprouting broccoli as a main. So healthy I could feel my smugness quotient rising with each mouthful, but also delicious.
The split burratina gently melted through the stems and merged with the vinaigrette, creating a lovely, oozing creamy and sharp mixture, while the broccoli itself was perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of bite.
Of course, my strength of character wasn’t so strong that I didn’t order the za’atar bread to go with the broccoli. I know man cannot live by za’atar bread alone, but I’d give it a go. I love the stuff – a crisp sourdough base, sprinkled with chillies and generous drizzles of sweet honey...
The pizzas, as ever, were great. My brother had the mushroom pizza, which uses creamed leeks instead of tomato sauce as a base, onion sharpness replacing sweetness. The sprinkling of a crunchy, herby bread topping gave the dish a lovely extra dimension. My wife’s ventricina pizza was rich and deep in flavour, and given a hit of extra spiciness by the nduja sausage spread on it. And my daughter’s Margherita was great – no reduction in care and quality just because this is a basic dish.
While the menu has changed since we were last in, I’m pleased to say some things have stayed the same. The skinny fries are still there, thank goodness, and as good as ever – crisp, soft, and sweet. Don’t let Paco touch these...
And don’t leave without trying the chocolate gelato. It’s brilliant. To be honest, there’s nothing about the place that isn’t.
The bill
Starters and Antipasti:
- Garlic, rosemary, Maldon salt flatbread - £8.00
- Warm sprouting broccoli, shallots, French vinaigrette, burratina – £12.50
- Za’atar flatbread - £9.00
Mains:
- Child’s Margherita pizza - £9.50
- Spicy ventricina salami pizza - £15.00
- Mushroom pizza - £15.00
Sides:
- Skinny fries x 2 - £8.00
Desserts:
- Gelato x 2, chocolate, and vanilla - £7.90
Drinks:
- Diet Coke x 2 - £6.20
- Coca-Cola – £3.10
Total: £94.20
