Osteria “Istriano” Trieste: Delicious pasta with fish ragout

There are people who are fascinated with borders, like myself. They should visit Trieste (or Trst in Croatian and Slovenian) to enjoy the atmosphere of a city residing on many ones. Between East and West, between Roman, German and Slavic people, here the Mediterranean meets the Continent.

Few weeks ago a friend of mine invited me for a dinner in Osteria “Istriano” in Trieste and I accepted with pleasure. I was interested to write review of a restaurant not in Istria but on its northwestern border, that supposedly serves Istrian cuisine. Wrong! I was simply fooled by the name of the place. Nevertheless, we had a wonderful evening in this restaurant specialized for fish.

The place is situated on the southern side of Le Rive (Trieste seafront), a bit hidden from the busy street and just across the city’s marina. A cozy terrace with its dimmed lights makes perfect scenery for a romantic dinner. Interior is bright and simple, set in a style of a typical Italian trattoria with carefully laid tables. Beautiful black and white photos of Istrian towns and carefully designed lightning make the atmosphere warm yet sophisticated.
Ambient 9/10

The bread was a disaster, of pure industrial origin and taste. If the owner does not have time to make its own bread, it could at least purchase it from many local bakeries. A bottle of commercial Italian extravirgin olive oil on our table was of decent quality, but nothing worth of remembering. Too bad we did not see one of excellent olive oils coming from nearby Val Rosandra (San Dorligo della Valle), a beautiful valley where you can find Alpine pines growing next to the olive trees. We ordered a liter of Friulano (ex Tocai Friulano) and a liter of sparkling Prosecco, both house white wines of decent quality. Prosecco was more easy drinking and a better match with the dishes we ordered.
Details 7/10

Shrimps with curry on a bed of couscous and Tuna carpaccio on lettuce.
Shrimps had a damn fresh aroma, there were no smell of ammoniac like it is often the case when you buy the frozen ones, but you felt a real scent of the open sea. They were shortly grilled to remain al dente and were able to release plenty of juice when you bite them. Just a trace of curry on top was a perfect match, without overwhelming the delicate taste of the shrimps. Couscous was very simple, cooked to perfection with addition of some aromatic herbs. Carpaccio was delicious, nicely refreshing and light. The key ingredient was very fresh tuna meat marinated with fennel leaf and olive oil.

The second antipasto was again Tuna carpaccio on lettuce but now with Steamed Tub Gurnard with ratatouille (lat. Trigla Lucerna, it. gallinella). The fish was of delicate taste, tender and consistent at the same time, and the ratatouille added some juices to the fish that would otherwise be too dry. These two antipasti totally seduced us all. Score 9/10

Then here we are, photo of the best dish we tried that evening in “Istriano”.

Spaghetti with ragout of Reef mullet (hr. trilja od kamena, it. triglia di scoglio). This was far from Spaghetti ai Frutti di mare, a classical Italian recipe for spaghetti with scallops, mussels, shrimp and calamari rings in white wine and tomato sauce. No, here the cook made a creative effort. He made a delicious ragout sauce with Reef mullet filets, zucchini and carrots and pour it over spaghetti that were cooked al dente, of course. One portion was so abundant that we shared it in two. Awesome! Score 10/10

The first main dish were Fried anchovies coated in breadcrumbs (hr. pohani sardoni, it. sardoni impanati), a landmark not only of the traditional cuisine of Trieste, but also of the whole Istrian peninsula. Fried in fresh oil, they were succulent yet crispy in your mouth. Nice.
Score 9/10

Too bad in Istria you will hardly find this simple, tasty and affordable dish since restaurant owners consider it not noble enough or that are convinced they cannot make profit out of it. A very wrong attitude in my opinion, especially in these recession times when people are seeking more than ever for a good price/quality ratio when they eat out.

After the pasta on our table came a big monster, a big fish of over 2 kg with frightening teethes that are surely the reason why it is called Dentex (hr. zubatac, it. dentice). It has a first-class meat and is very much appreciated on the whole Mediterranean.

Dentex in the owen with potatoes. This was our second main dish and it was good, but I expected much more after they spoiled us with previous dishes. My main objection is that the fish was overcooked which made the meat dry and of tactile consistency similar to porridge. The potatoes that were baking together were much savory because they absorbed the juices from the fish.
Score 7.5/10

We shared only one Semifreddo al torroncino (nougat semi-freddo) coated with dark chocolate. Not bad, but a bit too sweet for my taste, and the chocolate seamed like it was bought in McDonalds. Score 7/10

I am sorry that I cannot give you the price for the individual dishes like in previous posts since the bill was divided between six of us. We paid only 30 euros per person, wine, coffee and water included. A very good price but be aware that we ordered only one spaghetti and only one dessert. Most of the people had only an antipasto and a main dish (either Dentex or fried Anchovies). Nevertheless, price/quality ratio seems to be very good.

In “Istriano” you will definitely not try a typical Istrian, but a modern and creative Italian cuisine spiced with some Fusion trends. A pleasant and cozy tavern, with good and creative food and friendly clientele. A place to return to.

Overall 8/10

Osteria “Istriano”

tel. +39 040 306664

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