The fourth Westport restaurant I visited was Acqua Ristorante Mediterraneo,
which wore its Restaurant Week heart on its sleeve.
Most restaurants I visited were good about posting Restaurant Week signs and making sure that the special menus were included among the materials left with diners when they were seated.
My wife and I proceeded past the downstairs bar area and
up the intriguing, zigzagging staircase (there is also an elevator)
with its glimpse of the lower upstairs dining area.
We were warmly received by manager George Corrales,
and then seated at a cozy table.
From that point on, we were in the hands of our helpful waiter, Wynn.
It was still early in the evening as I left my lovely wife alone at the table and snapped a few shots of the restaurant. On the upper level where we were located, there were a few people dining at the kitchen counter,
where they could look straight into this imposing oven
or nibble on exceptional olives.
The restaurant was full of interesting nooks and crannies, the best of which were filled with enthusiastic patrons.
I took a close-up of one happy group,
these birthday parties,
and even of these frescoes.
Nice peasant bread and focaccia
was served with hummus,
but we also couldn’t resist this flask of Monini extra virgin olive oil.
We had a choice of three appetizers. We didn’t try the Caesar salad although we were certain it would be a credible version at Acqua. We did try the seasonal soup, which proved to be a fragrant cream of potato with roasted garlic.
We were also very pleased with a salad of grilled octopus and chorizo in a salsa verde with carrot coulis.
The octopus slices and tentacles were spectacularly fresh and tender.
I don’t normally order chicken at restaurants, because most American chicken is served off the bone and is flavorless to begin with. But I had such faith in the establishments participating in Westport Restaurant Week that I wound up trying chicken a number of times. Acqua’s wood-oven-roasted Amish chicken served in its natural roasting jus with au gratin potatoes was a joy to behold and to eat.
Grilled Atlantic salmon served with olive oil fingerling potatoes and grilled asparagus was also a thing of beauty.
We didn’t get to try a four-cheese beggar’s purse with sautéed mushrooms and a sage brown butter sauce, but I have no doubt that it, too, was delicious.
Nor did Acqua’s desserts disappoint. One was a perfect vanilla crème brûlée with fresh berries,
the other a molten chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream.
All too often, restaurant critics must try that next new eatery at the expense of old favorites. My visit to Acqua reminded me how much I missed it.
Acqua Ristorante Mediterraneo, 43 Main Street, Westport, 203-222-8899