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Lunenburg’s Italian job

By Sarah Musgrave

Foodies are flocking to Nova Scotia to sample Trattoria della Nonna’s grappa-flambéed prawns and English toffee and raisin sorbetto.

The  little town of Lunenburg has big ambitions when it comes to restaurants, and so do chef Terry Vassallo and his sommelier partner Simone Mombourquette, who opened their ristorante on Valentine’s Day 2007. Certainly the location could not be more picturesque for aspiring  restaurateurs. Occupying a stately three-story residence nestled between two historic working waterfronts, their Trattoria della Nonna is a love affair between old world and new. Inside, butter yellow walls set off by wrought iron fittings and punchy artwork add to a lively atmosphere for Italian cuisine.

 

A brick oven, fired by fruitwoods for extra flavor, turns out  thin-crust pizzas featuring toppings from grilled eggplant to smoked  mozzarella. Among the pastas, farfalle with duck confit, forest mushrooms and roasted  garlic crema is a local favorite. Vassallo doesn’t stop there, using a hit of grappa to flambé his  prawns, adding porcini jus to his pesto-encrusted rack of lamb and roasting grapes to toss with radicchio and endive under a Gorgonzola dressing. If the wine list mines Italy for labels, local ingredients like cast-iron seared Digby scallops and Country  Harbour mussels bring the  food right back home. For dessert, a resident ice cream maker prepares a different gelato and  sorbetto each day; try English toffee and raisin or blueberry and watermelon. And at brunch, the trattoria offers Italian toast in lieu of French toast,  thanks to the addition of mascarpone cheese to the usual maple syrup. Viva Italia in Nova Scotia!

 

Getting here

Trattoria  della Nonna, 9 King St., Lunenburg, N.S., 902-640-3112, nonnadining.ca
Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage, 1-800-565-0000, novascotia.com

Sarah Musgrave is a Montréal-based food journalist. She  is the casual dining restaurant reviewer for the Montréal Gazette and the author of Resto-à-Go-Go: 200 Cheap and Fun Places to Eat and  Drink in Montreal 2007.