EAT AT:

La Dolce Vita, Empire Court, Clarence St, Swindon SN1 2JF

Tel: 01793 485333

Matt Edwards finds a little slice of Roma on a street corner in Swindon

FROM the moment you step through the door, La Dolce Vita really does offer you a slice of ‘the sweet life’.

Tucked away on the corner of Groundwell Road and Clarence Street, the exterior gives little away. But when you enter, amid elaborate chandeliers, statues and a marble floor, you could be forgiven for thinking you have stepped into a restaurant in Rome.

Pizza or pasta is the predictable choice for many Italian restaurants, but not for La Dolce Vita, which offers a real insight into Italian cooking.

The food is full of colour, style and flavour and a true reflection of Italian cuisine “just like Mama used to make”.

It was disappointing to see the restaurant so quiet for a Friday evening, with only a few tables taken when we arrived, but that is no reflection of the place itself; more the financial climate we are living in.

However, La Dolce Vita is not somewhere that will break the bank – four of us ate for less than £25 a head, and that’s including two bottles of wine.

As well as an extensive main menu they also offer an excellent second menu, which features many of the dishes from the main menu but at a fraction of the price, with two courses for £9.95.

Three of our party went for the second menu, including me.

I started with spiced Italian sausage in a tomato sauce, while the other two went for a traditional tricolore salad, and the fried mozzerella with roasted vegetables.

For main course I had ‘guitar string’ pasta with a medley of seafood in a tomato sauce. It was flavoursome and, although I am usually a big eater, even I had to leave some on the plate.

The other two choosing from the second menu went for lasagne and a mushroom risotto, which were well received by both.

The fourth in our party went for the full menu, choosing the fried mozzerella and roasted vegetables to start (£6.95) and chicken in mushroom sauce for main (£10.95), which came with a generous side bowl of vegetables.

The highlight of our evening was the service from our waiter, who was attentive from the moment we walked through the door to the moment we left.

If it is an authentic taste of Italy you are looking for next time you go out to eat, there’s no need to board a plane to Rome when this is on your doorstep.