Don Alfonso 1890

[Scott]

Have a booking in September for Don Alfonso in Sant Agar, and from what I have read it seems to polarise opinions on here.

My question: ? who has been recently and was it really any good?

[nicola]

I was there this time last year. It was my second visit and both were very enjoyable. The decor is a bit offputting - pink satiny tablecloths with frills if I remember correctly - but the food was excellent. Can't remember most of what I ate but I do remember a great pasta dish with courgettes fresh from their vegetable garden (or so we were told!).

[Steve Martin]

We thought he was a brilliant chef. The service was too fast a pace, so don't be rushed.

Review here. The Don

[docsconz]

I concur with Nicola about the decor. It wasn't my favorite - a bit too starchy and frilly, but the food was outstanding. I ate there with my son in November. We had a wonderful seafood stew amongst othre fine dishes. The town is Sant Agata di Due Golfi and it is located almost midway between Sorrento and Positano. They grow most of their produce themselves. It is worth the visit in my estimation.

[Scott]

very interesting thank you.

It will be one of the 'big' dining experiences of my honeymoon, so I wanted some validation.

[calgarymarmitons]

Scott,

Don't forget to ask for a visit to their wine cellar, or better defined as their wine cave(s). It is quite an experience, particularly when you ask where they also ripen their cheeses.

Enjoy. I know my wife and I did.

John

[Jim Dixon]

I have to say up front that I have a business relationship with the Iaccarino family, owners and operators of Ristorante Don Alfonso 1890. I import the olive oil they make for the restaurant into the US. But I also consider them friends, and I've seen how hard they work. That colors my feelings about the restaurant a bit.

The dining room decor is a little frilly, but the food deserves all your attention. Chef Alfonso Iaccarino (I think he's the 3rd or 4th Alfonso in the family) is dedicated to the flavors of southern Italy and sources as much as he can locally. He grows much of the produce at the family farm, le Peracciole, perched on the side of a hill overlooking Capri. The olives for the oil and lemons for the limoncello are also grown there.

I'd recommend staying in one of the apartments above the restaurant. They're very nice and about the same price as a hotel in Positano. The Sorrentine Peninsula has great hiking trails, and you'll still be able to swim in the ocean in September.

You can read more about Don Alfonso in these articles by Faith Willinger:

This piece about eating tomatoes with RW 'Gianni' Apple first appeared in the NYT. This mini-review comes from her column on Epicurious.

If you want more info about the apartments, visit DA web site.

Jim

[susanalyce]

My husband and I were disappointed by the food and the very mediocre decor. They have a store where they sell things they make which was a bit commercial. We wouldn't go back.

[Craig Camp]

.  They have a store where they sell things they make which was a bit commercial.

Do the sell Don Alfonso t-shirts?

[docsconz]

My husband and I were disappointed by the food and the very mediocre decor.  They have a store where they sell things they make which was a bit commercial.  We wouldn't go back.

The store is in a separate building and is totally unobtrusive. The products are actually quite good. We brought back some tomato sauce and pasta, both of which were excellent.

[Nikolaus]

I live in Italy and I take very much to Don Alfonso. The decor is indeed a little bit frilly and pretentious. But the service and the attention You get is warm and nice. The food is to be understood, but of absolute quality. Some dishes may appear too delicate or too elaborate, and therefore give the impression they are lacking soul. But, on one side, it is to be considered there is much (sometimes too much) study and elaboration behind. On the other side, the best thing to do to get satisfaction is: stick to the simplest dishes on the list, i.e. their fish and seafood stew, or the simple and local pastas. You will get a lot out ot this! Better avoid the tasting menu. Don Alfonso is a place stemming out of local tradition and expereince, and the tasting menu dishes are somehow more internationally flavoured, what is disturbing the typical and local ingredients used. Anyhow, I am quite sure that, as hoeneymoon highlight, You made the right choice.

More hints in the area: Taverna del Capitano and Quattro Passi (on the summer terrace, the interior is quite modern and unappealing), both in Massa Lubrense - Marina del Cantone; La Caravella in Amalfi. And, more towards Naples: Torre del Saracino in Vico Equense: a young, talented, passionated and emerging chef, in a developing place at its (excellent) beginning.

[dpokorny@audit.co.at]

I have been there last week, we had menue degustazione and some other extremly good stuff. I can recommend it. People are lovely and the winecellar is phanomenal.