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Looking for the Best Restaurant
Maremma has many...

But this is my very favourite

Ristorante Il Leccio: Tuscany Restaurant Maremma

Looking for the best Maremma restaurant? Maremma has many great places to eat, from restaurants, trattorias, osterias, pizzerias, spaghetterias, to merenderias. But this restaurant is my very favourite and also that of my friends and family.

But we are not alone, for everytime I eat there the restaurant is always full and the owner has to turn customers away. Be warned! Book in advance if you can, even at lunchtime for the same evening if you happen you find yourself in the area.

The restaurant is in a tiny hamlet called Cura Nuova, just south of Massa Marittima on the road to Follonica. It is often unmarked on many of the the maps of Tuscany and you can drive through Cura Nuova before you realise you had even entered the place. So again, be aware!

So then, the best of Maremma Restaurants...

Ristorante "Il Leccio"

Cura Nuova, Massa Marittima

The Restaurant Il Leccio serves Maremman specialities, "specialita Maremmane" and is a meat restaurant. (If you are looking to dine on fish, there are some good restaurants in Follonica to try.)

The lady proprietor and all her staff provide an excellent service: very friendly and welcoming, efficient but never intrusive, and always accommodating.

The atmosphere and ambience is relaxing, with the restaurant "decorato con buongusto" - tastefully decorated - in a living/dining-room style. With linen tablecloths, napkins, and lovely large wine glasses etc, it is a proper italian restaurant. But, unlike some I have dined at, the prices at "Il Leccio" are very reasonable.

Both the breadth of the menu (see below) and wine list are extensive.

The cooking is wonderful and consistently so: there is not one of their dishes I would not recommend. All of their pasta is homemade, excellent and cooked perfectly.

Their meats are barbecued on a real wood-burning fire.

And if you have a sweet tooth like me and have space, all the puddings are also homemade - try the flaming Creme Catalan, it is bliss!

(And for those whose experience of dining out in Italy is sometimes marred by the condition of the cloakroom facilities - especially if you have young ones with you - those at Il Leccio are spotlessly clean.)

Have a browse of the Ristorante "Il Leccio" menu below, it is full of Maremman speciality dishes.

Ristorante "Il Leccio"

The Menu

Antipasti - Appetizers

Crostini misti con Sottoli
Toasted bread with mixed vegetables in oil

Bruschetta calda all'Olio d'Oliva e Aglio
Garlic Bread* with olive oil

Bruschetta al Pomodoro fresco e Basilico
Garlic bread with tomatoes and basil

Crostini di Lardo alla brace
Toasted bread with barbecued lard**

Finocchiona e Carciofini
Salami flavoured with wild fennel seeds, and artichokes

Antipasto misto del Leccio
A mixed house appetizer of samples of cut Tuscan cold meats, toated bread with mixed toppings and various cheeses

Affettato tipico
Sliced meats: wild boar, deer and roe

Carpaccio di Bresaola
Beef Carpaccio: thinly sliced dried salt beef with rocket and parmesan cheese

Acciughe sotto Pesto
Anchovies in pesto sauce

Prosciutto e Melone
Parma ham with melon

Caprese
Mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and basil

Primi Piatti - First Courses

Tortelli di Ricotta e Bietole al sugo di Carne
Ravioli with ricotta and chard in bolognese sauce***

Tortelli al Burro e Salvia
Ravioli with butter and sage

Pappardelle al sugo di Cinghiale
Pappardelle pasta with wild boar sauce

Tagliatelle ai Funghi Porcini
Tagliatelle pasta with Porcini mushroom sauce

Straccetti di Pasta al Germe di Grano con sugo di Lepre
Straccetti wheat germ pasta with hare sauce

Zuppa contadina di verdure fresche Pane e Pecorino Toscano
Rustic vegetable soup with bread and strong Tuscan cheese

Spaghetti al Pomodoro e Basilico
Spaghetti pasta with tomatoes and basil

Penne all' Arrabbiata
Penne pasta with a hot spicy sauce (chillies)

Secondi Piatti - Second Courses

Il Filetto del "Leccio"
Fillet of the house: fillet cooked with truffle cream, parmesan, rocket and porcini mushrooms

Bistecca Fiorentina cotta alla brace
Barbecued T-bone steak

Costata di Manzo a porzione cotta alla brace (400 gr)
Barbecued rack of ribs (440 grams per portion)

Filetto di Manzo alla brace
Barbecued beef fillet

Filetto ai Funghi Porcini
Fillet with Porcini mushrooms

Tagliata di Manzo con Grana e Rucola
Sliced beef with parmesan and rocket

Cinghiale alla Cacciatore
Wild boar stewed in tomatoe, wine and herb sauce

Grigliata mista alla brace
Mixed Grill/barbecue of guinea fowl, ribs and sausage

Rostinciana alla brace
Barbecued rack of ribs

Salsiccia alla brace
Barbecued sausage

Bistecca di Maiale alla brace
Barbecued pork chops

Petto di Pollo alla brace
Barbecued chicken breast

Faraona in teglia con Patate
Roast Guinea Fowl with potatoes

Vitella al forno
Roast Veal

Scaloppina ai Vitella al Limone o Vino bianco
Beef escalope with lemon or white wine

Contorni - Side Dishes

Insalata verde
Green salad

Insalata mista
Mixed salad

Insalata Radicchio e Rucola
Chicory and rocket salad

Insalata di Pomodori
Tomatoe salad

Patate fritte
French fries

Patate al Rosmarino
Roast potatoes with rosemary

Grigliata di verdure
Grilled vegetables

Fagioli lessi
Boiled beans

Bietole saltate in padella
Stir-fried Swiss Chard

Sfiziosi - Tasty things

Melanzane e Pecorino alla Griglia con Peperoncino
Grilled aubergines with strong cheese and chilli peppers

Tonno, Pomodoro e Cipolla
Tuna fish, tomataoes and onions

Mais, Pomodoro e Carote
Sweetcorn, tomatoes, and carrots

Cacio e Pere
Ewes cheese with pears

Pecorino secco, Miele e Vin Santo
Strong Pecorino cheese, honey and sweet wine

Formaggi - Cheeses

Pecorini Toscano Passoccio
Pecorino Passoccio cheese: strong and very dry

Pecorino Fresco
Fresh Pecorino cheese****

Pecorino Sardo
Sardo Pecorino cheese: strong and from Sardinia

Parmigiano Reggiano
Parmesan cheese

Dolci della Casa - Home-made desserts

There is a daily dessert list, which the waitresses reel off very fast! It can include:

Pannacotta with chocolate sauce or fruits of the forest
A cooked cream with sauce topping

Tiramisu
A sponge (or sponge biscuits - "savoiardi") soaked/dipped in expresso coffee and layered with a whipped mixture of egg yolks, mascarpone, and sugar, and topped with cocoa.

Torta della Nonna
"Grandmother's Cake" and also known as Torta di Pinoli: a Tuscan and Roman classic cake with pine nuts

Click on this authentic Italian desserts menu link to view the full regular Dolci menu.

MENU NOTES

*Garlic bread in this context isn't that which we have become accustomed to purchasing in supermarkets ready to go in the oven, but rather toasted bread rubbed with fresh garlic and drizzled with olive oil.

**"Lardo" isn't the packs of lard fat that you can buy for cooking with, but slices of a much loved in Italy, pig fat. You have to try it to be convinced!

***The transalation of "bolognese sauce" conceals the fact that "sugo di carne" tastes many many times better than any bolognese sauce you may re-heat from a jar back home. Do I love italian food? Yes!

****Fresh pecorino cheese is softer than the matured variety and has a milder flavour.

Alternatively, how about a Maremma Restaurant feast that you will talk about with friends for a long time to come?

Feel like savouring a number of home-cooked Maremman dishes all freshly prepared (I'm not talking sample sizes here!) at a price that won't break the bank? Then I can highly recommend their fixed price "Tasting Menu" - "Menu Degustazione" at Euros 30 per head.

This menu includes cover charge, (wonderful) local wine, bottled water, a great plate of antipasti, two traditional Maremman pasta courses, a second course of mixed barbecued meats with "contorni" (side dishes), a homemade desert, coffee and "digestivo" - grappa or limoncello liqueur etc.

A word of warning, do go hungry or you won't make it past the second pasta dish!

Ristorante "Il Leccio"

Menu Degustazione - Tasting Menu

Antipasto - Appetizers

Crostini
Toasted bread with mixed toppings

Affettati Misti
Mixed cold cut meats

Sottoli
Mixed vegetables in oil

Bruschette
Garlic bread with olive oil

Primo - First Course

Tortelli al Ragu
Ravioli with Tuscan bolgnese sauce

Pappardelle al Cinghiale
Pappardelle pasta with wild boar sauce

Second - Second Course

Griliata mista alla Brace
Mixed Grill/barbecue: Guinea Fowl, ribs and sausage

Contorno - Side Dishes

Patate arrosto
Roast potatoes

Insalata mista
Mixed salad

Dolci della Casa - Home-made Dessert

Caffe e Digestivo - Coffee and after dinner drink

Ristorante "Il Leccio" is open from Sunday to Friday for lunch and dinner, but closed on Saturday.

Buon appetito!

Ristorante Il Leccio: Tuscany Restaurant Maremma

Tel: +39 0566 918018
Mobile: +39 339 5641710

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