My first Manicaretto

In the mid 70s, I was a youngster living in Naples. In winter, every Sunday my family used to go for lunch to the restaurant of the Grande Albergo Miramare in Formia, on the coast between Naples and Roma. I loved that place. There was a huge park and the biggest swing I had ever seen. The food was always good and my favorite was the Manicaretto, tortellini wrapped in a pasta sheet with a creamy tomato sauce.

After a break of seven or eight years, we went back there. Everything seemed different. My swing had been replaced by a swimming pool. I tried the Manicaretto again but something was different….what happened? The food still tasted great and I enjoyed swimming in the pool, but I guess my childhood memory had created the illusion of a place that seemed more fantastic than it really was. Kind of like a lot of memories from one's childhood. We went back there several times and continued to have a great time and great food until my brother moved away to go to college...

In the past, the location of tidbit bistro has been home to several different restaurants: Rain City Grill, Cassis, and XO, maybe others. Many people come visit us just to compare tidbit with those restaurants that they have loved in the past. Generally, the memories of a loved place are too sweet to make us win the comparison. If you have loved Rain City Grill or Cassis’ unbelievable frites, chances are you are not going to love tidbit in the same way. We understand that: I learned my lesson when I was in my teen years. Where Cassis was, there is tidbit now: a neighborhood restaurant that offers good food, good drinks and a good time. So, forget about what was here, and come to tidbit to have a good time ... because the Rain City Grill will never come back!