I have one of those hit and miss relationships with Gusto Newcastle, I have to admit. It’s been about 50:50 for visits that I have actually been able to get in and get a seat, often being turned away for being full despite empty abundant tables.
Thankfully, towards the end of April I hit lucky! The lovely Vicky from Describe the Sky and I had a lady date and went for dinner.
After having a drink outside on a mild spring evening, we moved upstairs to our table. The dimly light restaurant feels magical with the abundance of twinkly fairy lights and mirrors to reflect the lights. We quickly settled on our choices and placed our order.
Our starter came out quite quickly which was just as good as we were both a bit hungry, no photos made the cut – dark lighting and hungry horace’s saw to that.
Vicky had the Dough Petals with garlic butter (£3.50) which looked delicious and smelled divine. She has ordered them before when we have been and I kicked myself once again for not ordering the same thing! More substantial than your average garlic doughball, the petal is rolled with a garlicky filling and served with garlic butter.
I chose the Tomato and Basil Bruschetta (£3.95). Bit of a small portion for the price compared to other restaurants but fresh, light and the perfect start to the meal. Other than the basil leaf on the dish for presentation I couldn’t detect any discernible hint of basil in the rest of the tomato mix, not really a big deal.
After an extremely lengthy wait for the mains, it provided more chatting time which is no bad thing. We were highly amused by the bunch of drunk older ladies on the table next to us! Much hilarity!
Vicky chose the Rigatoni Primavera (£9.75). A meat free dish, the whole plate just screamed spring and summer to me. Fresh veg tossed in a creme fraiche sauce that looked very delicious! The larger pasta pieces made up for the lack of substance you’d get from meat.
I chose the Grana Padano Risotto with Pancetta (£10.75). Creamy and just as gooey as you’d expect a risotto to be. The mix of sautéed mushrooms on top were perfectly cooked and complimented the richness of the dish well alongside the salty cubed pancetta.
With one non alcoholic Cherry Cooler (£4) cocktail under my belt, we called it an evening at Gusto Newcastle. Full tummy’s and happy hearts.
