2:25pm Thursday 31st January 2008
By Alex Lewis
ZIZI'S in French Row is bidding to enter the top tier of St Albans restaurants with its ambitious new menu.
As I discovered on my visit, with a skilled kitchen and a determination to source the very best ingredients, it now offers a top class dining experience.
To get our taste buds into gear, we were offered a delicate liquid blend of baby tomatoes and celery, the ideal accompaniment to the delicious olives and Italian bread selection.
As a more formal starter I enjoyed ham and salami, but my companion Thami's warm salad of soft chicken livers and spinach , which sent her into raptures, made me regret my choice.
At first sight, our main courses seemed to draw more inspiration from Berni Inns than Bologna.
But after a few mouthfulls, I began to appreciate how the chilli marinade on my roast baby chicken, although subtle, lifted the dish out of the ordinary.
This pollo piccante was piquant in the true sense, in contrast to those overbearing sauces which often block out the taste of the main ingredient.
And the chicken itself was wonderfully succulent and tender, the perfect justification of Zizi's policy of withdrawing dishes from the menu unless top quality goods are available.
Thami described her rib-eye steak, given zest with lemon juice, as not quite her best ever, but the best she has had in Britain.
Defying our full stomachs, we allowed ourselves to be persuaded to try the desserts - fortunately, as they were definitely the highlight.
My chocolate mouse on a thick hazelnut base was an explosion of flavour, but I realised I had chosen badly again when I sampled the warm Torta Zizi, a beautifully soft concoction of plums, figs and almonds.
We had eschewed the more conventional Italian fare so I can't report on the pasta, pizza and risotto, but just re-reading the menu makes me inpatient for my next visit.
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