Stephanie Bertossi says she’s “still crazy after all these years.” That’s part of the explanation behind the decision to close The Bertossi Group’s 19-year-old Spring Garden Road eatery il Mercato Trattoria and open a brand new restaurant in the space just over a month later. “With all of the changes on Spring Garden,” she says, […]
il Mercato
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Pasta
Gold Winner il Mercato Trattoria Silver Winner Vinnie’s Pasta Bar Bronze Winner The Vines We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, they’re doing something right. Manager Sean Neil says at il Mercato they’ve got their pasta-making down to a science—and clearly you guys agree. “It’s about how they boil the pasta,” he explains, […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Bedford Restaurant
Gold Winner The Chickenburger Silver Winner Il Mercato Trattoria Bronze Winner The Cellar Bar & Grill With some staff working there for 30 or 40 years, it’s not surprising that the Chickenburger feels like home for so many of its customers. The Bedford staple has been doling out its notorious titular burgers for 72 years […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Desserts
We could go on and on, praising Il Mercato for its delicious Italian desserts, but we think the right impression could be made just by listing a few of them. So, here goes: You can try Zuccotto (alternating layers of genoise, straticiatelle, chocolate mousse, covered in chocolate ganache), Pistachio Almond Cake (a rich, moist cake […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Pasta
A frequent winner in this category, Il Mercato remains the destination for Haligonians who love their pasta dishes. Options include the rigatoni—sauteeed with pancetta, onions and tomato, black olive pesto, topped with goat cheese—or the linguine— sauteed with green beans, roasted pinenuts, basil pesto, cream and parmigiano—or the handmade ravioli—filled with roasted chicken, wild mushrooms […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Italian Restaurant
In honour of this year’s 10th edition of the Best of Food survey, we are calling special attention to some restaurants that won back in 2002, and also won in 2011 (not to mention winning plenty of prizes in between). Il Mercato is one such restaurant, which has become legendary over the last decade for […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Desserts
Again Il Mercato gets a hat trick of awards for the third year running. That’s got to be some kind of record. We said it last year and we’ll say it again: it speaks to a consistency of quality in the linguini, the tomato, the fromaggi, the atmosphere, the excellent service and the high quality […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Pasta
Again Il Mercato gets a hat trick of awards for the third year running. That’s got to be some kind of record. We said it last year and we’ll say it again: it speaks to a consistency of quality in the linguini, the tomato, the fromaggi, the atmosphere, the excellent service and the high quality […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Italian Restaurant
Again Il Mercato gets a hat trick of awards for the third year running. That’s got to be some kind of record. We said it last year and we’ll say it again: it speaks to a consistency of quality in the linguini, the tomato, the fromaggi, the atmosphere, the excellent service and the high quality […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
News of food
Popular Italian resto Il Mercato (5650 Spring Garden Road, 422-2866) is offering a Prix Fixe menu, Mondays through Thursdays, a three course meal for $35. Also available are flights of wine, chosen to complement the meal, in 3oz and 5oz sizes. It’s worth keeping in mind that local restaurant magnates The Bertozzi Group, which own […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Where to find the best ice cream
As days get colder and shorter, what better way to savour the last weeks of summer than by slamming copious amounts of ice cream down your throat? But even the simplest pleasures can lead to confusion in today’s consumer culture—we have a slew of frozen treats to choose from and all are not created equal. […]
Posted inBest of Halifax
Best Desserts
Winning in three separate categories means they’re doing something right. Scratch that, they’re doing a lot of things right and doing it all the time. That they scooped the same three from last year, shows a welcome consistency. As we have remarked upon, there is magic in that linguini, the tomato and the fromaggi, in […]