La Luna has a new man on the moon!  The gastronaut at the helm in the kitchen of this new moon launch is the accomplished chef, Marco Pomo who hails from Varese in the Italian region of Lombardy.  His personal spin on the cuisine of this region is tempered with his love of traditional Italian cuisine and therefore the dishes on his special menus reflect Italian gastronomy from top to toe of the Italian boot.

La Luna has a unique layout and is truly one of a kind offering a trio of dining options and settings.   Enter La Luna through the dramatic wooden doors and the first dining opportunity presents itself: an elegant air-conditioned dining room adorned with  stunning lithographs of the moon.    The impact of thick snowy white tablecloths, the sparkle of glass, gleam of cutlery and snowy white napery immediately pleases the eye.  At the rear of the restaurant is a door leading to the open cocktail bar area and further to the right an azure pool set in tropical gardens.  It is here that the eucalyptus fueled pizza oven is sited and where you can dine al fresco under the stars.  

Mick and I visited the new La Luna the other evening and loved it; we sat pool-side under the palm trees and enjoyed the evening air and peaceful ambiance. Whilst sipping an enlivening Campari aperitif  we perused the menus.  The a la carte is admirably concise displaying the restaurant’s signature dishes, traditional favourites and the essence of the Italian cucina.   Chef’s Marco’s new  “Specials”   offer daily changing recipes bringing into play the seasonal changes and market trends. 

By now we had made our decisions and our dinner set off charmingly with an amuse bouche of creamy pumpkin soup.  From the daily specials we had chosen a starter of tartar of Maguro tuna, Norwegian salmon and avocado pear (B.340).  This proved to be a delightful first course.  A base of chopped lemony avocado was layered with diced Japanese tuna and Norwegian salmon dressed with virgin olive oil, fennel fronds and finally sprinkled with briny black fish roe.  This fine quality Japanese tuna is also prepared “carpaccio” in a citrus emulsion dressing with celery and black olives.  From the daily degustation other antipasti included a selection of Italian cold cuts, cheese and grilled vegetables, shrimps in home made cocktail sauce or from the a la carte menu Australian black mussels in spicy tomato sauce or deep fried squid, shrimps and zucchini served with a tartare dipping sauce (B.260).

Two of my favourite ingredients are pasta and foie gras;  so when I saw Chef Marco had combined the two into home made “half moon” shaped ravioli stuffed with foie gras in gravy and mushroom sauce it really sounded like angel food.  My expectations were not disappointed, the ravioli was al dente, the foie gras  delicious and the accompanying mushroom sauce intense and interesting.  Across the table Mick was served grigliata di carni miste (a grilled selection of lamb, pork sausage, chicken and Australian beef with vegetables).  A class act for carnivores and Mick was more than happy to give it a high score for content and expertise of cooking.   Other La Luna signature meaty items include grilled Australian rib eye (500 gr for 2 persons), sliced and served with fresh rocket salad, sauteed mushrooms and parmesan shavings,  or the famous Vitello tonnato (meat with home made tuna sauce B.300).

With our main courses we enjoyed a fine Valpolicella 2007; its fruity softness perfectly complemented the character of the cuisine. House wine by the glass is B.145 and 50 cl. carafe B.490.   The patriotic wine list includes a signature pick of the best Italian labels to harmonise with the Mediterranean ingredients.   Gastro pizzas feature, among the many,   the “La Luna special” which is topped with fresh mozzarella, sausages, mushrooms, roasted potatoes and the scent of truffle.  

Having read such a lot recently about the beneficial antioxidant properties of chocolate we felt compeled to order the chocolate soufflé, for health reasons you understand!  It was sublime, a light soufflé crown enveloped molten gooey chocolate and we loved every luscious spoonful.  Other desserts include the famous tiramisu, or Ricotta cheese cake with blueberry sauce or pannacotta, all of which would surely bring a sweet conclusion to your dinner.

La Luna is situated on Third Road (near the driving range) towards North Pattaya Road.  Open daily from 3.00 pm till midnight.  Tel:  (038) 371 322.