Belgrade - Pietro Dell 'Oro

When a footballer opens a restaurant and names it after another footballer one would naturally expect the place to have a strong football theme, but this is not the case with Pietro Dell 'Oro. Indeed the two large tv screens showing non-stop 'Fashion TV' and the general tasteful ambience suggest that the owner, who currently earns his living in Milan, is more likely to come from the rag trade side of the city than Internazionale, the football club where he is one of the club's stars.

Dejan Stankovic, Red Star Belgrade legend and captain of the Serbian national team, has done an impressive job in turning part of an office block into a cool restaurant. 2 metre high cypress trees in clay pots create a wall around the restaurant terrace which doesn't look particularly appealing from the street but works well once you are seated in the sanctuary of the outside table area. A small fountain is the centre piece of the terrace - it's just a pity that only one of the four spouts has flowing water.

The menu is Italian and the food is excellent, a Belgrade revelation after the disappointing lunch at Stara Koliba. It's also not expensive. I paid RSD1450 (€15) for some of the best fillet steak I've ever eaten. It was delivered in thin slices, together with a white hot black stone on which I cooked it at the table. Try their Foccacia. At around RSD270 (€3) it is freshly prepared and excellent.

The waiter service was first class, attentive without being intrusive.

Stankovic has also catered for the extreme Belgarde weather (up to 40c in the summer to -20c in winter) by building a no-expense-spared inside restaurant.

We arrived at Pietro Dell 'Oro not expecting much and left very pleasantly surprised after a very enjoyable evening.


Pietro Dell 'Oro
Trnska 2
Belgrade

+381 (0) 11 344 77 00

http://www.pietrodelloro.com/