CLOSED: Restaurant review: Da Via, Wan Chai - good-value Italian fare
Good food served at reasonable prices at this neighbourhood eatery
Da Via is the kind of place you’d like to have in your neighbourhood: it’s casual and friendly, and serves up good food at fair prices. It’s a small place, with only about 30 seats, and has an open kitchen with a display of the imported salumi, the raw produce and baked breads. There’s a large table (with room for eight) but most of the seats are around the perimeter of the room, so diners sit side-by-side on high chairs with low backs. The menu is brief – just one page, but there’s also a daily specials menu.
The burrata with Sicilian tomatoes and fresh basil (HK$170) was delicious: the burrata was creamy and soft, and the tomatoes were sweet.
Thin slices of cooked ham and porchetta (HK$95) came on a wooden board with holey, light and chewy bread. The porchetta was garlicky, and the ham had a subtle, sweet flavour.
We enjoyed both pasta dishes we tasted. House-made fettucine with ragu Bolognese (HK$128) featured wide sheets of tender pasta and the sauce, although light in texture, was deeply flavoured.
