Not many of you know that I’m not that into eggs. So it may come as a surprise that when I went to Chef Susy Massetti’s latest outpost N’ovo at Al Liwan in Hamala, I did not order eggs. :)

N’ovo is a play on words in Italian, meaning “new” and “egg”. So in that context it seems almost sacrilege that I didn’t try something new and order the eggs! Maybe next time, because trust me, there will be a next time. And a third, and a fourth, and a fifth…you get the point.

So what did you have you may ask? Well, let me tell you…as far as pancakes go, I may have actually had one of the best. It not only was fluffy and sweet, but elegant too. Almost everyone that dined at N’ovo ordered the Burnt Orange Ricotta pancake. And now I understand why. It’s almost too good to share, but share you must as it is quite a large dish. The brunt orange sauce is definitely the star of the dish, as I think you’d agree we’ve only had pancakes with maple syrup, but this sweet sauce will definitely change your mind. Its not acidic but balanced in the sweetest way possible. With just a hint of salt to bring it all together. Oh and butter, glorious rich butter. This American classic just got an Italian makeover, and I’m here for it. Bellisima!

I honest to goodness delayed this review just because I forgot the name of this salad we ordered. It is what I like to call “a sleeper on the menu”, meaning it doesn’t jump out at you immediately as a star dish, but it delivers way above its description. It’s the butternut squash one, with cheese, and salad, and some balsamic onions and farro? This is not turning out very good but believe me when I say it was the salad of the summer. Well, late summer. You see, when we first entered I was already in a fall mood, and mind you this was late August. So. everything we ordered was very orange and very, autumnal. This totally passed the vibe check, and when I took it home because I couldn’t finish it there, it got even better with time. The balsamic onions had more of a chance to get to know the squash and they turned out o be the best of friends. I for one can not wait to go back and order it again, and actually find out its name.

Another rather snobby thing I used to do is only order cappuccinos in Italy. Because no one seems to get them right. However, it would be a crying shame if they didn’t get it right here. So I’m happy to report that not only is the cappuccino fantastic, its now on my top 5 in Bahrain. But that’s a list for another time.