When a well-known restaurant changes its menu, it’s always a good time to invite a reviewer.
So we recently drove southward to Kiryat Ekron, where the long-established dairy restaurant Nina Bianca, which we have visited in the past, was featuring new items on its long-standing menu.
Over the entrance to the restaurant, with its plentiful parking, are the words “Good Mood Food” beside the name. For some reason, this proclamation makes visitors feel instantly welcome.
The restaurant, located near Rehovot, is spacious, with a variety of seating areas. The unusual décor, which includes half a woman’s face, has not changed, and the welcome is as warm as ever.
As we sat at a table next to a picture of a striking collage of black cutlery, our waitress pointed out the new items on the menu.
There are several categories on the menu – entrées, salads, fresh fish (which actually means dishes made with uncooked fish, such as tataki), pizzas, main courses, and pasta.
We chose two starters that sounded appealing: roasted Camembert on sour bread with red jam, almonds, and balsamic reduction (NIS 56); and white rice bruschetta with fish, celery salsa, pesto, and aioli (NIS 89).
When they arrived, my companion and I were impressed with the beautiful presentation – true works of art it seemed almost a shame to eat.
The Camembert with rocket salad had a superb vinaigrette dressing, and the overall effect on the taste buds was sweet and sour.
The fish dish on “bruschetta” actually had no bread but a white rice base. It was a rectangle of compressed sea bream (denis) – spicy and fried. It was very good and did its job of whetting the appetite for more.
We didn’t order any of the raw fish items, but one arrived anyway: tataki tuna, seared and half-cooked, served with celery salsa, and a lemon/soy dressing. It was delicious (NIS 88).
Nina Bianco's salmon is a true delicacy
For my main course, I chose the salmon, with cream of corn in a silan glaze, and Yarden mushrooms on a skewer as a side dish. The chef got the timing of the salmon just right, and the dish was a true delicacy (NIS 143).
My companion had two fillets of sea bass (lavrak), lightly fried, with a large skinned tomato, celery, and a side of pressed fried rice (NIS 149).
We each drank a glass of Luria Chardonnay, a pungent white wine that we love (NIS 61).
The dessert menu has many attractive options. We each chose our favorites: cheesecake for my companion, and lemon meringue pie for me (desserts NIS 59/NIS 60).
The cheesecake was interesting – no base to speak of, and about an inch and a half of crème fraîche on the cheese. The lemon meringue pie was deconstructed, with all the components – the lemon curd, crumb base, and meringue – laid out separately on the plate. Both desserts provided an impressive end to a great meal.
Nina Bianca Bilu
9 Bussy Saint Georges St.
Kiryat Ekron
Tel: (08) 948-0080
Hours: Sunday-Thursday, noon-11.30 p.m.;
Friday, 8.30 a.m.-2 p.m.;
Saturday, 7 p.m.-midnight
Kosher
The writer was a guest of the restaurant.