Delicious Italian food, soulful live guitar and majestic views of Santa Cruz Basilica all come together at Upstairs, a restaurant serving authentic Italian food in the bustling lanes of Fort Kochi.
Started by Fabio Battistetti in 2008, Upstairs serves dishes from Milan and Northern Italy so brace-up to find terms such as ‘Guazzetto’, ‘Schiaciatta’, ‘Involtini’, ‘Affogato’ etc. etc. in the menu – so do not hesitate to ask what they mean while ordering and they happily oblige 🙂
Here is a brief guide to the Italian meal structure in order to come-to terms with the menu 😛
- Aperitif – drinks typically alcoholic such as vermouth, champagne, gin etc served before a meal
- Antipasto (Plural: Antipasti) – The Appetizer or before the meal
- Insalate – Salads/Greens are referred as ‘Insalate’ (Typically they are a sub-set of the Antipasti menu)
- Primo – known as the ‘first course’ includes food such as pastas, pizzas, risotto, gnocchi (thick soft dough dumplings)
- Secondi – the ‘second course’ aka ‘main course’ aka ‘meat course’ of the meal usually fish or meat (mutton, beef, chicken)
- Dolce – translates to ‘sweet’ or ‘Dessert course’ of the meal
- Digestif – consumed at the end of the meal to aid digestion such as smooth whiskies like bourbon, port, sherry etc and liqueur
We were full so couldn’t cover the entire range of dishes and went with the usual suspects (pizzas & pastas).
Onion, Bell Pepper and Mushroom Pizza:
Its very hard to go wrong with a 3-topping thin-crust pizza which is laced with cheese and tomato-based sauce – simply delicious!!
Tomato and Fresh Basil Spaghetti:
Simple flavors come together to create magic – one of the most delicious veg pastas I have tasted!!
Useful Information:
- Timings: 11 am to 10:30 pm (All days of the week)
- No alcohol
- Cash only, cards seldom work in most cafes at Fort Kochi
- Live Music in the evenings only
- Ask for the Day’s Special (its usually not on the menu)
- Pricey place , but absolutely worth the taste
- Location (Google maps link) – Upstairs Fort Kochi
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