ASK Italian, Lichfield

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For a relatively small city centre, historic Lichfield in Staffordshire is blessed with a number of very fine restaurants serving most, if not all tastes.

A visit to the cathedral city will leave you spoilt for culinary choice, with Thai, Italian and Indian restaurants mingling with those serving traditional British fayre.



But, being half Italian myself, it seemed only right to try one of Lichfield's Italian restaurants.

And that led me to visiting ASK in Bird Street, Lichfield, which boasts a menu based around stone-baked pizzas and antipasto on wooden boards.

Although part of a chain, ASK Italian in Lichfield is a modern restaurant well placed among many of the city's other fine eating places, but also very close to both Beacon Park and Minster Pool alongside Lichfield Cathedral if you fancy a stroll.



I visited with my wife on a Monday lunchtime for the simple reason that we were both free of other commitments that day.

When we walked in, shortly before 1pm, we were not surprised to find the restaurant empty, but it soon filled up in double quick time.

We decided to share a starter as we wanted to leave plenty of room for our main courses.



So, a large plate of Calamari, or golden-fried baby squid was duly served up, served with garlic mayonnaise. This would normally cost £5.95 for one portion but was £10.75 to share, and there was more than enough for the two of us.

I then chose the Rigatoni Al Manzo Piccante from among the oven baked pasta main courses, partly attracted to the "new recipe" wording on the menu.

It certainly proved to be an excellent choice, with Rigatoni pasta served with beef meat balls, beef and pork ragu, fresh chillies, roasted red peppers, and caramelised onions - all topped with mozzarella and Grana Padano cheeses, and all costing just £10.95.



The chillies and peppers, although not overpowering, certainly gave the dish a spicy edge to it which you wouldn't normally expect in an Italian restaurant.

Maybe that is why, in common with other oven baked pasta dishes, it was served with a side salad, although this was a bit disappointing as it consisted just of sliced red pepper and green leaves.

My wife also went for a "new recipe" dish, which was the Fettuccine Bolognese at £9.45. This was made up of flat ribbon fettuccine served with a beef and pork ragu sauce - said to be the way they eat in Rome, although they do offer spaghetti as an alternative if people prefer.

A glass of beer and a soft drink finished the meal off nicely, aided by friendly waitress service throughout

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