Seafood in Anzio

A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I were finally able to go on a real date together. We chose as our destination the seaport of Anzio, about 12 miles from our home. Anzio is historically significant as it is the harbor where US troops and their allies landed during WWII to fight off Germans and Italians. We came here before for Gelato with our kids, but we were eager to try a small seafood restaurant that was recommended to us: La Fraschetta del Mare.

The restaurant offers a fixed-price menu (16 euros/person, which is not bad for seafood), which varies from time to time depending on what fish they can buy in the morning from the fishermen returning with their catch. It is located right on the harbor so you know they don't have to go far to get fresh fish. The type of cooking is based on the concept of Pesce Povero (poor fish), which means that this is not the top of the line seafood, but it is mostly whatever get trapped in the fishermen's net. However, if cooked properly, this also can be very tasty and presented well.

The eating experience include three courses: appetizers, a main dish, and a second dish. Drinks are extra (but we were lucky that the cashier did not have exact change so he gave us a nice discount and we ended up paying 15 euros each including drinks). Everyone gets the same things and this should make it for quick service and low prices. The place is small and quite popular so you are pretty much sitting elbow to elbow with other customers. Our appetizers included a small piece of fried polenta with a topping of black olives and anchovies, a cod meatball, couscous with a tomato and fish sauce and a small fish salad with fresh fennel and oranges.

Next they served us some pasta with tomato sauce and shellfish (shrimp, mussels, and clams). It was pretty tasty and it helped fill us up. The last dish included three small deep fried fishes, bruschetta with cod and tomato sauce, and some fish with zucchini that I can't remember the name.

Overall, it was a pleasant surprise and we will probably come back. It is definitely not a five star restaurant, but the price was adequate and we had plenty to eat.