Food review: La Corallina, Shrewsbury

A reader called. We'll call her Mrs Smith. She was pleased we'd been honest about a local restaurant in a recent review.

Honest was another word for damning – in the case of the restaurant in question, they amount to one and the same.

"You could have been much more critical," she told us.

"We know."

"You didn't have to be that kind. Honestly, the standards there. . ."

Critical reviews are usually met by two reactions. The silent majority nod, sagely, and recall duff meals they've had at the establishment in question. Unlike Mrs Smith, however, they seldom get in touch. Why would they? There's no point dwelling on undercooked veg or overcooked fish when you can be searching out the next decent restaurant.

And then there's the tiniest minority who do get in touch and vociferously insist we must have eaten on a day that the chef was accidentally driving his car into a ditch in Bogota while the stand-in was phoning in sick with an unexpected dose of viral pneumonia.

And what the hell do we expect when we choose to eat out without phoning them up and announcing our arrival first? Couldn't we at least drop the mystery shopper routine and call ahead?

Mrs Smith suggested we be more critical in forthcoming reviews and so that readers are better placed when they decide whether or not to spend their hard-earned cash on steak and double-cooked chips. "Don't say it's nice if it's not," was her parting shot.

Which causes a conundrum. For those hoping to read an overtly critical review in this week's pages are in for a disappointment. We're sorry, Mrs Smith and others, but we've uncovered a real gem in the heart of Shrewsbury. And it's difficult to be too critical about it because it's one of the most impressive new openings of the year.

La Corallina isn't perfect: it's anything but. But it's one of the best Italian restaurants in Shropshire and does a pizza that can only be rivalled by a restaurant in Ludlow. These two are head and shoulders above the rest: the humble OO flour base, passata sauce and cheese topping are in safer hands there than anywhere.

The restaurant has opened at the former site of Eat Up, one of the best Shropshire easy-diners of the present decade, which closed because it's owners became a victim of their own success and started drowning in a sea of work.

The premises, at Shearmans Hall, in Milk Street, are to die for. Located on the first floor with impressive views through vast windows across Shrewsbury's historic and architecturally-impressive townscape, it is light and capacious.

It's been given a make-over since the fondly remembered Eat Up crowd moved on. Parts of it work but others do not. La Corallina translates as The Coral and the restaurant has a nautical theme. The walls are vividly painted – perhaps too vividly – and are adorned with remembrances of the sea.

But while the interior has lost the subtlety and sophistication of Eat Up in favour of a decor that is a little too loud and garish, other aspects are thrilling.

Hand-painted tiles cover every table and are entirely impressive. They hint at exclusivity and uniqueness, at a business that has gone the extra mile to create something that's impressively new and original.

One of the great skills of Eat Up was that it offered round-the-clock dining to those with different needs. Early morning eggs-Benedict-mums were just as welcome as coffee-and-cake chums who met for elevenses. Lunchtime warriors were catered to with the same efficacy as discerning diners in search of Middle Farm pork with pan-fried gnocchi.

La Corallina has embarked on service in a similar way by offering round-the-clock eating and drinking.

There's decent coffee and cake for those using the joint as a meeting place, an extensive range of traditional Italian dining for customers in search of greater sustenance and a thoroughly impressive and user-friendly take-away service which involves placing orders with the click of a mouse.

Service is pretty good, too.

When I called in for an unexpected Saturday lunch, my table was served by a polite and attentive Italian waitress who was skilled in her work. Courteous and efficient, she wasted no time in collecting orders, delivering food, making enquiries as to whether dishes were up to scratch and processing bills. Her work was good throughout.

Italy has a vast larder and great many regional dishes and La Corallina focuses on food from Torre del Greco, an ancient and historical city located in the heart of Campania, near Naples. Little wonder the pizza is so good.

Torre del Greco's position beside the Gulf of Naples and Tyrrhenian Sea means fresh fish and precious corals are abundant: hence the name and hence the volume of fish on the menu. Dishes are rooted in such traditions, with flavours redolent of south Italy heavily featured.

I stared with arancini, a staple from southern Italy comprising stuffed balls of risotto filled with cheese and ragu, coated with breadcrumbs and deep fried. They were pretty good, if not a little underseasoned and ever-so-slightly overcooked.

Served with undressed rocket leaves and a tangy mayonnaise, the texture was good – and would have been better had the rice been a little more al dente. Melted cheese gave them creamy richness and they made for a pleasant beginning.

My main was a Calabrese pizza, topped with meatballs, mozzarella, spicy pepperoni and sausage. After all, when in Rome do as the Romans do. And when in Naples, eat pizza.

The quality of the ingredients was good, the base was fabulous – crisp, light and deliciously un-doughy. Among the many pizzeria that operate in Shropshire, there are two that do an authentically-good Italian-style pizza. This is one of them and the pizzas are delicious.

I ate mine with a side of zucchini fritte, deep fried courgette chips, which were pretty good. Zucchini fritte come in all shapes and sizes. Some cooks favour stick-thin fries, others, like Theo Randall, cut courgettes into chunks and serve them in a light, OO-flour batter.

The version at La Corallina was hearty and robust with elongated courgette fingers being served in brilliantly crisp, golden batter.

A little filling and indulgent? Yes. But thoroughly delicious and worth every last calorie.

Two courses and a side of starchy plates left me too replete to stick around for dessert and I left feeling impressed.

Maybe the interior is a little too vivid and the food might need a little tweak here and there, but La Corallina has got off to a first class start, offering tasty, good value Italian classics in a pleasant and convivial dining room where the service shines.

By Andy Richardson