ROSSO di Acqua e Sole
For a great time
If you wish to enjoy delicious seafood creations, you don’t have to travel to the coastal areas. It is enough to stop by ROSSO di Acqua e Sole in Linz – an absolute necessity for all fish and seafood lovers.
In 2020, a well-known gourmet guide ennobled the ROSSO restaurant in Linz with the title of “probably the best Italian in town”. An award that many other restaurateurs would have been satisfied with, but not our busy ROSSO host Ingmar Goetzloff, who is always reinventing himself and our restaurant.
Starting out as an Italian osteria, ROSSO has evolved over time into a high-quality restaurant with a focus on fish and seafood. Two things were decisive for this: first, the constant gastronomic curiosity of the owner, who travels near the sea as often as possible to be inspired by new food creations, especially in family-run restaurants. And secondly, the joy with which chef Georg Materic experiments. Whenever Ingmar Goetzloff comes up with a new idea, he tries to implement it in such a way as to create his own ROSSO recipe: with a clear reference to the original dish, but refined in such a way that it will make even the most discerning palate rejoice.
Loligo Alba
This is how, for example, the current signature dish of ROSSO was created, with the resonant name “Loligo Alba”, meaning squid in a white bath. An appetizer originating in Veneto, a ready-to-cook squid is cut into spaghetti-like strips and served in a specially developed Franciacorta sauce. The preparation of the squid and the salsa are the results of many experiments in the ROSSO kitchen and secrets that, of course, are not revealed.
Dry age matured fish
The Dry-Age method for fish, which was devised at ROSSO during the lockdowns, is also completely new. The best dry-age methods were worked out in numerous experiments. Now, in Linz, for example, yellowfin mackerel or skrei are served in the dry-age procedure. The result: a much finer taste experience.
WHAT A LA CARTE 2020 SAYS
The restaurant review
The sea and Italy are far away, but this restaurant will transport guests to exactly that place. Here, one revels in fish and seafood of a quality unheard of in landlocked Austria: gilthead sea bream, spider crab, gamberi rossi, wild-caught shrimp, large turbot and branzinos for two or more people each, prepared in the oven with taggiasca olives (the former) or with fennel and onions (the latter). The tagliatas, controfilettos and bisteccas alla Fiorentina come from the legendary Dario Cecchini of Panzano. They are sautéed briefly, then served with baby spinach, rosemary potatoes and red peppers. Before that, enjoy handmade cappelletti with Parma ham, lightly grilled octopus with a cream of fava beans or Parmesan soufflé. Conclusion: probably the best Italian in the steel city.
Click here for the full A la Carte 2020 review.
WHAT THE FALSTAFF SAYS
The restaurant review
Osteria, caffè, bar and delicatessen – at Rosso you can experience Italian culinary art and southern lightness authentically, even without boarding a plane. The wide selection ranges from organic baker’s wood-fired bread to fine beef tartare and veal tenderloin, prosciutto, seasonal cheeses and truffles, and homemade pasta, risotto and ravioli. Wild-caught scampi, scallop or steak also mingle among the attractive menu offerings. Not to forget the tempting Italian desserts á la pannacotta, tiramisu and sorbetto. Buon appetito!
For enthusiasts of authentic and original fish and seafood creations, the ROSSO is therefore definitely worth a detour. The name says it all: ROSSO di Acqua Sole stands for the insatiable passion for the sea and everything that thrives under the southern sun.
