The Delightful Vico Equense

When you’re in the middle of touring it’s good to take a day off and just have a relaxing vacation day. That’s what we did when we spent the day in Vico Equense. This lovely little town on the Bay of Naples between Pompei and Sorrento offers wonderful views at several lookouts on the cliffs. The sun was shining. A few clouds floated across the sky and the varying blues of the water made for a wonderful picture.

We spent the morning enjoying the water and fresh air and just relaxing than headed to the center of town for lunch at a great restaurant called Tito’s. I had looked it up on line and it seemed like an excellent place with an outdoor space off the street to enjoy the food at the same time as the weather.

You never know how a restaurant will work out ahead of time but in this case we found a wonderfully warm and welcoming restaurant with friendly staff and great food.

The table was set with a woven tablecloth and white napkins. The lunch began with freshly baked bread and an offering of oil and a very nice aged Modena vinegar. The pretty bread plates were rimmed with flowers that picked up the yellow of the lemons that are everywhere in this region. We decided to split the first and second plates and ordered a seafood risotto as the first plate. It was really delicious with mussels, clams, shrimp and octopus and some pieces of red snapper. The rice was al dente and cooked in a lovely light broth. The second plate was a red snapper with a potato and tomato sauce . The fish was perfectly cooked and the sauce delicate and creamy. The meal ended in a beautifully prepared lemon torte made with lemon ricotta cheese. The pastry was delicious, light and flakey. Then the waiter brought a bottle of limoncelllo to the table with two glasses for a perfect finish to a delicious meal. We also had a glass of White House wine to accompany the meal.

We had a wonderful time and had great interaction with our server Margarita. She told us about the food and about the area. My Hubby speaks Italian and I have been learning it so she spoke mostly in Italian with a little English thrown in. Her English was much better than my Italian. However, she was so nice about letting me try. I asked if I could take her picture and she was fine with allowing me to snap her. Also have a wonderful picture of us together at the table. Everywhere we travel we try to take the time to engage with the local people we encounter. Compliment their restaurant, city, view…you get the idea and ask about them. How long have you worked here? lived here? What makes this place special to you?…before you know it you are sharing experiences and making friends. It’s worth the effort. Smile, be happy, enjoy the place where you are now and good things generally happen.

Margarita asked us to wait a moment and went into the restaurant from the terrace and came back with a bag filled with lemons and oranges from her Grandmother’s garden. She explained that she had grown up having the oranges as an afternoon snack and that they were very very sweet. She hoped we would enjoy them and remember our time in Vico Equense. We were overwhelmed. She also discounted the bill because of our friendliness and we came away having enjoyed a wonderful afternoon with a new friend.

If you visit Pompei, take the circumvesuviano to Vico Equense and spend a lovely day by the sea. Have lunch at Tito’s and ask for Margarita. You will have a delightful experience with great food, warm people and a day in the sun.

Ciao!