Visocchi’s Gelateria and Italian cafe has become an institution in Broughty Ferry. Much like putting on a comfy pair of slippers, going there is familiar and comforting. When I first moved to The Ferry, I was taken for ice cream at “the only place to go” in the area and it soon became a firm favourite of mine too. This family run establishment is part of the furniture and I wanted to return after too long an absence to check that the slippers still fit.
Weekday lunchtimes are as busy as any other time and booking is recommended. Walking into the cafe past the ice cream counter is certainly a warm welcome and whets the appetite for dessert… until you take a right hand turn towards the seating area and also walk past the glass-fronted freezers filled with elaborate ice cream cakes and other cream-filled delights and then one feels that dessert and then carry-out ice cream afterwards might be in order.
A friend and I chose Visocchi’s as our mid-week lunchtime catch-up as we knew it would be bustling, casual and reasonably priced. We each chose from the lunchtime specials menu and I went for the spinach and ricotta-filled cannelloni. My dish was piping hot and the subtle pasta filling was smothered in a rich tomato sauce which was perfect for dunking the accompanying Italian bread in. I was satisfied with my dish as it was as I had expected it to be: filling and comforting and a bargain at £6.95.
My friend chose the aubergine parmigiana which was underwhelmingly luke warm. The pasta-free dish of layered vegetables, covered in tomato sauce and cheese was nice but would have benefited from being a lot hotter. Still, we weren’t ready to stop the flow of chat just yet and so coffee and cakes were now on the cards.
The coffee is always good at Visocchi’s and to go with it, we ordered one slice of carrot cake and one pistachio cannoli, both chosen by gazing through the tall refrigerator windows. The carrot cake was tasty but I have to say dry and the cannoli was very disappointing. The pastry shell of the dessert is fried before the filling is added which usually creates a crispy texture.
Sadly, on this occasion the cannoli seemed very stale; the cream was glued to the shell and the tube was tricky to cut with a spoon. The appearance of all of the desserts is a delight but the reality was sadly a let-down. By the look of the happy faces of people with ice cream cones and sundaes, perhaps this would have been a better option to pair with our caffeine hit.
Visocchi’s is a feast for the eyes with Italian produce filling the shelves and fridges creating a convincingly authentic atmosphere. The TVs in the seating area and behind the counter playing Italian shows really adds to the relaxed family feel and it is rare to not see a member of the family during a visit which adds even more to it’s credibility.
The cafe is busy whenever I walk past and the ice cream queue often snakes out the door. The owners could therefore be forgiven for adopting an “if it ain’t broke” attitude but perhaps just a few little tweaks and details could bring Visocchi’s back up to being the shining star of this lovely seaside town.
Info
Price: Starters: £3 – £7.50; Main courses: £8.50 – £16.95; Lunchtime specials: £6.95.
Value: 8/10
Menu: 8/10
Atmosphere: 8/10
Service: 8/10
Food: 6/10
Total: 38/50
Info: Visocchis
Address: 40 Gray Street, Broughty Ferry, DD5 2BJ
Tel: 01382 779 297
Web: www.vcaffe.it
