Bella Pasta Question


When writing about Eating In Oxford, there is a problem problem of how to classify Bella Pasta. Do we file it under Italian, or Pizzeria?

At first, the answer seems simple: Italian. After all, it's a pasta restaurant, not a pizzeria. Duh.

However, it's more complicated than this. Firstly, Bella Pasta does serve pizza, and the Pizzerias (Pizza Hut etc) serve pasta, so there's no actual difference at the menu level. Secondly, if we look at the other members of those two classes - such as Luna Caprese and La Capannina in Italian and Pizza Hut and Pizza Express in Pizzeria - we see that the quality and atmosphere in Bella Pasta is much more like a Pizzeria than an Italian.

We thus conclude that the term Pizzeria describes not a culinary focus but a state of mind, and that Bella Pasta is a Pizzeria.


Mon, 26 Aug 2002 20:21:01 GMT Front Page Recent Changes Message Of The Day