The Nishi-Shinjuku 1-3-13 Block has three nice choices for Italian Food.
The Italia Bar Vancale offers tasty dishes to accompany their full range of Italian Wine Options. (It’s a great place to start or finish an Evening as the Crowd, Bar Tenders and Wait Staff are friendly & open to conversation.)
About 50 meters away the IL Saccomanno offers Roman Style Dishes and is proud of their wine cellar. (They’re a good option when the Italia Bar Vancale or our favorite, the Taverna Ripieno (next door) is full.
The Taverna Ripieno is a cozy Restaurant with limited seating (Four Tables and a counter that seats six people). Our Best Friend Jimmy Takada, who had kindly given us his Top 5 Restaurants in this blog, introduced us to this tavern. Mr. & Mrs. Amemiya Taverna Owners work as a team, with the Maestro in the Kitchen and his Lady acting as Hostess, bus, waiter, and sommelier.
We’ve learned to trust Mrs. Amemiya’s instincts for pairing wines with our favorite dishes and she’s never failed to steer us towards the tastiest of Daily Specials. We enjoyed a Spanish Wine from the Navarra Region that had spicy character which stood up well against the garlic pastas and herbs of the poultry. This Dining Experience was a lot of fun.
The fresh fish antipasti were delicious as was their Foie Gras.
You are welcome to request items outside of the Menu and Colorful Special Boards as the Mamiyas work to please customers. They prepared a Penne All’Arrabbiata Al Dente that stands up against any we’ve ordered in Japan or North America.
And, don’t miss the Herb Chicken that converted my wife from life as a Vegetarian.
The Dinner Sets are reasonable and finish with a mixed dessert plate or cheese.
Caveats: The Taverna Ripieno discourage patrons only interested in pizza or pasta snacks. They also charge 200 yen per seat; a cover that doesn’t limit customers as most nights we’ve found the Taverna full. Some of our friends have had difficulty finding the location but it’s not hard to locate if you keep your eye out for signs located on the second floor. Mrs. Amemiya says she’s ready to serve English Speaking Guests and we expect her to step up to the challenge.
Taverna Ripieno http://www.wood-river.co.jp/ripieno/map.html (MAP in Japanese Only)
Italia Bar Vancale http://r.tabelog.com/tokyo/A1304/A130401/13115753/
(Tabelog site Japanese Only)
Il Saccomanno http://www.ilsaccomanno.com/access.html (MAP in Japanese Only)
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