Azzurro Restaurant

I love going to Azzurro and have been for years now. It’s small setting is perfect for dates and if you have a bigger party they push the tables together for you and hey presto, that’s just as great too. With a modern interior, low lighting and lots of relaxed customers there always seems to be an intimate and friendly feel to the place.
The owner Emin seems to be a really friendly guy and couldn’t do enough for us when we went last time. But, let’s get to the most important part, the FOOD! They always have a good board of specials on, which includes the fish of the week, whilst the permanent menu has some great classics. They really know how to cook a great Bistecca, and the mussels I had for my starter in a white wine sauce are the best I’ve had in Manchester.
I wouldn’t recommend going during the week though as it’s always pretty dead and so is the atmosphere, but if you like Italian food Friday and Saturday night are a good choice.

Azzurro is a lovely independent Italian restaurant on Burton Road that always seems to be bustling with patrons. It’s a good example of well-​made traditional dishes in a modern, clean setting (although I’d prefer more rustic décor to match the food, so hard to come by these days).
The menu itself is mostly made up of pasta, fish and meat dishes, and whilst it’s quite short, there’s a blackboard with daily specials that always has something that stands out. The last time I came here I tried the Penne Senese: penne pasta with Tuscan fennel salami, walnuts, brandy, cream and parmesan. It was heavenly. I also tried some of my date’s Tuscan style wild boar meat stew, a little more expensive than my dish at £13.95 but well worth it, it melted in my mouth.
The service was a little slow when I came here but the smiles and the overall atmosphere more than made up for it, and anyway, we were in no rush.