Ciro Restaurante

Every time I walk into Ciro Ristorante, I prepare myself to enjoy an incredible Italian meal. On that Friday night in November when I walked into Ciro, I was not sure what to expect. When in the main room of the restaurant, the plentiful sights of an Italian restaurant surrounded me. The enormous brick oven, the pizza boxes stacked up to the ceiling, and the black and white checkered tile truly made me feel like downtown Naples would be like. The staff that greeted my father and I were friendly and made me feel right at home. They took us to our table, a booth next to a window, and gave us a menu that seemed to go on forever.

As my father and I were having our normal conversation, another friendly waiter came to our table and asked us what we wanted to drink. I only ordered water, which is my normal beverage of choice, but my dad, being the 46 year old man that he is, asked to see the wine list. Instead of giving him a paper list, our waiter listed approximately twenty wines and their prices. After he was finished, my father chose his wine and we carried on to our normal dinner activities.

The whimsical atmosphere of Ciro Ristorante made it seem that you were sitting in the middle of Italy. The combination of Renaissance art on the walls, the subtle lanterns emitting a soft glow scattered around, and the black and white checkered tiles are crucial elements that fully weave together the authentic Italian atmosphere.

The waiter came back with our drinks and some bread with olive oil. He then proceeded to ask us what we wanted to eat. He gestured to me first, and I ordered the timeless classic spaghetti and meatballs. As for my dad, once he heard about their locally renowned pizza, he had to try it. He left us with our drinks, appetizers, and a smile. The bread was the perfect temperature, and the olive oil that came with it was as fresh as can be. I could already tell this meal was going to be incredible, and my mouth was watering just at the thought of it.

After waiting for a reasonably short amount of time, the waiter brought us our food. The different aromas that came steaming off of our food were incredible. I put my napkin in my lap, got my utensils ready, and started to dig in.

Each bite of the pasta was astounding. The meatballs were top-notch, and they just melted in your mouth. Combine the two of them together and you get the greatest spaghetti and meatballs you have ever had in your life. The portions they gave were not for children, and by no means am I a heavy eater, but I ended up finishing the entire dish within ten minutes. I also tried my father’s pizza, which took me straight to the my favorite streets of New York City. We both finished our meals and awaited for the next, and arguably the best, course of our meal: dessert.

Our waiter had come by to check on us a few times throughout the meal, but when we had mentioned that we wanted dessert, a huge smile was broadcasted on his face. Not more than two minutes later, he brings out this enormous tray filled with a variety of desserts, pastries, and anything else you could think of. He gave a detailed description of each dessert and what it entailed, and he also mentioned that they had many different flavors of gelato, which is Italian ice cream. My dad ordered their signature dessert, the cannoli. As for me, being an ice cream connoisseur, I ordered a scoop of their chocolate gelato. Full of zeal, he wrote down our orders and scurried off to get them.

Back no later than five minutes, our waiter brought our desserts to the table. He gave my dad his cannoli, served on a pristine, white plate. As for my gelato, it was sitting in this gorgeous glass goblet with a curved stem and a wide cup. I took my spoon, dipped it into the gelato, and took out the perfect amount. When the gelato hit my taste buds, it was a chocolate explosion of happiness and joy. It was as if chocolate flavored fireworks had gone off inside of my mouth! It’s a bite of ice cream that I will never forget. The dessert course was so incredible, and it was the perfect ending to an already perfect meal.

Ciro Ristorante is altogether one of the greatest restaurants I have, and probably will ever eat at. The food is spectacular, the atmosphere is wonderful, and the waitstaff are truly incredible people. I highly recommend that you try this restaurant because it was one of the most incredible meals that I have ever had in my life. I thoroughly enjoyed my meal, and it was truly a meal that I will never forget.

Ciro Ristorante

42015 Village Center Plaza #155

Aldie, VA 20105