I always feel iffy about Italian restaurants because pasta doesn't always excite me a whole lot. Don't get me wrong, some pastas are amazing when done right but a lot restaurants just make plain, boring dishes. This past weekend I tried out La Piola, a place recommended by a friend when we drove by it. Now if I hadn't actually seen it, I would've never known it existed. Its quite a small little restaurant that doesn't sit a ton of people. I find that usually smaller, hidden joints always turn out to be hidden jems. This place fit the bill.


Apparently they're always quite busy. When I called to make reservations for Friday night, I nabbed the last table available. Now for the food. The menu didn't have a major selection and it mostly consisted of a few appetizers, pastas, pizza, and a few entrees like steak, chicken etc. They also had a daily special that was some kind of fish stuffed with dungeness crab, which sounded amazing. However it turned out to be $30, and being a student I couldn't really afford to blow that kind of money on one dish. Instead I went with a simple pasta that had a tomato sauce and pork. I really wish I could remember the names but a lot of them were italian names so fat chance. I usually don't order tomato based pasta cause I'm a fan of cream sauces but I decided to give this on a chance. Over all it was alright, there were cube of pork that were a bit salty and not much else in the pasta. However the noodles were very good, very el dente and enjoyable to eat.

A couple of friends both ordered the Gnocchi, which was simply amazing. They were very savory and melted in your mouth after a bite. The portions were just right in my opinion, just enough to leave you satisfied. Price wise it was a little more expensive, about $16 a dish. However the restaurant uses a lot of local ingredients from businesses around Victoria and adjusts their menu according to the foods currently in season, which I think is a great idea.

After dinner we saw some other tables ordering desserts and we couldn't resist. Let me tell you know it was the best part of the entire night. We decided to get one tiramisu, on creme brulee, and a chocolate torte. They may have been the absolute best desserts I've had in Victoria, no joke. We were all moaning in delight while devouring them. All the desserts were assembled in front of our eyes in the open kitchen and we watched hungrily as they made them. The tiramisu was so soft and spongy. It didn't have that overwhelming flavor of alcohol a lot of others do. The Chocolate torte had this wonderful caramel sauce and it wasn't overly sweet. My favourite has to be the creme brulee. I don't even know what to write because words can't describe how good it was. You just have to try it for yourself. I'll definitely be back for more. The desserts were $6 a piece but well worth it.