Amaretto

Norwich

Spanish and Italian specialities, celebration cakes, home-cooked and locally produced food, fresh croissants and homemade sausage rolls – Amaretto Delicatessen in a quiet, artistic corner of the city centre, can be said to be truly cosmopolitan. Run by Fabrizio from Tuscany and Henry from New York, since 2008, there’s certainly an international flair to the product offering. Whatever the time of day, Amaretto has something to offer, from mid-afternoon snacks to chocolate brownies, carrot cake and muffins for sweet tooths. People have been known to stop and photograph their well-crafted window displays too. If you’re lucky enough to live or work nearby and fancy popping in for lunch, you can size up dishes to take away, including paella, chilli con carne, moussaka, risotto and pastas. Even the humble takeaway pizza is something special here. There is a dedicated ‘pizza room’ where Ben turns them out every few minutes, freshly stone-baked and sold by the slice. If you’re not eating on the go, you can take meals home to freeze so that you’ll always have something tasty and healthy on hand when you don’t fancy doing the cooking. All the delicacies are authentic, be they parmesan or Tuscan salamis, pasta sauces from Puglia or Spanish Manchego cheese and membrillo (quince jelly) – or cheeses from the local Norfolk farms. Where possible, goods are from family-run, artisan businesses. This is produce that you can’t buy in the supermarkets and it really shows. As if that weren’t enough, they offer a bespoke catering service and do tastings as well. JL.