Sweet treats

Tony works at Eden Roc hotel and, among other things, manages the breakfast service. He is a lovely man with a happiness and joy about him that is infectious. Even the grumpiest breakfast customer is inevitably won over by his charm and eagerness to make “Tony’s breakfast” the most important meal of the day.

Even on days that we don’t have breakfast at the hotel but come later to spend time around and in the pool, he appears with a small box of sweet treats for us (well me actually) – a selection of the cakes and pastries he knows I like – that we can bring back to the casetta and eat later.

And the award for the best breakfast in Italy goes too …

Over the last few weeks we have experienced a range of breakfasts from a range of hotels. Some have been buffet, some al la carte, but all have been excellent quality and vast in the range of items they include.

But now we need to get serious and pick the best. There can be only one winner.

After much deliberation the winning breakfast goes to Hotel Barocco and their fine al la carte effort. The coffee is superb, the welcome treats of fruit, cakes, cheese and meats are delightful and the eggs with whatever you wish to accompany them are delicious.

Only a whisker behind is the breakfast is Eden Roc Hotel where our friend Tony runs the show. Tony has looked after us so well – with special treats each morning and a Prosecco to start the day. He has also made sure we left every morning with a package of pastries “for later” at Casetta Arienzo.

The last breakfast

Today we had our last breakfast at Eden Roc before we leave tomorrow hosted by the lovely Tony. It involved everything from Prosecco to poached eggs with Tiramisu and sweet treats added in there as well.

What a great way to start the day.

Dinner at Eden Roc Hotel

Saturday night we dined at the hotel. They have made major improvements to the restaurant in the last few years and it’s paying dividends as the patronage has increased considerably.

One new addition to the facilities is Terrazza Paradiso, a terrace sitting above the rest of the restaurant, open to the air and with a spectacular view of the village and sea below. The lovely Carlo, who runs the Adamo ed Eva restaurant at the hotel, managed to get us a table on the Terrazza for a magical dinner which ended with two drunk kiwis being driven home afterwards.

This meal was also the debut of one the dresses Jean bought in Sorrento when we visited on Friday.

Too much pool time?

Our friend Fernando who looks after us when we spend time at the Eden Roc pool is just too good. As we arrive towels are laid out and drinks are delivered almost by magic. It makes spending time in the sun too easy.

Colazione like no other

Breakfast We ventured to the hotel for breakfast last Friday. As always we were made welcome by the effervescent Tony.

He told us that Thursday was “his day off so today he was relaxed”. As a result we were spoilt – special pastries to start, four types of quiche all of which were delightful, scrambled eggs and as many cappuccinos as we could manage – all delivered to our table so we had no need to use the buffet. The meal was topped off with small slices of chocolate gateaux.

Now, gentle reader, I hear you say – gateaux for breakfast? Well why not – it complimented the coffee superbly and after a few minutes very little of it was left on the plate.

Many thanks to Tony – it was a colazione not to forget. Grazie mille.

And so Thursday comes to an end

It is Thursday evening , 27 degrees, and I’m sitting on our front verandah enjoying the sunset and watching the locals passing our front gate on their way home. In the days since our arrival, we have spent time in the sun, in the pool, visited Sorrento for a morning and shopped in the village – both for the necessities and a few luxuries.

We had dinner with Carlo and the team at Eden Roc earlier in the week. Beautiful fish with patate and pomodoro preceded by a shrimp cocktail that tasted of the sea and complimented by a Falanghina which was older and more complex than the usual. Clearly we are not the only ones to be impressed with the food because they have achieved the status of No1 hotel restaurant in Positano on TripAdvisor. This is quite an achievement given the calibre of the competition. And I feel it’s all down to that magic mix of the food, the service and the superb location looking across the bay combining for a dinner experience that is unforgettable. Read the reviews yourself if you don’t believe me.

We kept our promise to eat at Bar Bruno again – on Wednesday night – and enjoyed the meal so much we have booked again for Friday night.

The family that run the alimentari in the village remembered us from past visits and asked about the dogs – no, they are not with us this time – 2 weeks is not a long enough visit. They also made our grocery shopping a delight rather than a chore – but more of that in a later post.

The boys who run the Galli bar which we walk past on the way to the village now greet us with a cheerful Ciao in the mornings and ice cold gelati for the walk back to the villa in the afternoons.

It feels like we are slipping back into village life.

Jean has just wandered down to the local alimentari for some provisions – primarily beer for me and something for us both for tea and she will no doubt return with some tale of the local happenings or of the trip there and back.

Tonight we decided to eat in, simply because we can. And because the thought of getting ready and heading out is to much of a chore. It’s great to be back and to have reached that point – la dolce fa niente. The sweet art of doing nothing.

Hotel life

Gallery

This gallery contains 5 photos.

Yesterday we moved from the villa to the hotel proper. We have a delightful room just a stone’s throw from the piscina – and the hotel staff to cater to our every whim. The hotel describes its rooms as suites … Continue reading

A thank you

MedsWe just want to say a huge thank you to the team at Eden Roc hotel for their help when Jean fell sick. Within 30 minutes of us contacting them and asking for a doctor one turned  up on our doorstep. Dr Buonocore you were fantastic.

Later that day we had a visit from Dominic, the head of the Casola family, asking after Jeans health and stressing that if there was anything we needed we were just to ask.

As a result, dinner that night were Eden Roc takeaways – not something that is usually available to anyone as far as we know.

Stunning Penne Carbonarra accompanied by crispy bread and some beers for the caregiver, all transported from the hotel on the handlebars of a Vespa to make sure it was still piping hot. As the young hotel concierge said – Carbonarra is always best hot – which it was.

Grazie mille Eden Roc.

Il dolce far niente

We have been in Positano for a week or so and life has settled into a comfortable, simple  routine.

Our days start late at the villa and after a leisurely walk to the hotel we spend the hottest part of the day around the hotel pool.

Late evening in Positano

In the cool of the evening we either return to Villa Greta and enjoy a drink on the terrace or we walk down into the village for shopping, eating or just wandering and exploring.

We’ve been to dinner at Chez Black on the beach and had dinner on the Eden Roc terrace overlooking the bay.  All in all I think we’ve perfected ‘il dolce far niente” as the Italians call it – the sweet art of doing nothing.