Taste of Italy at Nino

Situated in the buzzing business district of Seef, next to the A'ali Mall, is Nino, a casual Italian dining experience.

Falling under the umbrella of Kuwait-based Kharafi Global, the brand opened its doors to the island's Italian food lovers four years ago.

Executive Chef Mohammed Naushad comes to Bahrain with 13 years' experience of which seven has been with the Kharafi group and Nino specifically.

He said: "I have been with the group since I joined it in Kuwait in 2003 as executive sous chef.

"I was transferred to Bahrain to open the new restaurant in 2005 and will shortly be moving to Saudi Arabia to open Nino at the end of this year.

"The food we have here is taken from the best of Mediterranean cuisine made to cater for local tastes. I feel that's been our ingredient for success."

The menu includes a variety starters and appetisers including fritto funghi which is crumbed shitake mushroom filled with cheese and parmesan, carpaccio - marinated beef with mushrooms, capers, lemon, olive oil and parmesan cheese and raviolozza - crispy raviolis filled with mixed herbs with prawns and mascarpone and giant mushrooms. Salads include Insalata di Gamberoni shrimp salad, mushroom and roca salad and chicken avocado salad. Pizzas on offer include margherita, vegetariana, al funghi, four cheeses, Napoli, quattro staggioni and pepperoni provalane and there are pastas and risottos including arrabiata, primavera con pollo which is grilled chicken with spinach and parmesan cheese, gnocchi, ravioli al funghi, tortellini rosa and spaghetti al pesto.

The menu also features a special section for weight watchers, with a selection of Nino's specialties including veal dishes and steaks and also grills aside from a list of desserts.

Chef Naushad's connection to Italian cuisine comes from working many years with Italian chefs at the Hyatt Regency and Radisson in Delhi, India.

He said: "I was lucky to have had the opportunity to work with and train under five Italian chefs while working with the Hyatt Regency.

"This helped me collect enough expertise, skills and knowledge about the cuisine and so I am closely associated with it."

Chef Naushad, 33, from Hoora, began his career in the food and hospitality industry thanks to an uncle who was a master dessert chef.

He said: "Initially I planned to follow in his footsteps and pursue becoming a pastry chef but my interest and love for Italian cuisine grew stronger having worked so closely with the Italian brand."

Through his tenure he has been able to prepare meals for various renowned personalities, heads of states and celebrities including the late Pope John Paul, India's Congress party president Sonia Gandhi and her daughter Priyanka Gandhi and Indian actor Anil Kapoor.

Chef Naushad says the best compliment he received came from Indian fashion designer Rohit Bal. He said: "He said he liked the freshness of the food and he came to me and said it was 'scrumptious'. It felt great."

In the future, Chef Naushad hopes to open an Italian restaurant in his home town in Delhi, India, offering Italian cuisine with a fusion of Indian.

Here, he shares a recipe with GulfWeekly readers.

Gamberonatta Formaggio

(SautŽed prawns Scallopini with brown butter caper sauce and fontina cheese served with roasted paprika potatoes)

Ingredients:

Prawns 180gm

Capers 10gm

Sage 2gm

Thyme 2gm

Basil 2gm

Parsley 2gm

Paprika 2gm

Olive oil 25ml

Prawn stock 100ml

White vinegar 15ml

Fontina cheese 40gm

Lemon juice 5ml

Salt and pepper 2gm

Roasted paprika

potatoes 75gm

Seasoned flour 5gm

Butter 20gm

Fennel bulb 10gm

Portion: 1

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Method:

Clarify butter in a pan and add fresh sage

Remove it from heat and strain after it turns nutty brown in colour

Marinate and dust the prawns scallopini with seasoned flour

SautŽ the prawns scallopini with brown butter garlic, capers and thyme

Add prawn stock, white vinegar, lemon juice into the sautŽed prawns

Reduce the stock till it reaches the required consistency and add thinly sliced Fontina cheese

Serve with cubes of roasted paprika potato as a base, arrange prawns and drizzle with nutty sage butter sauce.