Family vacation down here in Playa Mujeres, visiting the combined Dreams and Secrets resorts. Tonight, our family of five went to dinner at Portofino, the Italian restaurant located on the Secrets (adults only) side of the resort.
The menu had a fair selection of appetizers, salads, pastas and mains, as well as a few dessert selections. There's something in there for most palettes, from fish to beef to seafood to a veggie dish or two.
We started with several appetizers: the Beef Carpaccio, the salad of Macerated pear in Barrolo Wine with Almond cheese.
I'm not sure what it is in the restaurants in this resort, but they seem to have an aversion to using any seasoning salt. The beef used in the carpaccio was high quality and perfectly tender, but the only flavor on the plate was of olive oil. Just a few crystals of Himalayan or kosher salt would have perfected the dish, but instead it turned out bland. This was a 2.5* dish that could easily have been 4* if they'd just sprinkled a touch of salt on it.
The Macerated pears were absolutely fantastic, one of the best pear salads ever, and beautifully presented. 5*s on that plate.
On to the mains.
Daughter and family friend ordered the Osso buco. Cooked perfectly, fork tender, and the sauce was decent. Had a slightly sweet flavor, and we detected a touch of Cinnamon in there. Nice. The saffron risotto, our entire table unanimously agreed, was the finest risotto we have ever eaten anywhere. While there were other failures in this meal, the two types of risotto we had across four plates were not among them. Whoever's in the kitchen at the risotto station knows EXACTLY how to cook a perfect risotto in every respect. 5*s on the Osso buco plate. We ordered another side of the saffron risotto (just couldn't get enough) and all agreed it was identical to the first. So they can repeat it. Top marks for consistency.
Wife ordered the Tagliata of Beef (basically a small steak), rare. The menu noted the side as Truffled potatoes. Neither of us detected any truffle and the potatoes were green. Menu fail: these were actually a puree of peas and potatoes. Steak came medium in parts, medium rare in others. Cook fail. Flavor was decent but this 2.5* dish could have been 4*s with a bit more attention to detail.
I had the scallops. There were three small (20ct-ish) scallops, on a bed of (again, flawless) Asparagus Risotto, with a lobster sauce. They, again, avoided seasoning so the scallops were totally bland. The cook was fine, not under or over, but there was no sear on the scallops at all. The outside's texture was exactly like the inside, and a little seasoning in the plate would have brightened it up. This is a dish with 4* potential, but just had too many technical errors to give it anything upward of 3*s.
Son had the Sorentinos Negros de Salmon (black ravioli-like pockets stuffed with Salmon) in Frangelico sauce. He (who eats everything and is easy to please) absolutely loved it. I thought it was a solid 3* dish, not bad, but not particularly memorable.
On to the desserts. Wife and friend each ordered Tiramisu, and son ordered the coffee ice cream. I just took a nibble of each in the interest of culinary science.
The Tiramisu was (unconventionally) served in a tiny espresso cup, but presentation was very solid, bordering on excellent. Taste was fabulous, using real ladyfingers (not "cake") soaked in rum. Other than the small three-bite size, it's sure to please. Coffee ice cream was decent, but... Well it's coffee ice cream, not much to say.
In all, I'm rating Portofino 4*s but this is one of those reviews where I really wish Yelp would allow half-stars, because it's really a 3.5 here. It's better than "A-OK", but not quite "Yay, I'm a fan". There were hits and misses, but overall, a decent dinner. read more