It was our 22nd wedding anniversary today - I know, if it had been murder I'd be out on parole by now - so we went to Cafe Lilli in Norton for a celebratory meal.
We've been to Cafe Lilli before, but only at lunch times when it's more of a coffee shop. By evening it's a fully fledged bistro with a somewhat Italian feel, though the menu is not strictly Italian. All of the (non-veggie) meals that we saw others having looked to be delicious and imaginative, though I obviously can't comment on them in detail. I can comment on the veggie courses that we had though, and I have to report that they were absolutely superb.
Wife started with Aubergine, Carrot & Chilli soup, which sounds an unusual combination. In fact it's safe to say I've never seen aubergine in a soup before. It was delicious and very warming, this coming from the chilli which whilst hot enough did not detract from the other flavours. I had a bruschetta of goat's cheese and cherry tomatoes and it too was wonderful.
For mains I had a mixed mushroom risotto. This was very flavoursome and contained a good variety of mushrooms, including the Enoki variety which is one of my favourites. Wife had a quite simple pasta dish with fresh tomatoes, torn basil and pecorino cheese. The portions were ample and beautifully presented.
At dessert time we found we were feeling rather full, so we opted to share one dessert between us. The one we chose (we could easily have chosen any of them) was am iced parfait of Christmas pudding (shown above). By any other name it's Christmas pudding ice cream, and oh was it delicious. We ate it in as small mouthfuls as we could manage to try and make it last. I'd visit Cafe Lilli again for this alone, though the whole dining experience was so lovely that we intend to visit again as soon as possible anyway.
The ambience was nice, having a busy "buzz" about it without being overly noisy, and despite being full, with more and more people constantly arriving in the small waiting area, the service was brisk and attentive.
Cafe Lilli, 83-85 High Street, Norton, Stockton on Tees. Tel: 01642 554422
10/10
Congratulations on your wedding anniversary!
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