When one thinks of Dover, they think of white cliffs, cruise ships, lorry queues and perhaps even the migrant crisis. But one seldom thinks of pizza. But after a wonderful sermon on the feast of All Saints in St Paul’s in Dover, we felt compelled to go to Il Rustico. See below my thoughts on this relatively hidden gem.
I felt quite hungry after the service so thought two courses would be best. We ordered the taglio which can be seen above. A taglio is often a combination of meats and cheeses which one can enjoy with a bit of bread. There was parma ham, some chorizo and salami with some soft pecorino cheese and lovely fresh bread. This was a small portion but helped my parents and I satisfy a small portion of our hunger.
I went for the four cheese pizza, feeling somewhat low and needing a cheesy boost. This was an excellent combination of cheeses, they used mozzarella, parmesan, some blue cheese and also, bafflingly, cheddar. However, while the latter cannot be conceived as an Italian cheese, it did add a rich nuttiness to the pizza and indeed cheddar melts more nicely on account of a higher water content (35.6–38.6% moisture) which helped combine the other cheeses and resulted in a most flavourful pizza. The crust was lovely and thin.
Both my parents opted for the salsiccia pasta, combining lucanica sausage, onions, garlic, wine, tomato sauce and topped with parmesan shaving. This was an excellent, rich and flavoursome pasta. The rigatoni were cooked beautifully, the sauce had the right liquid level and the sausage itself was cut small to help them fit into the centre of the pasta and helped the eater enjoy the fulsome flavour of this delicious dish.
Overall, I would recommend this if you fancy an economical and excellent meal in Dover.