Etna - Fortitude Valley

Readers may have noted that there had been a flux of Italian restaurants open in the second half of 2022. Etna, created by the owners of Rosmarino was one of them. As someone who can never really turn down pizza, I was interested the moment I had heard about it, and especially intrigued by the unique, albeit pricier pizzas on the menu. I was particularly thrilled when a good friend of mine coordinated a group dinner to allow us to try more varieties of their pizzas.

 

We were very promptly seated and the place was dark and moody, much like Rosmarino, with exposed brick walls and a deep mahogany theme. Service was prompt and friendly. The menu comprised mainly of pizzas but there were also starters, pasta and mains as well. The pizza was definitely different from the norm, with bases that were neither red nor white and we tried a selection of those. Prices average roughly $5 more expensive than other specialty pizza restaurants.

 

Drinks were served almost immediately after ordering, our rose was crisp and appetizing.

It also didn't take too long for entrees to arrive either.

First up was the burrata abbamele. This was rich and creamy, I liked the sweet honey that it was doused with, but couldn't really taste much of the promised truffle. The burrata was rich and creamy though, going well with the pizza bread we ordered.

The schiacciata was a fancy name for pizza bread. It was light and airy with parts that were fairly crisp and a strong garlic flavour. Although the taste was fairly good, the for the price of $10, we were given four small wedges, which was quite insufficient for our small group to share, and definitely bad value for money.

 

To go with the schiacciata, we also had some mortadella and black angus bresaola. These were thinly shaved but deliciously savoury and meaty. I particularly liked the creamy, buttery black angus with its light peppery taste. Again though, with only five small slices per serve, it represented bad value.

Our pizzas didn't take too long to arrive. This was the diavola, topped with fior di latte, Riverine buffalo blue, hot salami, olive, red onion, olive, parmesan and hot smoked paprika. We don't usually go for spicy pizzas and this was quite delicious. I liked how meaty it was, with a zing from the smoked paprika. The base done quite well with a fluffy crust, but the centre was a little bit wet and floppy.

Our next one was a unique pumpkin based mantovana topped with fior di latte, taleggio, sausage, rosemary, parmesan and amaretti dust. Compared to anything else I've had before, the base flavour was quite sweet. The sausage was also quite mincey and not savoury enough. Of all the pizzas, this would have been my least favourite.

Of course my favourite of the night was the trentina comprising of fior di latte, truffle pecorino, mushrooms, speck, radicchio with parmesan. The truffle flavour was strong in this one and I loved the generous amount of speck and radicchio. If the base was less moist, it would have been one of the best pizzas I've had.

Dessert was the Hazelnut Pizza Fritta. This was a small tart made of deep fried pizza dough, topped with hazelnut creme and hazelnut. Portions were small and not really worth the price, but it was fairly tasty, but the pizza base could have been a bit less oily for my taste.

All round, we had a reasonably good time at Etna. Prices were steep for what we got, and in retrospect they missed a side that we ordered (but this remained on the bill), but the food was quite nice and I wouldn't hesitate to go back if any friends asked me to, but I wouldn't be making plans on my own initiative.

Price Range: $40 - $50pp

Taste: 8/10

Value: 4/10
Service: 7/10

Environment: 8/10