If you walk on the Eerste Constantijn Huygensstraat, you will see them both standing: Fiko on one side, Fikissimo on the other. The same duo, Giuseppe and Serena, run both businesses. That sounds ambitious, but at Fikissimo they have clearly chosen their own direction. Not a second Italian restaurant, but Mediterranean fusion cuisine with an Italian foundation underneath.
What that means specifically: ingredients that really matter. Giuseppe has his own distribution company, Casa Puglia, and through that line imports fresh produce directly from Puglia and Sicily. The burrata on your plate is Sicilian, the olive oil from Puglia, the red tuna from Spain. Those aren't vague claims about quality, that's just knowing where your stuff comes from. And you can taste that.
The menu revolves around dishes that sit somewhere between familiar and surprising. The crispy rice with salmon is one of the signature dishes, as is the salmon tartare with teriyaki and sesame. That Asian influence rears its head here and there, without feeling like an identity crisis. Then again, the tagliatelle with lobster is purely Italian in approach. And Sicilian burrata and Pugliese olive oil reappear as a common thread throughout the menu.
By linking Casa Puglia to what goes on the table, there is a direct line between the farmer and the plate.
Giuseppe and Serena have created something beyond the average Mediterranean cuisine with Fikissimo. By linking Casa Puglia to what goes on the table, there is a direct line between the farmer and the plate. The fact that Fiko is right across the street only makes the street more interesting. Old West just adds two good addresses.