It can be hard to imagine Italian food without tomatoes, but Italy went through centuries of cooking before the iconic red fruit was introduced to the country. So, how did tomatoes become such an important part of the menu at our Bothell Italian restaurant?

Before tomatoes were introduced to Italy, most Italian dishes used olive oil and cheeses where you might expect them to use tomato sauce. It was only when the tomato was brought over from South America that anyone in the country ever laid eyes upon the fruit. The first identified account of tomatoes being used in Italy comes from 1548. Around this time, the Italians knew the fruit as “pomidoro”, or “golden fruits”, due to the fact that the first of their tomatoes were small and yellow.

Even after the arrival of the tomato, it would take a long time before Italian food would take on the appearance we know today. Many popular dishes, including tomato sauce, are still fairly recent innovations from as recently as the late nineteenth century. Come and enjoy this delicious and nutritious fruit at Amaro Bistro tonight!

When people come into our Bothell Italian restaurant, they are sometime surprised to find that there isn’t any spaghetti and meatballs on the menu. They reason that a dish so quintessential of Italian dining should be a standard for any proper Italian establishment. However, this is based on a popular misconception.

In truth, spaghetti and meatballs is not quite representative of authentic Italian food. Though the Italians will often enjoy both spaghetti and meatballs, occasionally in the same meal, the two are never served as a single dish. Mixing the meatballs in with the spaghetti is an innovation popularized by Italian-American immigrants, but remains largely unknown within Italy itself. Come on down to Amaro Bistro for a more traditional dish today!

There’s nothing quite like a sweet wine to go with your dessert at our Italian restaurant in Bothell. If you don’t know which dessert wine to pick, try a bottle of port. This long time favorite has been enjoyed with dessert ever since it was first brewed.

Port gets its name from its birthplace, the port city of Porto in Portugal. The drink comes in the form of wine, generally a red variety, fortified with a grape brandy during the fermentation process. The end result is a strong, sweet brew that retains some of the natural flavor of the grape. It makes for great match for many different foods so, if you’ve never tried this delightful brew before, treat yourself to a glass at Amaro Bistro tonight!

Though liquor is not generally a health food, many doctors will tell you that a moderate consumption of red wine is a fair addition to a health-conscious diet. Though the effects of red wine are not well understood, it has been observed that such wines might serve to decrease one’s risk of a heart attack or stroke.

The reasons behind this may be multi-faceted. The alcoholic content has a certain relaxing effect, which can reduce the stress that aggravates heart disease. Red wine pairs this effect with resveratrol, an antioxidant that has been found to protect your blood vessels from damage while also decreasing your levels of LDL cholesterol and discouraging clotting. This antioxidant is not found in beers, white wines, or other liquors.

Unfortunately, most of these observations have only been made with animal testing, and nothing conclusive has been drawn from human testing on the effects of red wine. All the same, it remains clear that red wine is a delicious way to complement many of the meals at our Bothell Italian restaurant. Come try one of Amaro Bistro’s many red wine offerings tonight!

Thank you to Bothell Eats for having us as a part of the review of Italian restaurants in Bothell!

“Antipasto” is an Italian word that translates into English as “before the meal”. It essentially describes an appetizer course, coming in the form of a small course early in the meal for diners to partake of while they wait on their main dishes. In an Italian household, the antipasto course may be a casual thing wherein they get a bit of salami, cheese, and bread out of the refrigerator while their meal is prepared. On more special occasions, the hostess may plan a more elaborate antipasto course with meat, fish, vegetables, and breads, the likes of which you might expect in an Italian restaurant.

When you dine out in Italy, you can generally expect some variety of antipasti. There may be a buffet, or you may be able to order up an appetizer from the kitchen. Some of the finer restaurants will make more of an event out of their antipasti, offering some elaborate specialty dishes to whet your appetite.

At Amaro Bistro in Bothell, we offer a variety of quality antipasto dishes. Try some sauteed calamari, beef tenderloin, bruschetta, white prawns, and more!