If you are searching for a little piece of Italy on your doorstep, stepping inside Luigino’s is like opening a door and finding yourself in Umbria.
Formerly The Covenanter’s Hotel in Falkland, Luigino’s has been transformed into an Italophiles delight offering, as owner Nic Piercy puts it “gastronomic elements of Italy”.
With fabulous fresh food from home baked bread and freshly made pasta to fine Italian wine and delicious antipasto; rich coffee and strong and wonderfully sumptuous Italian hot chocolate, you will find all the gastronomic elements of Italy under one roof and if you decide to stay under that roof you will find the rooms are Italian in inspiration as is the entire décor of the restaurant, the delicatessen and the wine bar.
Open from 10 until 10, the great beauty about Luigino’s is that you can nip in for a late breakfast, grab a mid morning espresso or a delicious lunch, shop for dinner in the deli or stay awhile lingering in the restaurant and savour the wood-fired pizzas. Equally, you may choose to relax in the stylish wine bar and partake of some antipasto, winding down after a long day. No matter the time of day, Luigino’s has something to tempt you with.
The concept is unique in Fife and is decidedly refreshing. All the elements are Italian, including the design, but the craftsmanship is local. The stunning metalwork for the tables and the beds, the delicious woodwork in the bar surrounds and in the restaurant and the inspiring modern stained glass have all been made by local craftspeople to Italian designs in close cooperation with Nic and his Italian wife Simone.
The idea began with Luigino’s the restaurant, which opened in 2005 and was incidentally named after Nic’s father-in-law. The traditional wood-fired oven for the pizzas proved a resounding success and as the rooms in the adjoining hotel were in need of a total refurbishment, as was the bar area, Nic and Simone’s thoughts began to expand along Italian lines. A visit to Simone’s family in Umbria brought inspiration and the whole look is contemporary and fresh.
They could see the potential and have spent many months creating this Italian oasis in Fife. A modern Italian eatery may seem to some to be a little out of place in a medieval town so steeped in history, and it certainly has a touch of the cosmopolitan about it, but in fact, it actually has quite a rustic feel to it. The original stone blends perfectly with the modern wood and glass and stepping inside sets thoughts of Italian vineyards flitting through your head. Luigino’s does not look out of place in modern Falkland - a bustling town full of tourists visiting the Palace and its surrounds; they are the ideal audience for such a haven and the locals must be thanking their lucky stars they have Luigino’s on the doorstep.
The deli not only stocks all your Italian goodies, but also sells sizzling Italian sausages on freshly made bread – the sausages cooked while you wait over an open fire, the bread baked freshly on the premises every day. Fresh pasta is also made on site. Nic wants customers to be able to see just what goes on at Luigino’s so while you are sipping your wine and nibbling on antipasto in the wine bar, you can watch the fresh bread and pasta being made. The open wood-fired pizza oven is on constant view in the restaurant.
When everything is working full tilt, the aromas that emanate from Luigino’s are hard to resist – imagine the smell of freshly brewed coffee, newly baked bread and mozzarella slowly melting…
Luigino’s
High Street, Falkland
t: 01337 857224
info@luiginos.co.uk
www.luiginos.co.uk
Open 10-10 Monday to Saturday, 10-8 Sunday
