Tables piled high with bowls of steaming pasta, slow-cooked meat dishes that melt in the mouth and wood-fired pizzas for sharing, Italian cuisine is all about enjoying vibrant Mediterranean flavors and time with family and friends. Plan an Italian evening during your next Royal Resorts vacation, your options include La Trattoria at The Royal Cancun, gourmet pizzas under the stars at Pizza Luna at The Royal Haciendas or one of the Italian theme nights at the resorts. Buon appetito!

La Trattoria

Serving up traditional Italian cuisine at The Royal Cancun, La Trattoria is a Royal Resorts favorite whether you are sitting down with the family or planning an evening to celebrate an anniversary or a birthday.

The menu features platters of beef and salmon carpaccio, fried calamari and antipasti perfect for sharing with a bottle of crisp white wine. For something different try the Parmesan-crusted shrimp served with a tomato dipping sauce or the octopus carpaccio. Sprinkled with serrano chili, arugula and citrus vinaigrette, it is tender and delicious, the taste of the Caribbean.

As an alternative, order the classic minestrone soup or a fresh Mediterranean salad before deciding on your main courses and the choices are many, all delicious!

If you choose pizzas, the selection includes the classic Margherita, four-cheese, pepperoni, vegetarian, Mexican and Trattoria with mozzarella, Fontina, Asiago cheese, beef, arugula and red onion. Ask about the special Holbox pizza, a sublime medley of lobster and shrimp drizzled with garlic butter. Any of the combinations can also be ordered as a calzone.

Freshly made pastas range from wild mushroom gnocchi, spaghetti carbonara, rigatoni amatriciana and ricciolli puttanesca to spinach fettuccine in salmon sauce, spaghetti frutti di mare and lasagna. Risottos are another popular option with mixed seafood, ribeye and wild mushrooms or octopus.

Trattoria specialties include scampi, fish picatta, bistecca di manzo with Roquefort sauce, chicken parmesan and fish baked in citrus salt crust and served with limoncello sauce. Rack of lamb with Provençal crust, the Surf and Turf and an Angus beef fillet served with mustard and herb sauces are other delicious options.

There’s always space for dessert at La Trattoria and they are divine: freshly made cannoli, tiramisu, panna cotta, zuccotto and homemade gelato made with seasonal fruit, Ferrero chocolate, Edam cheese, pistachio and vanilla. Order an affogato or cappuccino and a shot of amaretto as the perfect finale to your meal.

Pizza Luna

For an evening of Riviera Maya dining with friends and family, Pizza Luna serves up gourmet pizzas cooked in a wood-burning oven on the pool deck at The Royal Haciendas. Enjoy delicious seafood and lobster pizzas and trattoria ambiance under the stars. Open from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Luna Grill location, closed Wednesdays.

Dining in? Order Bartolo’s Pizza

For a tasty casual supper in your villa for movie night or the game, call ext. 139 to order your favorite Bartolo’s pizza.

Italian night

There’s more delicious Italian fare in store during Italian night at the resorts. Enjoy an Italian buffet at La Veranda on Saturday evenings and at The Royal Cancun, The Royal Haciendas and Grand Residences on Wednesdays.