An Italian restaurant in Hale village is to mark its second anniversary by unveiling a full à la carte menu for the first time.
Family-run Il Trullo opened in March 2021 and has built a loyal local following for its range of tapas-style Italian cicchetti dishes.
But as the word has spread about the well-hidden restaurant - located close to the Railway pub but accessible only by a single entrance door on Ashley Road - more and more customers have started to request a more traditional menu.
So chef patron Mirco Franco has this month launched an à la carte menu with a full selection of main courses - but customers will still be able to enjoy the most popular cicchetti dishes as they’ll be still available as starters.
“The reception over the last two years has been great,” said Mirco.
“When people find us, they keep coming back.”
Mirco hails from Puglia in southern Italy but has worked in London, Australia and his home country during more than 20 years as a chef.
Prior to fulfilling his dream of opening a restaurant, he worked at the Albert’s restaurant chain in Worsley.
He says he is still obsessed with creating food that people love to eat.
“I am a chef before anything else,” he says. “I wake up every morning thinking ‘how can I do that dish better?’.”
The restaurant’s name refers to a traditional dry stone hut that’s specific to Apulia, where Mirco grew up.
It implies a fairly pokey interior - but once you ascend the steps from the pavement at Il Trullo, you discover a Tardis-light space, with two very attractive floors packed with tables amid blossom-lined walls.
The second-floor space is also available to hire for private parties.
While regulars will see a few changes with March’s relaunch, Mirco insists that some of the old favourites will be still there.
“We're going to keep our signature dishes, such as prawns wrapped in parma ham and scallops with spicy salami and hazelnut puree. These are our classic dishes that everyone knows when they come here.”
New main courses will include beef fillet - cooked in garlic, rosemary, brandy, Worcester sauce, demi-glace and cream - and chicken breast cooked in a mustard, chicken stock reduction, with creamy sauce and topped with asparagus and edamame beans.
Fish lovers can look forward to pan-fried salmon, beetroot purée, pickled beetroot, carrots and rocket leaves, and seabass fillets with chopped tomatoes, new potatoes, olives, oregano and basil oil.
Anyone looking to try out the new menu could enjoy two courses for £15 on weekdays between 5 and 7pm.
One thing all customers new and old can be assured of is a warm welcome.
“We're not pretentious,” says Mirco. “If you come here, you're going to feel like you're coming into a house... you're part of the family.”
Il Trullo, 136A Ashley Rd, Hale, Altrincham WA14 2UN. Open 5-10pm from Monday to Friday, except Tuesdays, Saturdays from 5-10.30pm and Sundays (including roast dinner) from 12-9pm. To book, call 0161 915 3537 or visit iltrullo.co.uk.
