Fill Up and Fend Off Winter Chills With Annie's New Winter Menu

Though Annie's is known for its affordable pasta, pizza, and other conventional Italian fare, the increasingly ambitious Beijing chain has a pair of new dessert options that deserve equal, if not more, attention.

Part of a slew of new winter dishes at the restaurant chain’s more refined Antipasteria spinoff, the chocolate and coffee winter cup and orange caramel pannacotta with cinnamon streusel are clear successes as part of Annie’s recent efforts to serve more refined and distinctive Italian options.

We were recently invited to try both of these tempting sweets, along with several other winter Antipasteria options, at Annie’s Dawang Lu branch. At first glance, the chocolate cup looks like a latte, thanks to a frothy layer of foam on top, but once we dipped a spoon inside we were impressed by the lower layer of coffee-tinged chocolate mousse before the crunchy cookie layer made left our palates tingly with satisfying sweetness. The rum pannacotta was even better as its thin layers of orange caramel made for a unique flavor combination (since chocolaty fare can be found on any restaurant’s menu). The pannacotta's crumbly cinnamon streusel topping was deeply buttery and the rum aftertaste was an added bonus to an already impressive range of flavors encased in one little cup.

Delicious as both these dessert are, neither struck us as particularly wintry or especially suited for cold days – either would be just as satisfying in the thick of July’s mugginess and a piping hot option would certainly make the Antipasteria’s end of dinner indulgence all the better for this frigid time of year.

The main courses, however, do seem squarely aimed at helping customers put on the needed pounds to insulate themselves from the icy holiday season temperatures. The standout among these hearty options is the chicken parmigiana (see photo at top). A mainstay in many Italian homes, chicken parmigiana consists of a thin, breaded chicken breast fried ever so gently, then coated in deliciously gooey mozzarella, salty prosciutto cotto (cooked ham), and tomato sauce. It is a wholesome, straightforward dish that is also a departure from the pasta and noodles that are all too common at the plethora of Italian joints all over Beijing. An equal success is the penne all’Amatriciana made with pecorino cheese, tomato sauce and pork cheek that’s so tender it barely needs to be chewed.

The beef wellington, meanwhile, is almost as tender, requiring only a butter knife to slice despite its juicy beef inner layer. It’s an obviously tasty option that nevertheless underwhelms in comparison to the unique penne all’Amatriciana, chicken parmigiana, and desserts, since beef wellington is served at so many eateries as of late that it’s starting to feel like an overly trendy mainstay.

Hopefully, Annie’s will continue to serve more outside-the-norm options like the penne all’Amatriciana and chicken parmigiana in the future, along with those tasty desserts, because such items could make the restaurant chain just as well known for its Antipasteria as its value-for-money delivery and other well established – but less exciting – attributes.

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Email: kylemullin@truerun.com
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Photos: Annie's