palate v taste
Island Favorite Almost as old as Palm Beach itself, Testa’s is serving up comfort food at its best.
sigvision
By MARK SPIVAK
Shrimp Pomodoro is one of Testa’s popular Southern Italian dishes.
158 PALM BEACH ILLUSTRATED
The Testa family arrived in Palm Beach in 1921, 10 years after the town was founded, and opened a small soda fountain. They survived the hurricane of 1928, the Great Depression and World War II, and moved into their present location on Royal Poinciana Way in 1947. In the midst of their ninetieth season, they operate the oldest restaurant on the island. Once past the spacious outdoor terrace, the interior is decorated with paddle fans and original woodwork. A long wooden bar occupies one side of the dining room, and most of the remaining space is taken up by booths that resemble church pews. Ferns and planters add warmth to the decor, and the walls are festooned with vintage pictures of sunbathers luxuriating in the Gilded Age. Additional seating is available in Via Testa, the courtyard that adjoins the restaurant. Don’t expect to find the latest culinary trends at Testa’s. Instead, regulars come here for hefty portions of Southern Italian cuisine, occasionally rendered in such a way as to remind us why this style of cooking was once considered an art form. The menu is large, almost encyclopedic, offering a collection of dishes that qualify as Italian comfort food. Whatever you do, begin with a bowl of the wonderful cream of crab soup ($7.95). Rich and creamy, packed with flakes of crab and tasting of an intense seafood stock, it is redolent with the nutty flavor of sherry and a hint of black pepper. Eggplant Testa’s ($9.95) arrives in a small casserole, containing paper-thin slices of eggplant somewhat overwhelmed by mozzarella and ricotta cheese—satisfying, if not inspiring. The roll call of entrées includes steaks, chops and various renditions of veal, as well as a battery of fresh seafood dishes, but something about Testa’s makes you crave a bowl of noodles. The Tuscan pasta ($24.95) consists of linguine combined with sweet sausage, shrimp and fresh spinach in a sauce of white wine, olive oil, garlic and a chicken