One a fine sunny June day, our mom and the both of us decided to have lunch outside. We had a reason to celebrate actually, it was my (the elder twin) birthday. Our choice of restaurant was Tuscany Courtyard located on MM Alam Road Lahore. Now while we have eaten at the Islamabad outlet countless times, for some reason none of us had been to the Lahore one. I think we all pretty much liked the food at the one in Islamabad so our expectations were high from the very start.
You know how hot afternoons in June are, so we gave our car to the valet and basically sprinted inside the restaurant. Two very sweet ladies welcomed us and showed us the available seats. The first thing that I noticed were the dangling fairy lights in the corridor. The first thing that the younger sister and my mom noticed or rather smelt was that the place smelled of fish/sea food. While I love seafood, I’m sure no one is a huge fan of the smell.
We sat down, took our sweet time to order and decided on no appetizer and no drinks (other than water) to maintain appetite for the main course. The entrée that we ordered were, Chicken Lasagne marinara, Pollo Tuscan, Grilled chicken with mushroom and tarragon sauce. All of these were part of their Italian menu because when you are at a place that is named ‘Tuscany’ why would you order anything else.
While we waited for our mains to be served, we were served with the complimentary Garlic bread with salsa sauce (I think that’s what it’s called). It was a nice crispy bread (major pappar feels) topped with olives and served with salsa sauce, not something you can’t keep your hands off but good enough to keep your hands and mouth busy while waiting.
Our entrée were served in the time they told us they would and the first look made me super hungry! The entrées looked delicious, the portions were huge and the presentation was top-notch. The pollo Tuscan looked very similar to the filled chicken we had at The Lahore Social. The lasagne was beautifully wrapped in lovely golden cheese and the grilled chicken looked just as all grilled chickens look.
The Pollo Tuscan was nice soft cylindrical balls of chicken, covered in potato crust and filled with spinach and served with garlic rice. It was served in a lemony (tangy) sauce with grilled vegetables. I took a bite of it and instantly liked it. The serving size was huge and I have to regrettably tell you that I wasn’t able to finish it.
The lasagna looked amazing, however it tasted pretty average. Basically we make much better lasagne so I guess that is why we never like lasagne made by anyone else. It was a bit too tangy for our liking, I believe either the white sauce was missing or used too sparingly while layering.
The grilled chicken, according to Ami (mom) was the best out of the lot. The plate was filled with mushroom and tarragon sauce and it reminded her of a little café that she had eaten at in Italy and loved. The quantity was a lot, around three to four filets of chicken, with grilled veggies and baked potato. The sauce tasted amazing, the chicken was cooked to perfection and overall it was a good dish. (Writing about all of it makes me so hungry)
After filling our tummys till our throats (I know it doesn’t make sense but that’s how it felt), we decided to order dessert; because no food is complete without meetha. There were the regular options like molten lava, skillet brownie and a few other things that I did not want to have. There was a section that said ask your waiter about today’s special and so we did. He told me it’s New York Cheese cake, while I was expecting there to be something more fancy, I will have to admit I was beyond happy because NEW YORK CHEESE CAKE IS MY FAVOURITE DESSERT EVER! So I ordered and waited with bated breath to see how it would be. (I’m exaggerating) It came in a nice plate, looked perfectly white and gorgeous. As soon as I took one bite of it I knew it was heaven. That’s what it felt like. I used to love the one that Masoom’s sold but this one was equally good if not better. So my birthday was made and I ate all of it!
Overall experience at Tuscany Courtyard:
Pricing: 8/10
Ambience: 8/10
Variety: 9/10
Food Quality: 8/10
Food Quantity: 9/10
Cheese Cake: 100/10
Adventures of the crazy heart 
Leave a Reply