When La Piazza opened in the national capital 25 years ago, it raised the bar for Italian cuisine with delicacies the common people had only heard of. The trattoria-style restaurant with a live kitchen and warm interiors has been a favourite with Delhi gourmets since its inception and today, a quarter of a century later, La Piazza shows no signs of stopping to serve guests fresh, authentic, and flavourful dishes&mdashone bite of which will take a patron back to sunny Tuscany or hilly Bologna sitting inside Hyatt Regency Delhi at Bikaji Cama place.

I was recently at La Piazza&rsquos 25th silver jubilee dinner and to make the experience a memorable one, the original chef who launched the restaurant in 1994, Chef Hermann Grossbichler, was back to create a specially curated meal with original and newer items from the menu.

The candlelit dinner with wine and yellow lilies on the table set the mood and Chef Grossbichler, who is currently entertaining patrons at the Grand Hyatt Kochi Bolgatty, was busy creating a feast but found some time to talk about La Piazza. It was interesting to learn that this was the Austrian chef&rsquos first visit back to La Piazza in 25 years

While the special menu started with delicious raw beetroot ravioli with horseradish dressing, the cannellini bean soup with pancetta warmed the throat on a winter evening. While the menu went on with choices between vegetarian and non-vegetarian options in pastas, mains and desserts, the conversation at the dinner didn&rsquot stop as everyone enjoyed every bite.

This was a one-off celebration for the silver jubilee celebrations but don&rsquot fret if you weren&rsquot there. To continue the celebrations, La Piazza will have more exclusive menus and celebratory cookbooks throughout the year apart from launching a range of house wines, olive oil and cheese.

For reservations 91-11-66771308