Trofie, taglierini, and pesto from the terraces

Pasta is rolled and cut in the kitchen every morning. Taglierini — thin ribbons of egg pasta, the shape this part of Liguria reaches for first — and trofie, the short twisted pieces that are rolled by hand, one at a time, because no machine makes them the way they should be made.

The two of them carry most of the menu. Tossed with tomato and a little oregano, or with the pesto that gives the coast its smell: basil from the terraces above us, pine nuts, garlic, a mix of pecorino and parmigiano, and enough olive oil to make it a sauce rather than a paste. Trofie al pesto comes the traditional way, with potatoes and green beans cooked in the same water — a whole meal in a bowl, and the way it is eaten in Liguria.

Then there is the house plate: taglierini alla Billy, with prawns, pine nuts, fresh tomato and peppers. It has been on the menu longer than most of us have worked here, and it is the dish people come back for.

And the fish, of course. It arrives from the boats below in the morning — bream, bass, red mullet, whatever the night gave — and goes on the grill whole with olive oil, lemon and salt. We weigh it at the table so you pay for what you eat. Ask what came in; the answer changes every day.