It might be billed as a wedding venue, but 53 By the Sea is a food destination in its own right.

The restaurant, located on the site of the former John Dominis, is the island’s newest Italian restaurant, headed by chef Hiroshi Hayakawa. The menu boasts an extensive variety of appetizers and entrees, many of them inspired by the cuisine of Sardinia, an island in the Mediterranean Sea.

You just have to get past the building.

The restaurant is on the ground floor of a $16 million, two-story Mediterranean-meets-gothic-style structure that’s part chapel, part reception hall with an unobstructed view of Diamond Head. To say it’s huge would be an understatement. In fact, it’s a little intimidating — and probably not be the best spot for a first date, if you know what I mean.

We were invited by the operators of the restaurant to check out the menu last night — and I never pass up a chance to eat!

So here’s what our dinner looked like:

Eggplant cioccolato

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Yes, this is a dessert with eggplant. This dish ($10) will blow your mind. It's a take on the traditional dessert using thinly sliced eggplants, doused in flour and fried. It's very similar to plantains — and truly tastes nothing like the vegetable. But I felt healthy eating it, so it topped my list! In all, the venue was beautiful, the view stunning, and the food interesting and new. You can opt for simple Italian dishes — shrimp scampi and mushroom risotto — or venture outside of your comfort zone. And for that reason, I'll definitely be back.