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Archive for pasta – Page 2

Barrique

Aug13

Restaurant: Barrique

Location: 796 Main St, Venice, CA 90291. (310) 399-9010

Date: June 27, 2018

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent slightly upscale Italian

_

Barrique is the latest incarnation of a series of similar Italian restaurants by chef Antonio Mure. I’ve eaten at many of his restaurants, from Piccolo back in the old days to my location must missed il Carpaccio, La Botte, to Ado etc.

Barrique is housed in the former Van Gough’s Ear location, exactly where Ado was. And it has the same chef. And it’s still Italian. I guess there were some partner issues and it rebooted. Many of the dishes are signature Antonio Mure dishes I’ve had at most of his other places.


The menu.

The place is so quint and cute that the waiter had to server half the table through the window!

Insalata di Crescione, Pecorino, Cuori di Palma e Mandorle Tostate. Watercress Salad with Pecorino Cheese, Hearts of Palm and Roasted Almonds in a Balsamic Dressing.

Caprese di Bufala Napolentana. Sliced Bufalo Mozzarella served with sliced Heirloom Tomatoes with a Basil infused olive oil.

Prosciutto e Burrata. 18-Months Black Label Prosciutto di Parma and Burrata Cheese.

Polipo alla Griglia con Patate affumicate e Fagiolini con Aioli. Grilled Octopus served with Smoked potato and green beans and Aioli.


Simple pasta for the boy.

Parm comes through the window too.

Tagliolini Rossi con Ragù di Quaglia in Fonduta di Taleggio. Home-Made Red Beet Tagliolini Pasta, Marsala Quail Ragù on a Bed of Taleggio Cheese Fondue. This used to be one of my standards at Il Carpaccio and my mother LOVED it tonight.

Pappardelle con Ragu’ di Coniglio Prugne e Porcini. Homemade Pappardelle noodle served with Rabbit Ragu, Prunes, and a Porcini sauce. Great pasta texture.

Tagliatelle al Cioccolato con Ragu’ di Cinghiale all’ Amarone. Home-made cacao tagliatelle with an Amarone Wild Boar Ragu. Not sweet.

Branzino alla Griglia Servito con Cucuzza e Menta. Grilled Mediterranean Sea Bass served on a bed Braised Sicilian Cucuzza.

Filetto di Bue al Barolo Tartufato. Pan Seared Beef Filet Mignon served with a Barolo Truffle Butter Sauce.

Barrique has a cute unpretentious interior, nice service, and a classic Antonio Mure menu including his inventive and very tasty homemade pastas. Given how good a cook he is, I wonder why he’s had SO MANY restaurants — all of which have had very good food.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Quick Eats: Piccolo
  2. Quick Eats: Osteria Latini
  3. Quick Eats: Caffe Delfini
  4. Assaggi – not the first 3 letters
  5. Sage at Rossoblu
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Antonio Mure, Barrique, Champagne, Italian Cusine, pasta, Venice

n10 with the Gang

Jun27

Restaurant: n10 restaurant

Location:8436 W 3rd St, Los Angeles, CA, CA 90048. (310) 924-2011

Date: May 21, 2018

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Great pastas and hospitality

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I’ve been doing a lot of Foodie Club dinners the last couple of months because they have the best overall balance between food, wine, company etc and are smaller and more intimate.

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Larry has been friends for a while with the owner of the brand new n10 and so he set this one up.

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It’s a new Italian place on 3rd Street, right next to the now defunct/moved Gusto. They have a large (and nice) patio.
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The interior is big too with a top notch build out. At first we had the private room but an uppity chick coming for her birthday dinner threw a tantrum on the owner and we moved out to the patio — which was in many ways nicer because it was quiet and we had it all to ourselves.
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The menu.
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And an insert.
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Erick brought: 1996 Bruno Paillard Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut. VM 94. The 1996 Brut Blanc de Blancs is a rich, explosive wine that bursts onto the palate with a blast of ripe fruit. Generous notes of toasted oak, flowers and nuts follow, but everything is woven together in a fabric of unsual brilliance. The oak remains quite prominent and borderline intrusive but stylistically everything works. The wine comes together in the glass, where it also gains additional weight and fills out nicely. This is a powerful, heady and totally opulent Champagne that calls for food. In the right context it is sure to be extraordinary. At the risk of offending the Champenoise, the 1996 Brut Blanc de Blancs seems to scream for a poached egg generously topped with white Alba truffles!
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CHARCUTERIE. Prosciutto di Parma aged 24 months / prosciutto Toscano aged 20 months / finocchiona salami / speck /
nduja / bresaola / mortadella / spicy coppa / chicken liver pate / served with gnocco fritto.
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Puffy Emilia-Romagna style breads.
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Another view with the wine bucket.
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And a different bread type, plus Grissini.
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Seb is obsessed with this wine: 2014 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis 1er Cru La Forest. VM 94+. Bright, pale yellow. Lovely perfumed lift to the aromas and flavors of lemon zest, grapefruit and white flowers. Tactile and dense but very closed on the palate, combining a sexy sweetness for the year with powerful salinity and superb depth. Most impressive today on the energetic, slowly mounting, palate-staining finish, which leaves the retronasal passage quivering. Premier cru Chablis from the region’s left bank does not get much better than this.
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TUNA TARTARE. capers, agrumato, espelette pepper, preserved lemon.

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CARNE CRUDA. grass fed beef, whole grain mustard, lemon juice, cured egg yolk. Very nice tartar with the cured egg yolk.

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And bread for both tartars.
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BURRATA. pea sprouts, fennel, preserved lemon, olio verde. Imported from Italy.
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From my cellar: 2007 Venica & Venica Malvasia Collio. Great northern Italian white.
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PIZZA TARTUFATA. burrata, squash blossoms, black truffle. Nice pizza.
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Now we get into my favorites, the pastas:

PACCHERI. Maine lobster, crustacean broth, stracciatella, pomodorini, basil pesto.
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SPAGHETTI CHITARRA. Sea urchin, grey mullet, botarga, lemon zest. Another great one.
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From my cellar: 1997 Gaja Barbaresco. 95 points. Good full ruby-red. Superripe aromas of black raspberry, coffee, mint and oak, plus an exotic smoky note of torrefaction. Less complex than the ’98 but very concentrated, with surprising acidity giving the wine lovely vinosity. Strong note of dark chocolate in the mouth. Finishes long and juicy, with building tannins.
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BOMBOLOTTI SUGO TOSCANO. tomato, guanciale, soffritto onions, dry aged pecorino. First rate with a great bite and nice porky flavor.
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RISOTTO. porcini, zucchini, red wine braised chicken oysters. Interesting.
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GNOCCHI NORCINA. Sausage, porcini mushrooms, black truffle. I love Norcina and this was a fairly faithful version.
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2000 Château Montrose. VM 94. Full red-ruby. Roasted, smoky aromas of blackberry, blueberry and licorice. Plush, dense and large-scaled; expands impressively in the mouth. Chocolatey-ripe but kept fresh by nicely integrated acidity. Offers lovely sweetness without going over the top. Finishes with big, dusty, horizontal tannins and lovely aromatic persistence. Offers extraordinary texture and depth of flavor for a wine with just 12.8% alcohol.
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BONE-IN RIBEYE. cipolini onions, red wine sauce, rosemary roasted potatoes.
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Larry brought a Mollydooker Shiraz Velvet Glove but I forgot to get a photo of the year!
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COSTOLETTE D’AGNELLO. Australian lamb chops, shishito peppers, marinated cabbage, aged balsamic.
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RAPINI. garlic, olive oil, chili. Like a Chinese green (almost).
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CARCIOFI. roasted artichokes, guanciale, Calabrian chili. These were nice.
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Our very generous host brought this Barolo out for us on the house! 1999 Gomba Boschetti Barolo Sori Boschetti

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Here is the owner with Larry. Next we go into dessert overload!
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SEMIFREDDO. dark, milk and white chocolate, amaretti cookies, blackberries. I love semifreddo.
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With the chocolate sauce.
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CREPE CAKE. poppy seeds, pastry cream, strawberries.
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TIRAMISU. lady fingers, espresso, mascarpone mousse. This was a good “real” tiramisu — not as good as mine, of course, but good.

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I can’t remember exactly what this was, but coconut I think.
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Some nice gelatti, not made in house though, and not nearly as good as mine, but still solid.

Pistachio Gelato. A bit mild, but nice texture.
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Caramel Gelato.
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Chocolate Gelato.
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Stracciatella Gelato.
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Raspberry Sorbetto.

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Oh, and some Sassicaia grappa to finish — took a couple layers off my gut! Not really a grappa fan.

But this was a great night and a lot of fun. Really good food, particularly the pastas, apps, pizzas and desserts (I rarely love the mains at Italian) and amazing service and hospitality!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. (Not) Trimming Capo
  2. Gusto Italiano
  3. Crafty Culina
  4. Bestia – Bring out the Beast
  5. Osteria Latini 3
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Foodie Club, Italian cuisine, N10, pasta, West Hollywood, Wine

(Not) Trimming Capo

May18

Restaurant: Capo [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Location: 1810 Ocean Ave, Santa Monica, Ca. 310-394-5550

Date: April 11, 2018

Cuisine: Italian with Cal influences

Rating: The food here is really very very good.

_

Tonight’s two part extravaganza begins with a stop off at Sage Society for a “pre-dinner” Trimbach tasting!

This takes place in sage’s cellar “social hall.”

With plenty of snacks. Liz carefully pairs even these amuses with the wines so the little tags are wine numbers so you can match them up.

And lots and lots of Trimbach, mostly riesling, of course. This includes several vintages of the incomparable Clos st Hune and a couple of super sweet VT and SGN wines.

In the house was Anne Trimbach (on the right).

In any case, on to Capo and the main event. Capo is a favorite of mine and I’ve reviewed it before HERE and HERE. They have a particular high end (but not formal) blend of California style (Farmer’s Market ingredients) and Italian tradition. But it’s not a strictly traditional Italian, more interpreted through a vaguely Tuscan / California vibe.

But today, the Foodie Club decides to brace their strict 2 bottle corkage policy and head on in with a small crew of four of us.

Bread and Tuscan white bean paste.

We found this 1976 Chassagne Montrachet on Capo’s wine list and it was actually in pretty good shape for a 42 year-old village!

Maryland crab torta. This really is Crab Norfolk, and it’s probably the best one I’ve ever had, and I spent summers as a boy in Oxford Maryland, land of the blue crab. This is a big juicy pile of delicious blue crab, drenched in butter, and their special touch is a little Meyer lemon in the mix. Bellissimo!

Toro Tartar. Like Nobu’s, but no wasabi ponzu. Really excellent actually.

Dutch White Asparagus with prosciutto.

Foie Gras on toast. Big portion, but the sauce overwhelmed.

Fred brought: 2004 Château Margaux. VM 94. Bright red-ruby. Knockout nose features boysenberry, currant, cedar, graphite and mocha. Suave, gentle and sweet, already displaying ineffable inner-mouth perfume. The 17% merlot component injects a silky component, and the oak element adds a complementary sweetness. Complex, lush, horizontal finish saturates the mouth with flavor. It was not clear to me in April that the 2006 would exceed this-and it will certainly take longer to reach full maturity in bottle.

Dungeness Crab Risotto. Pretty awesome and a California take on the Italian dish.

Pasta with uni, squid, and shrimp. Really nice bright seafood pasta.

Tortelli di Zucca. Not exactly the classic pasta, although it might have had a touch of Amaretto cookie in it — great nonetheless.

Rigatoni, truffle meat sauce. Capo is amazing at these meaty pastas. Perfect chew to the pasta itself, incredibly savory sauce.

Bucatini with lamb ragu. This is one of my favorite pastas. I love the bucatini, I love the gamey ragu. A tough call which is better with the rigatoni.

Larry brought: 1999 Tua Rita Redigaffi Toscana IGT. 95 points. It needed time to open up, had a dense garnet color, with a fading garnet rim, on the nose had some ripe cherry, chocolate, earth, floral, slight herb, a hint of VA. The palate had very ripe fruit, was slightly out of balance with more fruit than acidity (whereas the Masseto was very balanced here). Food worked great with this wine, bringing out plum and cherry flavors through to an excellent finish. Blueberry, brown sugar, stewed/baked blueberry flavors also noted. “Massive, beautiful now, will last ten more years,” but the wine had a few detractors: “very American, pales in comparison with the Italian acidities, unfocused. Overall, probably averaged a 95-96 score for the scorers.

Colorado rack of lamb.

Strauss Osso Buco.

I can’t remember what came in this.

The amazing classic chocolate soufflé.

Made even better with some slightly orange cream.

Berry crumble.

Petit fours.

This was a relatively simple evening for the Foodie Club, but great fun and the quality level was superlative. I just love Capo’s pastas. They do them in this correctly cooked, Italian but not Italian hearty style that is just filled with flavor punch. Balance is superb.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Capo Hits a Triple
  2. Food as Art: Capo
  3. Capo Valentines
  4. Wine Guys at Capo
  5. Seconds at Sotto
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: asgavin, Capo, Foodie Club, Italian cuisine, pasta, Sage Society, Wine

Quick Eats – Orto

Apr02

Restaurant: Orto

Location: 502 Santa Monica Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90401. (424) 433-8100

Date: February 4, 2018

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: A bit oddball

_

Back in December I was walking along Santa Monica Blvd when a restaurant manager I knew from Locanda Portafino grabbed me off the street and told me about his new place, Orto.

LA loves Italian.

And Orto takes over the Jiraffe space after that restaurant’s 19 year run. Pretty two level space with a minibar.

Well located just off the 3rd Street Promenade. It was Superbowl Sunday and the place was EMPTY. We were the only customers at 7pm!

Il Menu.

A glass of Italian white to start.

Insalata di barbatietole. rainbow beets carpaccio, micro-greens and goat cheese. Pretty upscale beet salad.

Burrata a piacere. Italian Burrata with your choice of 24 months San Daniele prosciutto. Nice version of this classic.

Glass of amarone.

Cavatelli with pomodoro sauce. My son loved it.

Trofie al pesto, gagiolini e patate. Traditional pesto, string beans and potatoes. Extremely extremely traditional pesto style from Portafino area. Very authentic as you can see from my Italian meals in that area.

Cavatelli tartufati alla Norcina. Very creamy version of this classic Umbrian dish. Norcina is one of my favorite pastas and I very rarely see it outside of Italy. This version had great fresh truffles and was very creamy. The sausage was a bit downplayed. Delicious, if not quite the same balance as the Umbrian version.
 Chocolate gelato. My son devoured it but not even close to as good as mine!

Overall, Orto’s food was quite good and quite authentic for LA. The space is nice but on our (Superbowl) night it was dead. Felt very upscale and almost dated despite being brand new because it isn’t hip and in the vibe of the newer LA Italian places like Sotto or Bestia or Officine. I hope they have some business, but there are very few recent Yelp reviews so I wonder. Might not last at all. Despite the quite good food, I just don’t think people are looking for this style of more “formal” Italian. They seem to like the newer louder places with more rustic cooking.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Quick Eats – Obica SM
  2. Quick Eats: Piccolo
  3. Quick Eats: Caffe Delfini
  4. Quick Eats: Divino
  5. Quick Eats – Bar Pinxto
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Italian cuisine, Orto, pasta, Santa Monica

Sage at Rossoblu

Dec01

Restaurant: Rossoblu

Location: 1124 San Julian St, Los Angeles, CA 90015. (213) 749-1099

Date: November 1, 2017

Cuisine: Italian (Emilia Romagna)

Rating: Very tasty modern rustic style

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Los Angeles Italian restaurants are getting more explicitly regional. Rossoblu is helmed by Chef Steve Samson (who opened at Sotto) whose family is from Bologna in Emilia Romagna — a city and region of epic food tradition (check out my own visit to the area here). This visit was organized by Liz Lee of Sage Society.

The location is in DTLA in one of those ugly market districts on the southeastern side of the city. The building looks new and certainly newly renovated with a slightly oddball but large front patio. The neighborhood is kinda sketchy.

Inside is modern and attractive with a slightly offset bar area.

And a spacious main dining room with very high ceilings.

The menu.

The kitchen is open and the hood huge — with one of those wood burning roasting ovens.

We each brought geeky central Italian wines. First the whites.

Liz brought: 2000 i Clivi Galea. 93 points. Very cold weather and herbal.

From my cellar: 2010 Paolo Bea Arboreus. 93 points. Very interesting orange wine. This is a wine that continues to exceed my already-high expectations for it. In this setting it held its own against two hearty pasta dishes—not the fare you would typically associate with Trebbiano, but then again this isn’t your typical Trebbiano. Bea’s decision a few years ago to add a touch more sulfur when bottling has increased the wine’s stability and reduced its oxidative quality somewhat, without losing any of the characteristics that make this wine what it is. Always a delight.

Kirk brought: 2010 Le Macchiole Paleo Bianco Toscana IGT. VM 88.  Light, bright yellow. Honeydew and pineapple aromas, along with floral and grapefruit nuances. Juicy, spicy and high-pitched, offering brisk flavors of citrus zest, winter melon and fresh herbs. Finishes slightly dry, with refreshing bite and good spicy persistence.

Grilled buckley bay oysters. Brown butter, sage, parmigiano reggiano, lemon breadcrumbs. Certainly I’ve never seen these in Italy but these “almost like Oyster Rockefeller” oysters were quite good.

Grilled Santa Barbara spot prawns. Breadcrumbs, parsley, Romagnola Olive Oil. These were great prawns — although again you wouldn’t see this exact dish in Italy — and the row in particular was awesome.

Swiss chard ebazzone tartlet. Stracchino, Chicory Salad. A lot like a Greek Spanakopita. Behind it is a kind of Emilia Romagna cheese (stracchino) in olive oil.

Strozzapreti. Clams, shrimp, lobster mushrooms, tomato. Essentially a Gauzetto sauce. Very nice al dente bite on the thick pasta. Really lovely for a seafood pasta actually, although somehow felt a little more Southern Italian.

Valbruna’s Eggplant. Tomato sugo, parmigiano reggiano, basil. Bright pizza flavors. Nice fresh eggplant dish.

Whole grilled orata. lemon arugula. Nice fresh fish but with a strong grilled flavor — undoubtedly down on the wood fire grill.

Liz brought: 1985 Castell’in Villa Chianti Classico Riserva. AG 93. The 1985 Chianti Classico Riserva is a gorgeous wine. It has plenty of depth and richness to match its fabulous overall balance. The warmth of the vintage is very nicely balanced here. The bouquet is starting to show early signs of development, which suggests the 1985 won’t be one of the longer-lived vintages at Castell’in Villa, but it should continue to drink well for another 5-7 years, perhaps longer.

From my cellar: 1966 Badia a Coltibuono Chianti Classico Riserva. 89 points. A little sharp but still in amazing shape given that it’s a 51 year old Chianti!

From my cellar: 1999 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Secco. AG 95. The wine was absolutely majestic. Tons of fruit!

Pappardelle. Sausage ragu, broccoli, ricotta. Very nice sausage and broccoli pasta. Very al dente with a lot of rich flavor.

Maltagliati. Procini & pioppini mushrooms. Dandelion greens, sage. Particularly tasty for a vegetarian pasta. The mushrooms were almost meaty. Again extremely al dente.

Very Emilia Romagna style puffy breads.

For the Salumi board. Sotto cenere / testa, whipped dry aged beef tallow. Mortadella DOP, prosciutto di parma (30 months), served with stracchino cheese.

Nonna’s Tagliatelle al ragu Bolognese. Beef, pork, not too much tomato sauce. Very traditional Bolognese with LOTS of meat. Good stuff.

Risotto. Yellow corn, chanterelle mushrooms. Lovely almost sweet / cheesy risotto. Nice bite to the rice.

Milk braised pork shoulder. caramelized cabbage. Really nice soft flavorful pork.

Coal roasted vegetables. Carrots, beats, etc. Sea salt. Olive oil. Was getting pretty full for veggies.

The dessert menu.

Tiramisu Tradizionale. Cognescenti espresso, blackstrap rum, mascarpone. As good a tiramisu as you get in a restaurant, although not as good as my own.

Fall Date Blondie. Nutmeg cream, maple walnuts, coppa di gelato. More like a spice cake with whipped cream.

Overall, Rossoblu (named after the colors of the Bologna soccer team), adds another great entry into the new LA Italian dining scene. It’s focused on Emilia Romagna, but more like the rustic home cooking of an older Emilia Romagna as filtered through LA sensibility. My own experiences in the region show considerably less rustication. But in any case Rossoblu is very tasty. The pastas in particular were fabulous — and I’m always a pasta fiend. Too bad, like Officine, Bestia, and Factory Kitchen, it’s located ALL THE WAY Downtown — 1:45 of traffic.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Sage at Oliverio
  2. Eating Staggia – Pozzo dei Desideri
  3. Eating Modena – Il Fantino
  4. Eating Modena – Osteria del Pozzo
  5. Eating Cervia – Locanda dei Salinari
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Italian Cusine, Los Angeles, pasta, Rossoblu, Sage Society, Steve Samson, Wine

Totally Toscana

Oct04

Restaurant: Toscana

Location: 11633 San Vicente Blvd #100A, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 820-2448

Date: August 18, 2017

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent upscale neighborhood Italian

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I haven’t been to Toscana (other than one quick lunch) in over 10 years but Seb was willing to drive across the city so we headed out on a Friday night “double date” (my wife was my date obviously). The place has been open since 1989 but is still seriously holding its own. It was mobbed as was Bar Toscana next door.

Raw vegetables on the table. Toscana has had these for at least 20 years, probably longer.

Sebastian demos — a theme for this post.

From my cellar: 2013 Azienda Agricola Bucci Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore. VM 92. Bright-straw yellow. Knockout nose combines orchard fruits, anise and crushed stone. Dense, juicy and brilliantly delineated, offering very pure, intense flavors of tangy stone fruits, almond paste and flinty minerality. Offers lovely grip and intense, lingering floral notes. This is much more minerally than the 2014 Verdicchio.

Crispy pizza-like bread.

Insalata Carciofi. Baby artichokes, fine slices of pecorino cheese, lemon, walnuts, fennel & fava beans.

Burrata. Creamy mozzarella, bibb lettuce, tomato. Love burrata of course.

Insalata di Pere. Spinach salad with pear, goat cheese and walnuts. My wife’s dream salad (she loves pear, goat cheese, and walnuts).

Prosciutto e Melone. Artisanal 24-months prosciutto di Parma with *melon

Tartufo Nero e Burrata. Burrata cheese and winter black truffle. Tasted of truffle…

Smelled like truffle!

From my cellar: 2007 il Cocco Brunello di Montalcino. 95 points. Great grapey brunello.

Trenette al Pesto. Linguine with pesto sauce. Nice solid classic pesto.

Ravivioli di Carne. Homemade veal ravioli with butter and sage. I love this old school butter and sage sauce with a meat ravioli.

Special spaghetti with king crab and shrimp. Great pasta too with lots of crab.

Risotto ai Funghi Selvatici. Arborio rice and wild mushrooms. A solid risotto.

Milanese. Pounded veal chop in bread crumb. Old school!

The lemon helped lighten it up. I was getting very full though.

Bone in.

The dessert spread. Like many traditional Italian places in Italy, Toscana has a great selection of tortes.

Blueberry torte. Fabulous buttery crust.

Chocolate mouse torte and profiterole. The torte had milk chocolate mouse, white chocolate mouse, and shaved white chocolate.
 Overall, I was very impressed, and we should go back more often — far more often than once a decade. Toscana was a regular place for my wife and I when we were young and used to eat out late (Naughty Dog hours). I assumed it was “dated” but far from it, still a great Italian and one of the best in Brentwood (which is jammed with Italians).

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Totally Totoraku
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  3. Osteria Latini 3
  4. Eating Positano – Next2
  5. Fraiche Santa Monica
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Brentwood, Italian Cusine, pasta, Pizza, Toscana, Wine

Pasta makes me Felix

Sep22

Restaurant: Felix

Location: 1023 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, CA 90291. (424) 387-8622

Date: August 8 & September 10, 2017 and October 1 & 22, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Some of the best pasta I’ve had in LA

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Felix is Latin for happy — and indeed, pasta makes me happy. Chef Evan Funke takes the whole pasta thing VERY seriously. Funke’s singular passion as a pasta maker and chef was solidified in Bologna, under the mentorship of Alessandra Spisni at La Vecchia Scuola Bolognese.

The space was formally occupied by LA classic, Joe’s.

There is still the cute bar area, which is mobbed. Felix is one of the hardest reservations to get in town right now.

The dining room doesn’t look too different. They built a giant temperature controlled pasta room though — maybe it was the wine cellar before, hard to remember.

I believe in doing it right, and this is “the plan” hatched by Emil and myself for our night’s eating. We broke things down into about 6 courses and are ordering 9 out of the 11 pastas!
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The slightly different change on the second visit.
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The 10/1/19 menu.
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And the 10/22/19 menu. Surprisingly, they change up the specific pizza and pastas all the time.
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Regular bread on request.

Emil brought: 2013 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Corton-Charlemagne. BH 91-93. Reduction flattens the underlying fruit but there is fine freshness, intensity and detail to the muscular and concentrated big-bodied flavors that possess excellent depth on the stony, lingering and austere finish that is dry but not hard to aggressive. This will definitely require a few years of bottle age to become more civilized as it’s quite firm today.

SFINCIONE. Focaccia siciliana, sea salt & rosemary. A poofy bread. People rave about this, it was a nice bread, but I was more into the dishes that followed.

Burrata Pugliese. Adriatic figs, basil & balsamico, sette anni. A really nice little burrata, basil, and fig salad.

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Burrata Pugliese (9/10/17). Heirloom tomatoes, basil & balsamico sette anni. The second time we came the burrata was tomato based.

Cicoria, honey dates, bagna cauda, capers, pine nuts & pecorino. Awesome salad. The dressing was very sharp and contrasted nicely with the salty cheese and the sweet dates.
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TREVISO (10/22/19). salsa di acciughe, lemon, pangrattato & pecorino romano. Another nice salad. Less bitey than the one above.

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Cavolfiori Fritti (9/10/17). Bagna cauda, capers, lemon, & bread crumbs. A very nice fried cauliflower, not unlike the classic Lebanese sort.

Fiori di Zucca. Squash blossoms & fior di latte. I would assume that in this case the fior di latte is ricotta or similar. Very nice fried squash blossoms.

Crudo di Gamberi. ridgeback prawns and umbrian black truffles. Nice. Salty. Truffle wasn’t that strong.

Polipo alle Brace. Grilled octopus, salmorligio & insalta di ceci. Very nicely cooked and tender octopus.

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Cozze alla Marinara (9/10/17). Hope ranch mussels, garlic, peperocino, pomodoro & scarpetta. Great guazetto based sauce. Perfect with bread.

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Polpette della maestra alessandra (9/10/17). Pork meatballs, salsa verde, & parmigiano reggiano. Slightly salty pork meatballs with a very nice pesto-like sauce.

Yarom and the manager.

Pougs brought: 1996 Domaine Robert Groffier Bonnes Mares. VM 93+. Ruby-red. Intensely spicy aromas of blueberry, blackberry and licorice. Almost painfully sweet and powerful in the mouth, with a muscular backbone and compelling finishing flavors of sappy berries. A penetrating floral quality emerged with aeration. Really amazing fruit here, and quite explosive on the aftertaste. The ’97 Bonnes-Mares has even more structure and guts, claims Serge.

agavin: hard as nails even after being open awhile, needs 10 more years!


Viadante. Mortadella, ricotta & Sicilian pistachio. Really nice and quite different pizza — with Bologna1A0A2572

Pizza Funghi (9/10/17). Porcini, parmigiano, asiago, & mozzarella di bufala.

DIAVOLA Pomodoro, smoked for di latte & salame napoletano. Basically a spicy pepperoni pizza — delicious though! Crust is great here too.
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Fichi e Prosciutto pizza (10/1/19). Late summer figs, prosciutto di parma, mozzarella di bufalo & robiola. A love prosciutto on pizza.
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Quattro Pizza (10/22/19). Taleggio, mozzarella di bufalo, robiola & parmigiano reggiano. Nice and cheesy!

Erick brought: 1996 Domaine A.-F. Gros Richebourg. VM 96. Similar red-ruby color. Fabulous, noble aromas of black cherry, black raspberry, flowers, minerals and sappy oak. Juicy black fruit flavors of extraordinary intensity and sweetness. Uncanny inner-mouth perfume. The explosive finish builds and builds. One of the high points of the vintage.

agavin: drinking great

Gnocchetti Sardi. Guanciale, artichoke, & botarga. That salty/fish umami texture blended with the unctuous pork fat. Great chewy pasta.

Spaghetti al Nero di Seppia. Sugo alla puttanesca. Squid ink pasta. Again texture was great. This was basically a guazzetto sauce (garlic, tomatoes, olive oil, seafood). It was good, but I liked some of the others better. It could maybe have used some more seafood, maybe even uni — but then it wouldn’t be traditional.

Spaghettone alla Norma. Eggplant, pomodorini, basil & ricotta salata. I would have thought this would be boring but it was actually very well balanced. Not fancy, really just a great spaghetti with pomodoro sauce (and eggplant).

Yarom brought: 1999 Tua Rita Redigaffi Toscana IGT. RP 99. The 250-case cuvee of 100% Merlot, the 1999 Redigaffi has an astonishing 36 grams per liter of dry extract, which exceeds most top Pomerols in a great vintage! Unfined and unfiltered, it is as close to perfection as a wine can get. The color is a deep saturated blue/purple. The powerful, pure nose offers smoke, licorice, black cherry, and blackberries. It boasts awesome concentration, a fabulously dense, viscous mid-section, and a finish that lasts for nearly a minute. This is riveting juice. Anticipated maturity: now-2015.

Trofie. Pesto Genovese & pecorino stagionato. This is an incredibly classic Ligurian dish. Check out the original, the only thing missing was the sliced potato and green beans. The Felix version was dead on and the trofie texture, perfect for the pesto, was fabulous.

Pisarei. Ragu di cutello & parmigiano reggiano. Amazing green larva-like chewy pasta, rice northern sausage, and a very complementary cheese. A super fabulous pasta.

Pappardelle. Ragu bolognese “vecchia scuola” & parmigiano reggiano 60 months. Classic, classic bolognese. Again perfect pasta and some really fabulous meaty ragu.

 

On our second visit (9/10/17) we got some additional pastas. One we missed the first time, the others were just changes on the menu.
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Tonnarelli cacio e pepe (9/10/17 & 10/22/19). black pepper & pecorino fruili. cacio e pepe (cheese & pepper) is all the rage these days — funny how you never saw it until about 5-6 years ago. Very easy to make at home too if you get the right ingredients.
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Chitarra (9/10/17). Ragu abruzzese & pecorino stagionato.
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Busiate (9/10/17). Pesto trapanese & pecorino siciliano. Interesting corkscrews with a squash sauce.

 

Third visit (in October 2019) had these new pastas (and some repeats):
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BUSIATI (10/1/19 & 10/22/19). pesto trapanese, pomodorini & pecorino siciliano. This had incredible bright tomato acidic flavors. Lots and lots of flavor and these thick rope-like pasta tendrils.

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Tagliatelle (10/1/19). ragù bolognese“vecchia scuola” & parmigiano reggiano 24 mo. Different shaped pasta than it was a couple years ago. Good, but not my favorite.

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MEZZE MANICHE ALLA GRICIA (10/1/19). guanciale, black pepper & pecorino romano DOP. A lot like a Carbonara, but maybe even porkier.

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ORECCHIETTE (10/1/19 & 10/22/19). sausage sugo, spigarello, peperoncino & canestrato. Awesome bursts of flavor and really chewy have sphere pastas.

 

Fourth visit had yet more new pastas:
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Special spinach and cheese stuffed pasta (10/22/19) with…
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Expensive but delicious white truffles.
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And cheese. Awesome, awesome dish.
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STRANGOLAPRETI (10/22/19). heirloom spinach, ricotta & burro fuso e salvia. Really nice burnt butter balls.

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Loads of flour.
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Chef Evan Funke in his special pasta chamber.

Emil brought: 1989 Giovanni Corino Barolo Vigna Giachini. VM 91. Corino’s 1989 Barolo Vigna Giachini offers up cedar, mushrooms and a host of mostly mature aromas and flavors on a delicate, elegant frame. The tannins remain a touch firm, but there doesn’t appear to be much upside in holding bottles too much longer.

agavin: young still, but reaching maturity. Great Barolo!

Mezze Maniche all Gricia. Guanciale, black pepper & pecorino romano DOP. Pork fat, pepper, pecorino, flavors much like a cacio e pepe (leaning heavier on the pork) or carbonara (minus the egg). Super chew pasty, bright fatty flavors. Very Roman.

Rigatoni All’Amatricina. Guanciale, pomodoro & peccorino romano DOP. Classic version of this dish with extremely al dente pasta tubs and an excellent salty pork cheek fat flavor to the sauce (as it should).

Orecchiette. Susage sugo, broccoli di cicco, peperoncini & provola. Great texture to the pasta, this one had a “sausage” and “bitter green” vibe. It was really bracing and surprisingly delicious.

From my cellar: 2000 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Le Rocche del Falletto di Serralunga d’Alba. VM 97. I have had mixed experiences with Bruno Giacosa’s 2000 Barolo Riserva Le Rocche del Falletto, but this bottle, from a case I purchased on release, is absolutely stellar. Intensely sweet, floral aromas soar from the glass. Radiant, open-knit and super-expressive, the Riserva captures all the best qualities of the vintage. It has been a few years since I last tasted the 2000. In that time, the wine appears to have barely budged at all, which will come as welcome news to readers who own it. The 2000 Riserva doesn’t quite reach the heights of the truly epic Giacosa wines of the era, but it comes close, especially on this night. I can only hope that future bottles show this well.

agavin: I should have listened to my instincts. This was a fabulous wine, but I had brought 97 and 98 Gaja Barbaresco too and Yarom convinced me to open the red label. Even after 1.5 hours in the decanter this wasn’t even close to ready. Needs at least 10 more years.

Bistecca di Maiale. Peeds & Barnett Pork shoulder steak, nectarines and basil. Our lone “entree” was this salty bit of pork steak goodness. Paired nicely with the fruit and basil.
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Bistecca di Maile (9/10/17). Peads & barnett pork shoulder steak, peaches & basil. Very slightly different.
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Carre di agnello (9/10/17). rack of lamb, adriatic figs and mint. Great stuff.
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Coppa di Maiale (10/1/19). Pork shoulder steak, porchini & sugo di arrogato. Interesting dish, and delicious.

Potatoes.

A berry tart. Good but the weakest of the 3 desserts.

Tiramisu. I’m usually disappointed by tiramisu given how good my own is, but this one was excellent, as good as I’ve had in recent memory.

Budino. Walnuts or pecans. This was good stuff. I love adult pudding.

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Chocolate Tart, figs (10/1/19).

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Chocolate Tart, cherries (10/22/19).
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Amaretto Gelato (10/1/19 & 10/22/19). Delicate, and not as good as mine (Sweet Milk) but nice nonetheless.

Overall, this was a pair of fabulous meals. The manager and staff took great care of us, despite being amazingly crowded (even at 5:45 on a Thursday one time, similar time on a Sunday the other). And the food was just really really good. It’s very much a hybrid of the contemporary bright flavor rustic Italian that has been so successful at places like Sotto and Bestia and an ultra traditional top notch pasta execution. Each pasta dish had it’s own pasta, each was cooked perfectly al dente, and despite many of the sauces sharing a lot of ingredients (pork jowl, here’s looking at you), they each had strong individual flavors. Really, really great pasta and overall not a single dish that missed, varying from very good to amazing.

In October of 2019 I went twice again, with smaller family groups. A bit of a pain to get into, and extremely loud, but the service is great and while expensive the dishes are really punched up. Love the salads, pizzas, and pastas. The mains and desserts are good but just fine. But the pastas, while not totally Italian authentic, are incredibly GOOD. Very punchy high acidity flavors. Lots of chewy interesting pasta shapes.

Bravo!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

Below are the 9/10/17 wines (the ones integrated above were from the 8/8/17 dinner).

Related posts:

  1. Hostaria del Piccolo – Pizza + Pasta
  2. Reference Pasta – Cacio e Pepe
  3. Palmeri again
  4. Seconds at Sotto
  5. Ultimate Pizza – Day 3
By: agavin
Comments (2)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Evan Funke, felix, hedonists, Italian cuisine, pasta, Pizza, Wine

Uovo – Italian Sugarfish

Aug26

Restaurant: Uovo

Location: 1320 2nd St, Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 425-0064

Date: August 26, 2017

Cuisine: Italian Pasta

Rating: Very good classic Italian pastas

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Uovo is an interesting new concept from at least one of the Sugarfish owners — but instead of over-ponzued sushi, it’s classic Italian pasta. Uovo means egg in Italian (used in the pasta).

Just across 2nd street from the Sugarfish in Santa Monica — 2nd street is being taken over by fast concepts.

The decor is a lot like Sugarfish, small, modern, mixing bar and tables.

Lots of pasta bar.

Look at the hyper focused menu. Just pasta. A couple veggies. No salads. Nothing else at all. No desserts even!

There is a bunch of song and dance about the pasta being made in Bologna. Truth is, they are right about the eggs for the most part. Italian eggs are fabulous and along with the flour and olive oil are key to great pasta. You can get some similar eggs here, but they are very pricy organic fertile eggs.

There are a few very simple wines and beers. All by the glass. Sugarfish has always been minimalist on the beverages.

Tortellini Crema di Parmigiano. Handmade tortellini in cream of Parmigiano-Reggiano. Butter/cream/parm sauce. Very simple but nice tortellini. There was pepper in the stuffing too as their should be. Extremely simple flavor, and rich, but very well done.

Tonnarelli al Pomodoro. Imported tomatoes & 24-month-aged Parmigiano-Reggiano. My 8 year-old loved it.

Ravioli di Ricotta. Ricotta ravioli in pomodoro sauce. Simple also, very soft ravioli — they could have been more al dente.

Tonnarelli all’Amatriciana. Imported tomatoes, pecorino, onion, guanciale & red chili pepper. I prefer the more traditional tubular pasta shape with all’Amatriciana but the sauce was excellent and the guanciale crispy.

Lasagna Verde. Meat lasagna made with green pasta. Rich creamy/nutty sauce. A nice baked lasagne.

Service was slightly confused for being a few days open, but very attentive and nice. Dishes came out one by one. 16% tip (taxed too) is included. This is hyper focused both in menu and service. It didn’t take long and it was certainly fine.

Pasta was very solid. It’s not as good as Felix, and certainly way less adult. Very “classic” Italian, like you’d get at an old fashioned Italian restaurant in Italy. Fairly limited set of noodles and flavor profiles. Not much in the the way of actual vegetables in the dishes and pretty focused on cheese and simple meats. Lots of red sauce. No sausage. No Pesto. No guazetto. No walnut sauce. All very traditional pasta types not included. They can of course add them later but these are fairly tailored to appeal to really straight up American tastes while being drawn from a classic Italian playbook.

For me, a good spot for a quick pasta lunch or a very casual family dinner with the kids. Don’t bring more than 4 people. Uovo doesn’t take reservations and you pay at the counter (after your meal, it is full service more or less).

There was already a line by 5:30pm.

There was no dessert so we walked down to the Promenade.

Ok but not great gelato at the Promenade kiosk.
 Light milk chocolate and hazelnut.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

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  3. Fraiche take on Franco-Italian
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  5. Quick Eats: Italian-Iberian Snack
By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Italian cuisine, pasta, Santa Monica, Uovo

Quick Eats – Obica SM

May13

Restaurant: Obica Santa Monica

Location: 606 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 393-6633

Date: April 10, 2016

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Solid (modern) neighborhood Italian

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Obica is a new casual addition to the Santa Monica downtown, replacing Hostaria del Piccolo, right next to the (also new) Inotheke. I went once to the Century City version with my Italian wine class and found it quite good.

I swear that when I went the Century City one was spelled Obika with a K and this one with a C. Go figure, it actually changed — I’m not going crazy.

The space is sleek and modern, avec bar.
  And the hard surfaces + nice wood decor style.

Il menu.

Acciughe di Sciacca. Sciacca Anchovies and Sundried Tomatoes. Salty but good. Particularly with…

Burrata al Tartufo. With Black Truffle. Putting this and the anchovies together on bread was excellent.

Pici pomodoro. One of my favorite pasta shapes, little hand made twists.
 Schiaffoni di Gragnano. Paccheri Pasta with tomato sauce. Basil. Mozzarella di Bufala.
 Pappardelle al Ragu di Anatra e Arancia. Homemade rosemary pasta with Tuscan style duck ragu. Orange Zest. A nice interesting pasta.

The dessert menu.

Chocolate gelato.
 Semifreddo al Croccante Salato. Salted Caramel Brittle, Zabaglione gelato. I love semifredo. Although the  Zabaglione didn’t have that Masala/citrus flavor that I like.

Overall, Obica is a solid casual Italian and a nice edition. I have to try more menu items but it’s closer to what you’d get at a mid level place in Italy than all the Italian American places.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Quick Eats: Divino
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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Dessert, Italian cuisine, Obica, Obika, pasta, Santa Monica

Mountain Eats – Campo

Mar28

Restaurant: Campo

Location:6201 Minaret Rd Suite 240, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546. (760) 934-0669

Date: January 17 & March 20, 2016

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: decent, for Mammoth

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Mammoth Lakes isn’t exactly a culinary capital, so we twice went to:

Campo, the Village’s designated Italian.

Campo calls itself Rustic Italian. Well, I guess that’s reasonable. More Rustic Contemporary Italian American, but who’s being specific.

Bread and olive oil / balsamic.

This is a composite of two dinners, both times I brought Brunello. Forgot to photo the first one.

From my cellar: 2004 Tenuta le Potazzine Brunello di Montalcino Riserva. VM 93. Deep ruby-red. Knockout nose combines red cherry, smoky plum, minerals and licorice. Enters creamy, fleshy and smooth, with decadently rich red and black fruit flavors, but turns more austere towards the back. Finishes with above-average complexity and depth, featuring ultra-smooth tannins and an enticing mineral persistence. Lacks the length for an even higher score, but this very serious wine only needs a few years in the cellar to show all it’s got. This is the first Riserva ever made by this estate.

agavin: I got this bottle (and a couple cases of others) at the winery. It was bricking slightly but in a really good spot.

Charcuterie. Meats!

Butternut soup.

Simple Green Salad. White balsamic vinaigrette.

Kale salad. Various extras.

Wood fired cauliflower. Calabrian chilies. garlic. Not bad.
 Beet Salad. roasted baby beets, butternut squash, rosemary goat cheese, chile oil. Strange neon glow to the beets!

Special with burrata and prosciutto and very salty crackers. Super yummy though.
 Pizza!

Kid’s pasta.

Special Pappardelle with orange and duck. A little sweet but quite good.

TAGLIATELLE wild boar bolognese, grana padano. A decent, but slightly dry version of this classic dish. The meat needed more flavor somehow.

Special seafood risotto with shrimp and scallop.

Steak and potatoes. This is Mammoth.

A very unattractive split of a root beer float.

Caramel budino. These are always great. Love it.

Campo is great for Mammoth and sort of decent by LA Italian standards. It’s got a good menu and execution is decent. Some dishes are tasty and some are a tad flat. Service is overwhelmed. Both times we were there — granted with big parties — they couldn’t really handle it and there were issues. They were nice though. Mammoth servers usually are. They just couldn’t get it all right / timed / etc.

For more dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Mountain Time Machine
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By: agavin
Comments (1)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Campo, Italian cuisine, Mammoth Lakes, pasta, Pizza

Cooking Italy – Guazzetto

Dec28

Periodically I get the bug to try to make some dish at home to the best of my ability. Usually it’s something Italian, like my Tiramisu or Pizzas, or my crazy Gelato fetish (yet undocumented), and there was my Gazpacho phase…

Anyway, the above dish from Positano is the prototype for what I’m trying today, a Pasta Pescatore, or seafood pasta in a Guazzetto sauce. As best as I can tell, guazzeto is the kind of tomato/garlic sauce often used for this kind of dish in Campania.

At home one of the best pastas I’ve found is this pici (homemade) pasta. Like a thick spaghetti.

Durum wheat. It takes 22 minutes to al dente!

Meanwhile, I worked on the sauce, adapting two different recipes.

Onions, garlic, and Italian parsley goes in some olive oil.

You cook these down slowly to soften and brown the onions/garlic.

Then put in the tomatoes. I used cherry tomatoes because that was very Amalfi coast.

Oh yeah, and a bunch of Italian Oregano.

In the second phase I added not only the oregano but some Italian white wine (I used the Coravin to steal some out of a bottle of cheapish Fiano).

Then, instead of mixed shellfish, our house rules brought me to experiment with salmon. I think this would go well with a fish like mackerel too. Or fresh sardines.

In goes the freshly finished pasta. Not rinsed, of course, we want that gluten.

A quick stir up.

And voila.

Pretty good for my first test. It needs more salt, and possibly more garlic. I want a bit more of that ummphf! But still, very tasty.

Related posts:

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  5. Forma – Cheese Bowl!
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Cooking, Cooking-Italy, Guazzetto, pasta

LaLa – Valentino

Oct12

Restaurant: Valentino Santa Monica [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Location: 3115 Pico Blvd  Santa Monica, CA 90405. (310) 829-4313

Date: October 8, 2015

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Good, if a touch slow!

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For some time my Hedonist gang has been arranging this special dinner of all Guigal single vineyard Côte-Rôtie, known affectionately as the LaLas (as they are named La Landonne, La Mouline, and La Turque).

The wine service for this was extensive and expertly handled. We had glasses for every wine and they were opened, tested, decanted, poured all in advance and delivered in neat flights.

Our special custom menu.

Ron brought as a bonus: 2004 Taittinger Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs Comtes de Champagne. VM 96. I am thrilled with the way the 2004 Comtes de Champagne continues to evolve in bottle. A few years ago, the 2004 was quite focused and linear, in the style of the vintage, but more recently, the wine has begun to fill out beautifully. The 2004 remains bright, with a full range of citrus, white flower and mineral nuances that dance on the palate. A brisk, saline-infused finish rounds things out beautifully in a Comtes that impresses for its crystalline purity. I expect the 2004 will always remain a bit cool next to the more opulent 2002, but it is still drop-dead gorgeous.

Parmesan crisps.

Another Ron bonus: NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 92. Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this cuvée, but with no lack of vivacity.

agavin: our bottle was mildly corked or funky. Still drinkable, but not up to its usual standards.

Caprese skewers.

Bonus from my cellar: 2011 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Saint-Aubin 1er Cru en Remilly Cuvée Nicholas et Mathis. 94 points. Precise, delineated, a bit reductive, with tons of fabulous acid.

Fried potato puffs with tomato sauce. Very nice.

Ron also brought: 2013 Samuel Billaud Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre. VM 93. Pale, bright yellow. Rather exotic aromas of orange peel, musky ginger and curry powder. Large-scaled, broad and deep, with a distinctly old-viney creaminess and superb mineral depth to the explosive flavors of soft citrus fruits and ginger. The mounting, palate-staining finish shows a youthfully aggressive quality but does not go heavy. The crop level here was just 30 hectoliters per hectare, according to Billaud.

agavin: a nice screaming young Chablis

Crudo al cucchiao. Tuna with pineapple. The sweet / salty pairing here is very nice.

Grilled pizza margarita.

Involtini. Eggplant wrapped around soft ricotta cheese.

Breadsticks.

Now we get to the LaLas.

1990 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque. Parker 98. The 1990 La Turque offers an opaque purple color, and an overwhelming perfume of jammy black cherries, cassis, toast, and minerals. With its sweet, generous, incredibly harmonious personality, it is an unforgettable wine.With sweet tannin, low acidity, and one of the most velvety-textured, decadently rich palates I have encountered, this fabulous wine has a finish that lasts more than a minute.

agavin: good, but not nearly as good as the 91

1991 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 99. The 1991 La Landonne will provide multimillionaires with plenty of pleasure over the next 20 years. They can also debate whether it or the perfect 1990 is the better wine. The 1991’s bouquet offers huge, smoky, new saddle leather, licorice, Asian spice, meaty, and cassis scents. Black in color, with layers of richness, huge body, massive extraction, and a phenomenal finish, it is another legend from Marcel Guigal. It will be the least precocious of the 1991s, needing until the turn of the century to open and develop; it should keep for 25-30 + years.

agavin: WOTN, really gorgeous

Warm beef carpaccio. With parmesan, cappers, etc.

1995 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 95-97. The brawny, black/purple-colored 1995 Cote Rotie La Landonne reveals the animal, sauvage side of the Syrah grape. Licorice, prune, iron, and vitamin-like aromas compete with copious quantities of black fruits and smoke in this complex, structured, muscular, massive Cote Rotie. It will require 5-6 years of cellaring, and should keep for 30+ years.

1995 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 96-100. The 1995 Cote Rotie La Mouline (11% Viognier included in the blend) was scheduled to be bottled (unfined and unfiltered of course) in February, after 42 months in 100% new oak. This is one of the most extraordinary wines made in the world. As I have said many times, if I were ever stranded on the proverbial desert island with only one wine to drink, it would have to be La Mouline. A compelling perfume of violets, black raspberries, coffee, pepper, and pain grille soars from the glass. Medium to full-bodied and lush, with a terrific multi-layered texture and outstanding purity, this is a phenomenal example of La Mouline. It possesses enough structure and substance to last for two decades, although it will be delicious upon release.

agavin: my favorite of this awesome flight.

1995 Guigal Cote Rotie la Turque. Parker 98-100. The 1995 Cote Rotie La Turque (about 7% Viognier in the blend) possesses a dense ruby/purple color, and roasted herb, olive, and Asian spice characteristics. It exhibits exceptional concentration and is velvety and concentrated. The fabulous 1995 La Turque is a virtually perfect wine with flamboyance, harmony, and remarkable opulence and length. It should drink well when released, and last for two decades.

Sea scallops in porchetta, wrapped in pancetta with a red wine sauce. It’s unusual to have such a “red” scallop prep, but it totally worked and made for a solid Syrah pairing.

From my cellar: 1998 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 97-100. The awesome 1998 Cote Rotie La Mouline is a seamless, full-bodied classic with many characteristics of the 1997 La Landonne , but more structure, tannin, and muscle. It will need two years of cellaring, and will last for twenty years. Stylistically, it is reminiscent of the 1988.

agavin: another amazing flight

1998 Guigal Cote Rotie la Turque. Parker 98-99. The 1998 Cote Rotie La Turque may end up being a perfect wine. Its smoky black fruits intermixed with licorice, roasted meats, cassis, and flowers create an explosive, exotic perfume. The wine reveals considerable tannin, immense structure, and potentially legendary depth as well as intensity. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2022.

1998 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 100! The 1998 Cote Rotie La Landonne is a perfect wine … at least for my palate. Its saturated black/purple color is accompanied by an extraordinary nose of smoke, incense, tapenade, creosote, blackberry, and currant aromas. It is densely packed with blackberry, truffle, chocolate, and leather-like flavors. The wine possesses high tannin, but perfect harmony, impeccable balance, and gorgeous integration of acidity, alcohol, and tannin. It is a tour de force in winemaking. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2025.

Calamarta with porcini duck ragu. A lovely pasta, although a few complained that theirs arrived cold (mine was fine).

Jeff brought this bonus: 2003 Rene Rostaing Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 97. Revealing more structure and definition than the regular bottling, the 2003 Cote Rotie La Landonne offers more scorched earth, camphor, blackberry, and roasted meat characteristics. Last year this cuvee displayed no acidity, but that is not the case from bottle (perhaps the use of 50% stems helped). Rostaing admits that analytically, there is practically no acid in this wine, so it will age on its extraordinary extract and richness. This blockbuster should drink well young, yet age for 12-15 years.

agavin: warming us up to 2003

2003 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 100! The 2003 Cote Rotie la Landonne continues to blow me away every time I taste it and it’s a desert island wine for me. One of the stars of this extreme vintage, it offers sensational levels of fruit and decadence, perfumed, intense aromatics, beautiful freshness and a to-die-for texture and finish. Still youthful, with masses of sweet tannin, it’s nevertheless a a heavenly drink today.

agavin: brooding monster, needs at least 10 years

2003 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 100! A desert island wine (as is just about any top vintage of the cuvee) and a gorgeous showing, the 2003 Cote Rotie la Mouline is drinking beautifully, yet is still young, loaded with fruit, and possesses over-the-top richness. Giving up notions of plum, liquid flowers, potpourri and smoked meats, this puppy is full-bodied, massive and layered on the palate, with a stacked mid-palate, thrilling amounts of texture, and a blockbuster-styled finish. There’s nothing classic about it, but it’s still as good as it gets.

agavin: another monster

Risotto with wolfe ranch quail. There was pretty solid agreement that this was a great dish. The quail was nice and flavorful and that jus was fabulous. The risotto was mild but great with the Jus.

1999 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 100! The 1999 Cote Rotie la Mouline is straight-up awesome on all accounts. Drinking beautifully, with explosive aromas and flavors of blackberry, smoked meats, pepper and exotic flowers, this puppy hits the palate with full-bodied richness, beautiful concentration and a seamless, sexy and oh, so fine texture that is the hallmark of this cuvee. This is another wine that will continue to evolve gracefully, yet I’ve been lucky enough to have it multiple times recently, and when a bottle is drinking this good, don’t miss it by always waiting for another day.

agavin: up there with the 91 for WOTN, and up against stiff competition

La Bistecca: Prime New York Steak “Tagliata” with sea salt and Mosto Cotto Reduction. This wasn’t everyone’s favorite, and it was fairly fatty. It did have a nice, if salty, flavor.

2005 De Suduiraut. Parker 93. Tasted blind at the 10-Year On Tasting in Sauternes. The 2005 Château Suduiraut seemed a little out of sorts at first, although it comes together with honey, barley sugar, orange blossom and mineral scents that become more delineated as its aerates. The palate is very intense on the entry. There is a beautiful line of acidity that cuts through the viscous fruit, though the finish does not quite exude the precision of a top vintage, but still delivers that sense of class one expects from this address.

agavin: very nice, clean and sweet.

Feast of Artisanal cheese with traditional complements. Good but small — I’d hardly call this specific dish a “feast.”

1978 Rieussec. 91 points. Honeyed color. Very pretty nose of apricot and dried peach. In the mouth, viscous and pretty, with wonderful balance and a lush presence, unfolding apricot, butterscotch, and dried fruit notes. A moderate spike in acidity remains. Smooth finish. Not quite the concentration or persistence of a great Sauternes, but this is really excellent. A testament to their ability to age and the enjoyment they afford when mature.

agavin: I thought there was a lot of acidity and apricot — really enjoyed this older wine.

Assortment of Desserts: Panna cotta, chocolate tart, pear gelato. All very tasty.

Let’s breakdown the parts overall:

Wine Service: A total 10. One guy (pictured at the top of this post) was there the whole time. He ordered (with Jeff Leve and Larry), opened, decanted, poured everything. We had glasses for every wine and it was served efficiently in neat flights. He was really on top of it. Bravo.

General Service: Certainly they were very nice as always. A couple guys gave me the eye at being stopped to photo the passing appetizers — but well, you can’t really blame them 🙂  In general service was quite excellent as it usually is at Valentino, but there was one glaring problem tonight: The food took forever to get going. We waited about an hour for a few passing apps, then those (and they were great) dragged out for about an hour themselves. The first official course came in the middle of them — but itself very late. There was a little trouble getting the dozen or so down real fast too. The second course took a real long time too, but after that it sped up. Some people reported their pasta course was cold. Handling of details like the credit card were excellent. I think the trouble was that they had at least one, and maybe 2 other wine dinners going. My friend (and often Hedonist) Kirk was at a Vega Sicilia dinner. He came and joined us after his was finished and around the time the pace really picked up.

Food: Somewhat contentious, but most of us thought the food was good, although not blow you away. I’d say that the food was an 8, with several great dishes and a few that were just fine (like the beef). There was plenty of it too.

Wines: Through the roof. We had no bad Lalas (just the slightly off rose champ). All were in great shape. The 91, all 95s, all 98s, and the 99 were all amazing. 99-100 points for sure. The 2003s you could tell were amazing, but they are so big they need at least another decade.

Value: Excellent!

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

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By: agavin
Comments (3)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Cote Rotie, Guigal, hedonists, Lala, pasta, Valentino, Valentino Santa Monica, Wine

Bestia – Bring out the Beast

Sep21

Restaurant: Bestia

Location: 2121 E 7th Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90021. (213) 514-5724

Date: September 17, 2015

Cuisine: New Italian American

Rating: Super tasty, super hip, and a good bit of attitude

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Bestia has been on my “to eat at” list since it opened. Opinions generally include the sentiment that the food is great. Some adore it. Some think the place has too much attitude and is too hard to get into. I wanted to see for myself.

It’s located in the Arts District, near Factory Kitchen. Funny to see much energy in an area of town that was nigh on terrifying 10 years ago. But urban renewal is a good thing.

The interior is typical in recent years, brick factory building, I-beams, hard tables.

Open kitchen too.

We sat outside on the porch. It was a lovely evening and this was great because it was a perfect temperature and not nearly as loud as inside.

The menu, with our marked up orders.

We ordered so much that we swore a pact to reaffirm our commitment to hedonism.

2013 Alberto Nanclares Albariño Soverribas. 93 points. Medium gold colour. Mature nose with medium intensity aromas of quince, ripe peaches, very ripe yellow apples, savoury yeast, lemon peel and hints of neutral white flowers.

A very nice Albarino we ordered off the list. A very nice food white. I have some issues with the wine service, but more on that at the bottom.

Smoked Whitefish Crostino. Dill, potatoes, scallions, fresno chillies, celery leaf. An early start on Yom Kippur break fast! Very nice.

Veal Tartare Crostino. shallots, parsley, lemon, tonnato sauce. This was even better, super meaty, totally delicious. The grilled bread was amazing.

Pan-Fried Ciccioli. pickled fenne, candied kumquats, crème fraîche, pea tendrils. Our first server, who was awesome, recommended this. Wow! Like a pulled pork confit crab cake (no crab). Oodles of fatty goodness. In case that wasn’t obvious, the brown stuff is a “cake” made of heavy rich pork meat cooked in some kind of fat and then pan fried.

From my cellar: 1998 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo. 93 points. Initially quite tight with reductive nose, some tar and rose petal. Middle weight palate, that at first seemed to lack a bit in fruit, but then flowered brilliantly. Nice perfume of dark fruits, some tar, rose petals. Good structure. Drinking well now with very nice balance. Not overly tannic. Aldo was a genius.

Salumi. chef’s selection of house-cured meats, mostarda, grilled bread. All sorts of pig. All amazing. Left to right: prosciutto crudo, salami, lardo & fig jam, prosciutto, some kind of head meat. The far right was my least favorite. The pinker prosciutto was amazing, and the smoked lard toast was out of this world!

Burrata pizza. san marzano tomatoes, castelvetrano olives, oregano, fermented chilies. A wonderful pizza in the current style. I normally like some meat on my pizza, and not olives, but this was bright, acidic, and delicious. Another recommend from the excellent server.

Mussels and Clams. housemade spicy ‘nduja sausage, fennel seed, preserved orange, grilled bread. A 10. The sauce had all that salty, sausage, spice, tomato acidity awesomeness. We kept a bunch of grilled bread to dip in it.

Quadretti alla Carota. mushroom ragu, summer squash, squash blossoms, carrot puree, carrot tops. My least favorite pasta, but still nice, and quite rich for a non meat pasta.

From my cellar (picked by Seb): 2006 Fattoria Poggio di Sotto Brunello di Montalcino. AG/Parker 97. The 2006 Brunello di Montalcino is an explosive, structured wine bursting with dark fruit. It is one of the most inward, brooding wines of the vintage. Black cherries, menthol, spices and new leather are some of the nuances that flow as this expansive Brunello literally covers every inch of the palate. This is a totally mesmerizing, sublime wine of the highest level.

agavin: A great wine, although it took a few minutes to get going (no surprise).

Roasted Marrow Bone. spinach gnocchetti, crispy breadcrumbs, aged balsamic.

I didn’t even realize this was sort of a pasta, but you dump the bone marrow on the gnocchetti and stir up. Nice, rich, mild.

Cavatelli alla Norcina. ricotta dumplings, housemade pork sausage, black truffles, grana padano. This was one of my favorite pastas during my recent month in Italy. This rendition had the right ingredients, and was very good, but it wasn’t as rich as a really good one in Umbria and was lacking the creamy cheesy strong truffle intensity. Instead it came off a bit more buttery, less cheese. Also in Umbria they pile on the truffles.

Spaghetti Rustichella. lobster, sea urchin, garlic, calabrian chilies, squid ink bottarga, breadcrumbs. But this was to die for. Almost a rich uni Gauzetto sauce. Just awesome umami brine yum. Perfectly al dente too.

From my cellar: 2007 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Secco Pagliaro. 94 points. A rich, sumptuous wine that totally covers the palate with dense, dark fruit. The Pagliaro is impressive in the way it achieves superb density while retaining the elements of delicate, nuanced subtlety that inform Bea’s finest wines. This is a fabulous effort from Bea. 46 days on the skins, followed by a year in stainless steel and two years in cask.

I actually brought this because they had pasta norcina on the menu!

Pici al Sugo di Agnello. lamb ragu, saffron, capra sarda, fig leaf, breadcrumbs. Another stunner. So rich, meaty, lamby. Really fabulous stuff. Great thick al dente bite to the pici too. One of my favorite pasta shapes.

Grilled Pork Tomahawk Chop. served family style. $80 for 37 ounces of meat, but we had to get it. Perfectly cooked. Fatty, but not obviously so. Rich. Delicious. Just a wonderful slab of meat. Not as strongly flavored as the similar Chi Spacca version, but great too.

Grilled long beans. Came with the pork.

The wine lineup, all awesome.

Maple Ricotta Fritters. maple butter ganache, sour cream and huckleberry jam ice cream. Some awesome fried goodness, totally notched up by the ganache and ice cream.

Valrhona Fair Trade Bittersweet Chocolate Budino Tart. salted caramel, cacao crust, olive oil, sea salt. Wow this was great. Soft rich chocolate boosted by the salt and olive oil. A bit like some of Jose Andre’s olive oil chocolate desserts.

Butterscotch Coconut Tart. fresh coconut sorbetto. Not bad, but I was dissapointed as I expected something more “coconut creme.”

Overall, an awesome night. But I’ll break it down.

Ambiance: Exactly what you’d expect from a super trendy DTLA spot in 2015. It’s all there, the rough surfaces, open kitchen, naked wood tables, paper menus, loudness, etc. I suspect if we were inside I would have found it too loud.

Food: Great food. Really quite excellent. Not mind blowing or totally innovative, but a sort of 2014-5 blend of “faux rustic” Italian with gastro pub and other current LA/NY sensibilities. The flavors have been brightened and punched up. There is more of a “grill” thing going on. It isn’t very authentically Italian, but takes itself in a different direction.

Service: General wait service was very good, although not formal. Oddly we had two waiters. Our first one was awesome and not only recommended some good changes but coursed it out really nicely. After ordering he was mysteriously replaced by another guy who was totally fine, but didn’t stand out as much.

Attitude: There is a bit of attitude. It’s hard to make a reservation and hard to move. They didn’t want to seat us partially even though the place was half empty still. The whole wine policy shows attitude. But overall it didn’t bother me too much and they did lean toward customer service.

Wine Service & List: Here were the biggest problems, although admittedly I come at it with a particular viewpoint. Let’s start with pure service. They decanted, if unconventionally into magnum bottles. Stems were mediocre, just regular small crystal tasting stems. They didn’t appear to have good ones, but they gave us 3 each of the little ones without complaint. They didn’t really pour for us, but I don’t like that anyway when we have a small group. Now onto the list. Not a big fan. It’s very small, hard to read, and has extremely few wines for a very good restaurant. The wines it does have re mixed. Far, far too many new world wines. They don’t belong here. Way too few Italians. I couldn’t even find an Italian white at a price I was willing to pay and there were only 5 total. We ended up with the Spanish Albarino (which was very good), but there is no reason for that given the outrageous number of inexpensive but nice Italian whites. Prices were about 3X retail which is a little higher than I’d like (2X would be nice) but not outrageous. There were very few “very good” wines. Most of the bigger reds were way too young. I know new restaurants don’t want to invest in a big inventory, but these are all part of the reason I almost never buy off wine lists. If you are a serious wine guy, and you know prices you just can’t bring yourself to do it.

Corkage: From up on my soapbox, this is a sore spot. All my wine friends talk about how Bestia isn’t really wine guy friendly. It’s sort of middle road. I had to call for the policy and it was first two bottles at $30 and after that $50. While relieved there was no limit (don’t get me started on limits, those are asinine), the hike to $50 is annoying. Really. Particularly given that I opened and poured the bottles myself. I realize they need to make money on the wine, but $30 seems a reasonable max. This isn’t Providence/Melisse type wine service. There also seemed to be an undocumented “can’t bring a wine on the list” rule. Given the list changes everyday and isn’t online, this seems unreasonable. But that being said, the Somm told us he doesn’t enforce it. So why have it? Also to their credit, Bestia made an accommodation for us. There was a little eye rolling with it, and some general somm-attitude, but their actions and words (if not tone) indicated they put customer service first. And after all, tone is just tone so I found this amusing. In the end, they did right by us. But still, one doesn’t get the feeling that Bestia would be a great place to host a Foodie Club type event. At those we have too many bottles to handle more than maybe $10-15 of corkage. Maybe they’d cut a deal, but I think they think they’re too popular to need to. A shame, because the food is amazing and it’d be a fun place to do that sort of thing.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

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By: agavin
Comments (8)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Bestia, Corkage, Dessert, Genevieve Gergis, Italian cuisine, Ori Menashe, pasta, Wine

Napoli in LA – Michael’s

Aug17

Restaurant: Michael’s on Naples [1, 2, 3]

Location: 5620 E 2nd St. Long Beach, CA 90803. (562) 439-7080

Date: August 13, 2015

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: A top LA Italian

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A couple years ago, we organized our first Hedonist outing to Michael’s on Naples, rated on the Zagat list as #2 best restaurant in all Los Angeles. I co-organized this one with our fearless leader Yarom, myself, coordinating and designing the menu as well as ordering the wines. So many things sounded good that I came up with a 14 course extravaganza. The resulting Hedonistic Italian blowout ended up (with some alternates) as a total feast of great wine and food.

Michael’s is located on Naples Island, a bridge-connected island in Longbeach that looks so much like Florida they use it to film much of Dexter‘s Miami.

We were set up in this lovely private room. For a table of 15, this was about as perfect as it gets. Not too loud, space to move around and arrange the wines, and a square table that allowed for much better conversation than a long skinny deal.

First a note on the wine service. I had them put out 1 flute, 2 white glasses and 4 red glasses (2 and 2 of Burgundy and Bordeaux style). Then because of the number of red wines we had and the light, often white oriented first half of the menu, I progressed the white and red wine simultaneously — at least for the first half of the meal — so that people would have both colors in the glass. I tried to progress in varietal bunches, usually in flights of about 2 wines.

From my cellar: 2013 Zardetto Prosecco Zeta. Pairs great with food. A very simple wine, but its simple fruit allows it to go with anything.

Our special menu tonight, designed by me in conjunction with the chef and catering manager.

The pescatarian version for a couple of the ladies, including my lovely wife.

From my cellar: 2013 Giovanni Almondo Roero Arneis Vigne Sparse. 89 points. Clean and clear, touch of pale green color, with tight aromas of underripe stone fruit. Palate opens nicely, showing white peach, some Bosc pear, along with characteristic background of almond and herb. Bracing acidity, clean moderate fruit intensity, and a nice medium finish make this example a delightful version of an underappreciated noble grape. Very food-friendly.

2013 Bruno Giacosa Roero Arneis. 90 points. Very pale lemon colored with a nose of citrus and perfume. This wine tastes of lemon zest, other citrus, and almonds. It is light to medium bodied with crisp acidity and a shortish finish. Good food white wine.

agavin: more “oaked” than the Sparse, but quiet delicious.

From my cellar: 2010 Quarticello Rivellino Emilia IGT. 90 points. Terrific Lambrusco, with plenty of earth, cut and cherry fruits. Completely different that what many know as Lambrusco. Not sweet or generic by any means. Superb on a hot spring day. This wine is begging for Prosciutto (which is why I put it with the pizza).

agavin: There was a barnyard vibe to the wine, and it was super “different” for being a deep purple, yet frizante and dry. I liked it, but unusual. Those who prefer their wines clean and over extracted weren’t into it.

Ricotta stuffed squash blossoms with honey basil pesto. They sweetness of the honey really took this to the next level.

Speck, buffalo mozzarella pizza. basil pesto and sweet peppers. This had just the combo of salty, cheesy, and other savory elements (the best) that I really like on my own pizzas.

Italian sausage pizza. roasted peppers, basil pesto and mozzarella. Another fabulous meaty blend.

Forest mushroom pizza. basil pesto and Taleggio cheese. Great for a veggie pizza.

Confit baby artichokes. basil pesto and goat cheese. My least favorite, mostly because of the texture of the artichokes, but still good.

Bread.

From my cellar: 2007 Venica & Venica Malvasia Collio. 92 points. Great malvasia. Interesting as well as refreshing. A medium-full bodied white. Apricot, green apple and honey on the nose. Fresh tastes of apples, apricots comingle with a vibrant acidity. Would buy again.

2001 Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova. VM 96. Medium-deep bright ruby. Beautiful, profound nose of sweet ripe cherry, pipe tobacco, almond and raspberry jam. Ripe, suave and juicy, with sweet flavors similar to the aromas, this is an absolutely seamless wine with lively harmonious acidity on a suave, never-ending finish. Though extremely concentrated, this is a uniquely refined Brunello with wonderfully suave smooth, classy tannins.

agavin: by itself a great brunello, but paled compared to the “piano”.

Fighi e Prosciutto D’Anatra. Housemade Liberty farm duck prosciutto with Mission fig and goat cheese mousse. A great summery dish. Figs, cheese, and prosciutto have been a favorite since antiquity!

The same thing without the ham.


From my cellar: 2010 Borgo del Tiglio (Nicola Manferrari) Collio Studio di Bianco. VM 95. Weightless, crystalline and pure, the 2010 Studio di Bianco appears to float on the palate. White pear, crushed rocks, oyster shells and lime jump from the glass. A beautifully delineated, vibrant wine, the 2010 captures the best qualities of the year. Stylistically, the 2010 is brighter and more focused than the 2011, with a bit less body but more sheer drive and personality. What a gorgeous wine this is.

agavin: Another great Italian white.

2006 E. Fuligni (Cottimelli) Brunello di Montalcino. VM 96. Bright dark red. Captivating nose shows a medicinal quality to the notes of sandalwood, minerals, graphite and orange peel. At once silky and explosive in the mouth, providing oustanding density without heaviness and saturating the entire mouth with sweet flavor. A wine of incredible aromatic thrust. The floral lift on the extremely long finish gives the wine an almost Lafite-like clarity.

Fegato D’Oca. Hudson Valley foie gras terrine, stone fruit jam and mustard greens. I love foie terrine and this was no exception. It paired nicely with the sweet jam. It was perhaps a touch warm, and so not firm enough, but still tasted great.


Frutta di Stagione. Stone fruit and watercress salad with candied pecans and robiola cheese.


From my cellar: 2001 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. Burghound 91. Stunningly pure fruit laced with citrus and lime notes framed by a deft trace of pain grillé with understated flavors of remarkable precision just oozing a wet stones character. The bright acidity beautifully frames an impressively long finish and this presents itself as a classic Folatières. This is really very fine and classy. I like the style of this immensely.

agavin: Drinking perfectly. Shows how hardass the Burghound reviews are that this is a 91, really drinking like a 96.

1995 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano. VM 94. The 1995 is a fresh, vibrant Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano that is just entering its prime drinking window. Expressive, open aromas meld seamlessly into a palate loaded with ripe, perfumed fruit. This full-bodied, delineated wine offers notable inner sweetness and a long, resonating finish. Abbruzzese calls 1995 a “sister vintage” to 1993, but comments that he was better prepared to capture the best qualities of the vintage.

agavin: about as good as Brunello gets!

From my cellar: 1999 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Secco. VM 95. The wine was absolutely majestic.

agavin: starting to brick, and full of sediment (unfiltered), but lovely and pruney.

Polipo con Patate. Grilled octopus with fingerling potatoes, caperberries, micro celery. A ver mild and fresh summer dish.


Caponata di Melanzane. Grilled crostini with eggplant stew.

1990 Gaja Barbaresco. VM 95. The 1990 Barbaresco emerges from the glass with an exotic array of tar, smoke, licorice and grilled herbs. There is wonderful intensity to the fruit and plenty of structure. The tannins are still a bit young and the wine is only now beginning to enter the early part of what looks to be a long drinking window! The 1990 Barbaresco is a touch rounder and softer than the 1989, with perhaps just a little less aromatic complexity and inner perfume, although that is splitting hairs at this level. The finish is long, intense and deeply satisfying. This is a marvelous bottle of Barbaresco.

agavin: I’ve had better bottles of this wine, but it was still quiet nice.

From my cellar: 1990 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Gallina di Neive. VM 94. The 1990 Barbareso Gallina is simply awesome. The wine boasts a seamless core of rich red fruits in a soft, generous style. This opulent Barbaresco possesses impeccable balance and tons of class. Floral notes intermingled with bright red fruits provide lift on the finish, adding lovely balance to the dense fruit. This is the most approachable of Giacosa’s 1990s but has plenty of stuffing to last another twenty years. The 1978 is still going strong.

agavin: a little funky and petro-like for a few minutes. Got better, but still not as good as it should be.

Agnolotti di Mais. Stuffed pasta with corn, ricotta and braised greens. Everyone LOVED this pasta course. The corn was fresh and bright and provided a nice complement to the al dente pasta. It was voted a Hedonist “10”!


1998 Gaja Barbaresco. VM 91. Good deep medium red. Deeply pitched aromas of plum, mocha, licorice and dried flowers. Dense and chewy with extract; compelling, sweet flavors of currant and licorice. Tannins are sweeter than those of the ’99 Barbaresco. Finishes with a suggestion of nutty oak.

From my cellar: 1997 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Cascina Francia. VM 96. Giacomo Conterno’s 1997 Barolo Cascina Francia was also fabulous. The 1997 vintage seems to have yielded great wines in some of Piedmont’s poorer soils, as this heroic Barolo amply demonstrated. The 1997 was pure Serralunga Barolo, which is to say roses, tar and licorice galore on a frame of substantial depth and pure breed.

2004 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Romirasco. VM 93. Imposing and dark on the palate, the 2004 Barolo Romirasco possesses massive fruit, beguiling aromatics and considerable depth. Today, the 2004 is a bit in an awkward stage, where tertiary aromatics have not yet developed although much of the wine’s youthful exuberance has begun to fade. As such, the 2004 is best cellared for at least another few years. Although some time has passed, I did expect the 2004 Romirasco to be a touch fresher than this.

Casarecce con Agnello. Homemade pasta with Marin County lamb ragu`and burrata. Another good pasta, although if the corn ravioli was a 10, this was more a 9.


Casarecce con Funghi. Homemade pasta with forest mushroom, brown butter and sage.


1986 Latour Pauillac. Parker 90. Tasted from my cellar, the 1986 has consistently been outstanding, falling short of being sublime. The spicy, peppery bouquet reveals aromas of dried herbs and red currant fruit. Medium-bodied, austere, but youthful, vigorous, and concentrated, this wine still requires 4-5 years of cellaring. It is surpassed in this vintage (which favored the northern Medoc and Cabernet Sauvignon) by its rivals, Lafite-Rothschild and Mouton-Rothschild.

agavin 98. This bottle was drinking PERFECTLY. Really nice.

1997 Angelo Gaja Darmagi Cabernet Sauvignon. Parker 90-94. There are 1,000 cases of the exceptional, black/purple-colored 1997 Darmagi Cabernet Sauvignon (3-4% Cabernet Franc was added to the blend). With abundant quantities of smoky, concentrated fruit as well as tannin, the vintage’s low acid, thick, glycerin-imbued character, and a layered, full-bodied finish, it should develop nicely for two decades.

agavin 94: I’ve never had this Gaja cab. I liked it a lot though.

Petto d’Anatra. Seared Liberty Farm duck breast with farrotto, Farm Lot 59 rainbow chard, and bing cherry reduction. A great duck dish. Very smokey and lean.

Branzino alla Griglia. Grilled Mediterranean sea bass with confit artichokes, potatoes and Taggiasche olives.

2003 Tua Rita Redigaffi Toscana IGT. VM 90. Tua Rita’s 2003 Redigaffi, 100% Merlot, opens with notes of over-ripeness on the nose. An initial suggestion of reduction blows of with air. It presents plenty of fruit, chocolate and toasted oak along with a richly concentrated, opulent personality, yet a note of gaminess and hard, unripe tannins ultimately convey the impression of a less polished version of this wine than is normally the case. My preference is to drink Redigaffi on the young side.

agavin 92: Nice and extracted.

2010 Tua Rita Redigaffi Toscana IGT. VM 96. I am struck by how light on its feet the 2010 Redigaffi is for such a big wine. Dark red cherries, tobacco, licorice, smoke and anise all flesh out as this layered wine opens up in the glass. Over time, the wine’s intense salinity emerges, adding energy, drive and polish. Hints of dark cherry, plum and smoke reappear on the vibrant finish. Readers will find much to admire in the superb 2010. To be sure, the 2010 is less outwardly opulent than is often the case with Redigaffi, but there is no denying the wine’s absolute beauty.

agavin: Our bottle was open for 4-6 hours in the decanter, but was still a fruit bomb monster.

2008 Tenuta San Guido Bolgheri Sassicaia Sassicaia. VM 96. The 2008 Sassicaia is a rich, deep wine imbued with notable class in its black cherries, plums, grilled herbs, minerals and smoke. The 2008 is a decidedly buttoned-up, firm Sassicaia that is currently holding back much of its potential, unlike the 2006 and 2007, both of which were far more obvious wines. Readers who can afford to wait will be treated to a sublime wine once this settles down in bottle. Muscular, firm tannins frame the exquisite finish in this dark, implosive Sassicaia. The 2008 Sassicaia is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc. The wine spent 24 months in French oak barrels.

agavin 96: I forgot how much I love Sassicaia, even when it’s young.

Porchetta. Roasted Devil’s Gulch pork loin and belly with eggplant caponata and roasted potatoes. This was super tasty, although a little on the rare side for my pork taste.


Ippoglosso in Padella. Pan seared Alaskan halibut with fava, fregola and tomato jam.


The chaos in full swing.

From my cellar: 2008 Paolo Bea Sagrantino di Montefalco Passito. agavin 97. Pure red raison juice. I love this stuff. All biodynamic. All late harvest ripasso style. An ultra rare dessert wine.


From my cellar: 1997 Fattoria Di Pancole Vin Santo di San Gimignano. This is that kind of Tuscan “dry” vin santo, making it more like a dry sherry. I tend to like the sweeter types.

Torta Di Mandorle. Almond cake with rosemary simple syrup and vanilla whipped cream. I adored this dessert. Between the almond flavor and the icing. I just love that.

Cannoli Con Impastata Alla Frutta. Crispy cannoli shells filled with Ricotta impastata cream, candied orange peels and Valrhona chocolate. I always love a good cannoli. I couldn’t taste the orange peel, which disappointed me, but otherwise they were great.

Ciambelle Dolci. Italian doughnuts served with orange glaze. Love these. Just love ’em.

Panna Cotta con Frutti di Bosco. Panna cotta with seasonal mixed berries.

Overall another fantastic dinner. Different and more varied in wine type than our usual Hedonist fare. I’ll break down the discussion into different components.

Food: The chef and catering manager did a great job working with me to generate not one but two fabulous menus. These were extensive, varied, and highly seasonal. Compare to our last visit here (in December). This was a similar sized, but much lighter more summery menu. Execution was excellent with some dishes being stellar: duck, corn ravioli, squash blossoms, and the rest being just “very good.” A few people didn’t love the octopus but I thought it quiet light and lovely. Course size was small, but given the number of plates really about right for anyone but the most gluttonous of us (which includes me).

Wine: We had a really nice array of wines. The giacosa barbaresco was a little off and the a few people with “unsubtle pallets” thought the Lambrusco and the Sagrantino a little “weird,” but there was consensus that all the whites were fabulous along with the del piano and all the Bordeaux varietals.

Service: The staff did a fabulous job handling a party of this size, starting with a perfect table and a layout of 7 stems per person. Courses arrived with excellent pacing and got down fairly swiftly considering the 15 person count and the difficulty in accessing the back of the room. Not like they do in the Republique private room where it all comes down within 2 seconds of each other, but still great. Attitude and attentiveness was first rate. Silverware was being constantly fixed and reset.

Wine Service: The Somm and lead waiter did a great job. They opened most of the bottles and got a lot of stuff decanted. They even labeled the decanters to avoid confusion. We had a nice separate wine table (badly needed). I had an unusual and taxing wine order with simultaneous progression of white and reds. They were able to understand my cryptic shout outs about what was in what glass with no slip ups. Where wine service fell down slightly (from a very high ideal) was in speed and availability of “pouring.” Now, I’m not really dinging them because there are like 3 restaurants in Southern California that could do better and all of them would charge A LOT just for the wine service. These would handle it by having at least one dedicated wine guy who all the time who didn’t help with food service. Because our Somm and main waiter were also delivering food, busing, and resetting silverware — not even mentioning their duties elsewhere in the restaurant — they didn’t have enough time to be constantly pouring. But a meal like this, with over 25 wines needs constant pouring. It was 3 hours long which means a wine is heading around roughly every 7 minutes and a glass poured every 30 seconds — for the entire dinner! In practice it’s more concentrated than that. Basically this would require someone full time, and someone skilled at pouring bottles 15 ways too. I have a lot of practice pouring (and a Sommelier Cert) so I helped them out by pouring about 40-50% of the flights. I’m fast too and I brought one of my dripless spouts to speed things up. Too bad I didn’t have a couple. Plus it helped that I had the “wine vision” in my head. It would be nice if I hadn’t had to do this, but unrealistic without a 100% dedicated person. So net net I was very pleased.

Value: Tremendous. At $120 per person + tax/tip this was just fabulous value, particularly given the level of service and the lack of corkage. Bravo!

A bunch of the Hedonists also stayed and smoked cigars outside. The staff were very cool about setting this up. We, however, fled home to get to bed :-).
For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

Related posts:

  1. Never Say Too Much
  2. Food as Art: Capo
  3. Gusto Italiano
  4. Tony Terroni
  5. How many Saddles to Peak?
By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Barolo, Dessert, hedonists, italian, Michael's on Naples, pasta, super tuscan, Wine

Eating Positano – Mediterraneo

Aug08

Restaurant: Mediterraneo

Location: Viale Pasitea, 236, 84017 Positano SA, Italy. +39 089 811651

Date: June 25, 2015

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Solid neighborhood Italian

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Night two in Positano and yet another… you guessed it… Italian.

The manager of our rental property recommended this one.

Which also abuts the road, although doesn’t actually straddle it this time.

The view.

The menu is big again, and includes a handle pasta key.


2014 Cantina del Taburno Falanghina Sannio Falanghina del Sannio. Another pretty tart local white, this time from the Falanghina grape.

Ricotta stuffed squash blossoms.

Caprese of local cherry tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella.

Mixed appetizer plate with various cured and fried seafood. Octopus, cured anchovies, fish carpaccio, fried shrimp.

My son’s pomodoro.

Gluten free pasta with eggplant and tomato sauce.

The better homemade pasta with eggplant and tomato sauce.

Risotto del Mediterraneo. Mixed seafoods.

Gelato with chocolate sauce.

Hazelnut semifreddo.


The food at Mediterraneo was good, although not superlative. Still, they made up for it with a certain lively atmosphere and extremely friendly staff. There was live music, and they passed out tambourines, and just generally kept the party going.

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

Related posts:

  1. Eating Positano – Saraceno d’Oro
  2. Eating Senigallia – Niko Cucina
  3. Eating Siena – Trattoria Pepei
  4. Eating Castellina – Albergaccio di Castellina
  5. Eating Santa Margherita – La Paranza
By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: eating-italy, pasta, Positano, Wine

Eating Rome – Trastevere

Jun26

Restaurant: Eating Italy Rome

Location: Trastavere, Rome

Date: June 8, 2015

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Fun and tasty

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Just a week or so before leaving for Italy my mom learned that one of my second cousins actually lived in Rome, and not only that, that he ran a gourmet food tour business. Turned out some of our other cousins had been on one of the tours and loved it — so we hastily signed up.

We met in this typical looking church square on an island in the Tiber. This particular tour was a four hour later afternoon/evening stroll around Trastevere trying out all sorts of various little eats.

Our lovely and vivacious guide was Jasine.



Here is the map and menu so to speak.

First stop is Da Enzo, a popular trattoria.

Not a giant place as you can see. We began with some Prosecco, but I forgot to photo it.

Burrata, Prosciutto, melon. A classic bit of antipasto. The burrata might have warmed up a bit much as it was making a valiant effort to return to the milk from which it came. Still, a yummy start.

And the vegetarian version featured eggplant instead.

Next up is Spirito di Vino — an auspicious name.

And down into the ancient cellar.

Really down.


2013 Molino a Vento Nero d’Avola Sicilia. A robust Sicilian red. Not my usual wine “level” and a bit over-oaked, but nice enough.

Baked pasta. A layered baked dish of pasta, cheese, and tomato sauce. Like lasagna meets baked ziti.

Ancient pork. A pork shoulder recipe from ancient Rome!

Cheesy grits. Not really, but mashed potato or polenta mixed with cheese. Delicious.

Third is a bit of mid dessert. Innocenti biscotti (cookies).

They make traditional tarts.

And various cookies. This kind had an apricot  jam layer.

Then on the left chocolate dipped and on the right hazelnut macaroons, not so different than my mother’s Passover macaroons, but those use almonds.

Fourth is cheese at Anitica Caciara.

Dairy on display.

And the fresh stuff that never is that great in the states.


It goes on and on.

But we came for the Pecorino Romana, here seen aging. Notice the olive oil drip to the right. It literally oozes oil as it dries.


Fresh Pecorino. Nutty and mild.


Aged Pecorino Romano. Stronger and delicious.

After cheese is meat! Antica Norcineria.

Specializing in the famous Porchetta!

Have a few cured meats.

Or olives.
The “white pizza”, otherwise known as focaccia.

And the porchetta itself, drizzled with olive oil.

These last two are assembled into the “sandwich.”

And the vegetarians got some olives, ricotta, and honey.

Next, on to I Suppli for more snacks.

Fried stuff.

And this kind of Roman pizza by the slice.


The Suppli is really well fried and served piping hot.

Inside is a delicious mix of risotto, cheese, and meat. Really delicious.

Enotecca Ferrara is where we will fill up apparently.

Typical cute inside.

Some slightly sweet prosecco.

This Italian Merlot doesn’t even make it onto Cellar Tracker. It wasn’t too bad for a YOUNG merlot.

Ricotta with cheese and pomodoro sauce. A bit of a peppery kick too, quite nice.

cacio e pepe. The classic Roman pasta. Love it.

Gnocci with scamorza (smoked mozzarella).

And what would an Italian food tour be without gelato? Fatamorgana.

All organic, this gelato place was has very interesting flavors like “pears, porto wine, and elder”!

I got passionfruit and grapefruit with orange or lemon. The grapefruit in particular was amazing, with a 10 minute finish! This place is a little less creamy (I think they use less dairy) but VERY tasty.

And they have gelato sushi!

Or some of these Italian ice cream confectionaries.

All in all, a delightful evening of really yummy treats. If you are in Rome and love food I highly recommend it. The wine was too young and casual for my taste, but the food, without being fancy, was fabulous. It showed up the kind of street food and ingredient focused items that would easily be overlooked, but make Italy just so tasty.

Click here to see more Eating Italy posts.

Related posts:

  1. Eating Rome – Roscioli
  2. Eating Rome – La Campana
  3. Eating Staggia – Pozzo dei Desideri
  4. Eating Tuscany – Boar at Home
  5. Eating Milano Marittima – Lo Sporting
By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: eating-italy, Gelato, pasta, Rome, Trastevere, Wine

Via Veneto

Oct08

Restaurant: Via Veneto

Location: 3009 Main St. Santa Monica, CA 90405. (310) 399-1843

Date: April 13, 2014

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent contemporary Italian

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LA is overflowing with Italian restaurants, but there is tremendous range in quality (and price). From old fashioned “red sauce” places to modernist takes like Il Grano. Via Veneto is in that high middle ground were it serves Italian (not exactly Italian American) up with panache.


2011 Bruno Giacosa Roero Arneis. 89 points. White peach, white flowers and minerals. Fresh with a hint of effervescence. Straightforward but enjoyable.

They do get a strike for having not only a $30 corkage (which I can stomach) but a 1 bottle policy. This forced me to buy this decent bottle from the list — but I had to pay a $60 markup for it!


Bread and olives.

CAPRESE CON BUFALA LAZIALE. buffalo mozzarella from “Lazio”, heirloom tomatoes, basil, olive oil.


Caprese with Burrata. Because Burrata always makes everything better!

TARTARA DI MANZO AL COLTELLO. knife cut prime beef filet tartare prepared to order, Pantelleria caper, house special dressing.

MELANZANE ALLA PARMIGIANA. farmers market eggplant, parmigiana style. Not exactly a traditional shape, more like involtini.

INSALATINA DI ARAGOSTA E QUINOA CON MENTA E LIMONE. lobster and quinoa salad, min and citrus vinaigrette. They do love this cylindrical shape. This was a pleasant salad, but the quinoa dominated (i.e. it was hard to really taste the lobster).

RUCOLA SELVATICA, RADICCHIO TREVIGIANO E REGGIANO. wild arugula, treviso radicchio, parmigiano reggiano.


From my cellar: 1990 Poderi Aldo Conterno Barolo Vigna Cicala. 94 points. Such a beautiful intense nose of tar, rose petals, leather…wow. Medium structured with great balance. Long and delish.

RAVIOLI DI VITELLO AI PORCINI. home made veal ravioli, porcini mushroom tomato sauce.

FETTUCCINE AL SUGO DI COSTINE DI MAIALE DELLA MONNA. home made fettuccine with slowly braised baby back pork ribs ragout, tomato sauce. Basically a porky Bolognese.


Pumpkin Ravioli. In butter and sage. Apparently very good, but no amareto cookie inside (that’s traditional).

RISOTTO AL ROSMARINO CON SPEZZATINO DI CINGLIALE. rosemary risotto with braised wild boar. It’s hard to pass up cingliale (boar), and this is a good reason why!

AGNELLO IN CROSTA. pan roasted rack of Sonoma lamb in a crust of fine herbs. Nice!


Mediterranean sea bass, simply grilled.


Some sides: beats and broccolini.


More sides: spinach and roasted potatoes.


The dessert menu.


Chocolate tart.


Profiteroles, stuffed with pastry cream.


Panna cotta with nutella. The hazelnut aspect was subtle, but this was delicious.


Crema di amaretto. A layered thing with lady fingers, this had that delicious complex secondary vibe going that I love from good Italian desserts. That’s why I occasionally make my own uber Tiramisu.

Overall, Via Veneto has a great kitchen. As this category of high end Italian Italians in LA goes, this is a very good one. All the food is extremely tasty. Service was good. It’s dark (not a problem) and a little loud. My biggest ding goes for a strict corkage policy of $30 and one bottle. That’s pretty steep, they could do without the bottle limit for those of us who want to work to empty our cellars.

Oh, and if you’re curious how this compares to the “real thing” I have about 50 write ups from Northern and Central Italy here!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

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  5. Food as Art: Capo
By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Italian cuisine, Italy, lamb, pasta, Risotto, Veneto, Venice, Wine

Reference Pasta – Cacio e Pepe

Jan15

I’m pretty much a pasta fiend, particularly good homemade pasta, so an evening home with my son afforded a good opportunity to try out my pasta cooking chops on this ultimate reference pasta — cacio e pepe. Literarily, it just means “cheese & pepper” and it’s an extremely basic pasta from Rome that showcases its extremely few ingredients. In Gavin tradition, like my ultimate pizza or my uber tiramisu, I try to do it to the highest standard of quality.


That starts with a good pasta. Cacio e pepe is traditionally done with spaghetti or a similar thick long pasta. This pici, is a thick hand rolled pasta, like fat spaghetti. This one is homemade (not by me) out of durum semolina and has a fantastic bite and coarse surface perfect for saucing.

This is a 22 minute to al dente pasta! Wow. I used a pinch of applewood smoked salt in the water to lend a slight smokiness to it.


Some other supplementary ingredients. More on the egg late, but you need a little fat. The most traditional would be pancetta, but staying dairy olive oil or butter work fine. Romans would usually use the pork or olive oil. In the grinder is very fresh, very strong black peppercorns. This awesome grinder makes a very coarse grind. It’s extremely important to have coarse ground bitey pepper. This pasta is about cheese and pepper — so none of that weak sauce pepper with no flavor.


The don’t call it “cheese and pepper” for nothing.


My son and I grated the cheese as the pasta cooked. Only real, fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano will do. Check out the cute little olive wood grater box I bought last time I was in Tuscany.


And the signature cheese: Cacio de Roma (Roman Cheese). This is a sharp, salty, medium firm, creamy sheepmilk cheese. You could use generic pecorino, but it’s not really creamy enough. This is the right cheese.


Drain the pasta and keep some water (I just plucked it out with tongs and dropped it into the strainer). Even at 22 minutes it was seriously al dente, very thick, with a nice weightiness to it. Don’t rinse it. You want that starch.


Now here is the secret to proper pasta that Americans forget. You have to make the sauce in a pan and throw the cooked pasta into it. Before adding the noodles, I melted some fat (butter this time), then toasted some pepper in it for a minute or so, then added a bit of the pasta water and boiled it. This creates a butter/starch base. In went the pasta.


And then most of the cheese (about 3/4 a cup of ground Parmesan and 1/3 a cup of Cacio). You toss it all around for a minute or so to melt the cheese into the sauce and coat the noodles.


To finish it, I ground in a bunch more pepper and threw in an egg yolk. A tasty Carbonara I had a month ago gave me this idea. It’s not strictly traditional to the Cacio e Pepe, but it does add a nice richness. I stirred that in too.


And voila, one heart stopping bowl of simple pasta. This was pretty spectacular. Very weighty, with a richness to the eggy cheese, and a good bite from the pepper. Adult mac & cheese done right.

For more food write-ups, click here.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Al dente, Black pepper, Cacio de Roma, Cacio e Pepe, Cooking, italian, Olive oil, pasta, Recipe, Rome

Gusto Italiano

Dec07

Restaurant: Gusto

Location: 8432 West 3rd St, Los Angeles, CA 90048. (323) 782-1778

Date: December 5, 2013

Cuisine: Italian (Roman)

Rating: Fabulous meal

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Our pal , Chef Vic Casanova, who used to be chef at Culina / 4 Seasons hotel opened his own Italian place. Tonight, for us Hedonists, he prepared a special “Roman” feast.


The 3rd street frontage, not far from the Beverly Center.


Our menu. I had been under the impression he was slanting more Ancient Roman, like this crazy meal at the Getty Villa, but this is more hard core Roman, as in the “modern” Italian city. Not that there is anything wrong with that, as authentic Italian food is unbelievably good (and this meal, you shall see, turned out great). It just wasn’t Ancient, which is a particular thing of mine.  Antique Roman cooking has very different ingredients (no corn, no tomato, no potato, no pasta, etc) and a bold and unusual flavor profile that is herby, sweet, and salty.


From my cellar, 2012 Collestefano Verdicchio di Matelica. IWC 94. Pale straw-green. Knockout aromas of quince, pear, white peach and white flowers are complicated by lemony minerality on the vibrant, captivating nose. Rich and broad on entry, then explosive in the middle palate, saturating the mouth with bright, lively floral and fresh citrus flavors that are intensified by penetrating acidity. Finishes extremely long and creamy-rich, expanding to coat the palate and teeth with lingering white peach and floral flavors. The bright acidity conveys an almost weightless mouthfeel to this seamless, rich, extremely concentrated wine. You can tell that owner Fabio Marchionni studied white wine in Germany. This is but one of many outstanding vintages for this wine. Let me be clear: I think it is probably Italy’s single greatest white wine buy.


1996 Prince Florent de Merode Corton-Renardes. 90 points. A little “funked.” Translucent red fading to amber brown color, nose of port wine, dark candy and apricot. Initial tast of berries (red rasberries), smooth.


Cavoletti. Shaved brussels sprouts, cabbage & kale. Pomegranate. Cherries. Apples. Goat cheese. Mustard vinaigrette.

Interesting flavor profiles. Without the cheese, it would have been fairly exotic. Either way, it was good.


1980 Azienda Bricco Rocche (Ceretto) Barolo Brunate. A touch funky, and very mature, but certainly drinking nicely.


From my cellar, 2007 Paolo Bea San Valentino Umbria IGT. RJ Wine 93. Very dark ruby color; appealing, black raspberry, minerally nose with a sense of pepper; tasty, minerally, roasted plum, light pepper, juniper berry, lavender palate; medium-plus finish.


Cervello Fritti. Fried artichokes. Calves brains. Lemon maionaise.

Zombie food! Fried brains. This was actually very tasty with a nice deep fried flavor and bright lemony mayo in counterpoint.


The buzz is getting on. Lots of wine and the food came quite slowly.


1987 Bruno Giacosa Barbera d’Alba. While WAY paste where it was supposed to drink (that probably would have been about 1992), this was actually pretty interesting.


From my cellar, 2006 Mastroberardino Taurasi Radici. IWC 91. Bright ruby-red. Perfumed, terroir-driven aromas and flavors of blackcurrant, licorice, iron, woodsmoke and minerals. At once dense and suave, with herbal and peppery nuances complicating the wine’s aromatic flavors of red cherry, plum, tobacco and flinty minerals. Finishes with building tannins and a juicy freshness.


Polpette alla Napoletana. Meatballs al forno. Tomato sugo. Locatelli pecorino.

These were some seriously tasty meatballs. Perfectly cooked, they constrasted nicely with the cheesy whip.


1997 Pertimali (Livio Sassetti) Brunello di Montalcino Riserva. Parker 92. The 1997 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva boasts an opaque ruby/purple color in addition to deep, full-bodied flavors, and more tannin as well as a more angular finish than the regular cuvee. Hence the lower rating. Although it does not possess the exuberance, fruit intensity, staggering aromatic fireworks and concentration of the regular bottling, it is still a great meaty, leathery Brunello that should age well for 12-15+ years. I’d be happy to drink it on any occasion.


From my cellar, 1997 Allegrini Amarone della Valpolicella Classico. RJ Wine 94. Raisins, mint and licorice in the nose; big taste in which the oak did not seem entirely integrated. The nose presents the hay notes of mature red wine, higher alcohols, chocolate, raisins, and the taste is huge with a sweet feel and then massive tannins; it has interesting mature flavors, raisiny, organic, decayed leaves turning into something cheesy in a very agreeable way. This is a very young mature wine with a lot going on!


Trippa alla Trasteverina. Brained honeycomb tripe. Spicy tomato.

Described as a tasty spongey hose.


2004 Musella Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva. Parker 93. Musella’s 2004 Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva offers terrific vibrancy and freshness in its dark fruit, herbs, tobacco, sweet spices and subtle French oak. This beautifully poised, medium-bodied Amarone possesses remarkable balance in a nearly weightless style. The refined tannins give this wine its gorgeous sense of proportion, which carries through all the way to the long, satisfying finish. This is an elegant Amarone that delivers incredible value for the money. It is not to be missed.


2010 Conte di Bregonzo Amarone della Valpolicella. 89 points. Crimson garnet appearance. Cherries, black and red currants, violets, cardamom, and dried fruit aromas. The palate exhibits a full body, crunchy texture, sappy cherry fruit, a dark chocolate mid-palate, crushed rocks on the back end, all under a dusting of coriander. Concludes with a crisp, medium finish. Ridiculously young, and very cheap for an Amarone, but in 10 years…

Asparagi Piemontese. Grilled asparagus. Black truffle fonduta. Sunny side egg.


Imagine what would have happened if she ate the brains instead!


2004 Azienda Agricola Reverdito Michele Barolo Serralunga. Young! Nice wine, but Barolo needs 15+ years.


1999 Azienda Bricco Rocche (Ceretto) Barolo Brunate. IWC 91. Medium red. Complex, mellow aromas of plum, cherry, marzipan and earth; ripe but not overripe. Suave, silky, full and deep, with noteworthy clarity of flavor and inner-mouth perfume. Finishes with broad, horizontal tannins. Way too young still.


Tonnarelli alla Carbonara. Fresh cracked black pepper. pancetta. egg yolk.

The pasta here was perfect, thick chewy, and very al dente. It was a very eggy Carbonara, and while extremely tasty, could have used a MUCH stronger pepper. Black pepper is one of those tricky things because some peppercorns are tasteless and some have that bright snappy bite. It’s not the amount here, but the pepper itself.


1994 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Ornellaia. Parker 89. The 1994 Ornellaia is a decidedly small-scaled, mid-weight effort with attractive, fragrant aromatics and delicate notes of tobacco and spices that add a measure of nuance to the fruit. While the 1994 lacks the complexity of the finest vintages, it nevertheless possesses lovely overall balance and harmony. The 1994 Ornellaia is 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc that spent 15 months in French oak, a third of which was new.


1995 Vineyard 29 Cabernet Sauvignon. Parker 89. Aged in 100% new French oak casks for 22 months before bottling, the 1995 Cabernet Sauvignon offers a dark ruby color, followed by a sweet, aggressively woody nose. The pungent wood dominated the wine’s fruit, which lowered my score. Nevertheless, once past the oaky overlay, the wine exhibits fine ripeness, copious quantities of rich, chewy fruit, medium to full body, and wood tannin in the finish. I am not sure if everything will ultimately come together, but this is a flamboyant, oaky, spicy Cabernet Sauvignon that requires 2-4 more years of cellaring; it should keep for 15-20 years.


Bucatini all’Amatriciana. Guanciale. Chili. Pecorino.

Slightly odd to have two long squiggly pastas in a row. Although, again ,the pasta itself was spot on. The sauce was pretty classic Amatriciana and had a good bit of heat. It probably could have used a bit more of a porky flavor. Certainly it was very good although being an egg fiend I preferred the Carbonara.


1996 Mario Marengo Barolo Brunate. Parker 91-93. The velvety-textured 1996 Barolo Brunate offers up a textbook bouquet of rose petals, cherry liqueur, and tobacco leaf scents. Melted tar also emerges with swirling. On the palate, there are gorgeous levels of black cherry and truffle flavors. Dense and full-bodied, with lofty but not excessive alcohol (14%), this sensational Barolo has moderate tannin underlying the layers of glycerin-imbued, rich, chewy fruit.


2006 Luciano Sandrone Barolo Cannubi Boschis. Parker 97. The 2006 Barolo Cannubi Boschis is seductive, round and sweet in its ripe dark fruit. The wine continues to gain weight in the glass, showing a level of density that nearly manages to cover the tannins. Floral notes add lift on the finish. This is a powerful, linear Cannubi Boschis with tons of energy and muscle, but it will require quite a bit of patience. Sandrone harvests his three parcels in Cannubi Boschis separately. Vinification takes place in stainless steel. The wines undergo malolactic fermentation and are aged in 500-liter barrels (roughly 20% new) for a year. Once the final blend is assembled, the wine goes back into oak for another year prior to being bottled in the spring. Sandrone is one of the earliest producers to bottle, which he does to preserve as much freshness as possible.

Baby killer! This needed at least 10 more years.

Petto D’Anatra.Spiced duck breast. Wilted cavolo nero. Butternut squash caponata. cherry glassato.


2008 Gianni Brunelli le Chiuse di Sotto Brunello di Montalcino. Parker 91. The 2008 Brunello di Montalcino comes across as very, very young and in need of serious bottle age. I suspect the 2008 will always be a bit of a brute, but at the same time it is quite beautiful. Savory herbs, licorice, tobacco, incense and leather wrap around the palate as the 2008 shows off its considerable personality. The 2008 doesn’t have the immediate appeal of some other recent vintages, but I will not be surprised if it turns out to be even better than this note suggests.


2007 Sine Qua Non Pictures (Grenache). Parker 97. 2007 Pictures Grenache: A blend of 87% Grenache, 11.5% Syrah, and 1.5% Viognier, this wine has wonderful floral notes intermixed with black raspberries, black cherries, licorice, graphite and some camphor. In the mouth, more white chocolate notes appear, along with meatiness and some silky tannins. Its great purity, density and richness make me think this wine could even improve a few points and flirt with perfection. This stunning wine should drink nicely for another 10-15 years.

And what is it with these annoying new world labels where the vintage is on the back? Make me take 2 pictures, sure!


Coda alla Vaccinara. Braised oxtail. Carrot. Celery. Polenta.

This is a classic Northern Italian dish and this particular example was lovely (big portion too). Very soft and meaty, not too too fatty, and a really yummy cheesy polenta. Great stuff.


2003 Domaine Huet Vouvray Moelleux 1ère Trie Clos du Bourg. Nice sticky.


Coconut Gelato Pie. Chocolate fonduta. Graham cracker crust. Vanilla bean whipped cream.

This cake, while certainly extremely far from ancient, was right up my alley and rather delicious. I love coconut and it had that cool semi-freddo thing going on.


Just a small corner of the chaos.

Overall, this was another great meal. As usual, we had an insane overabundance of wine, probably over 1.5 bottles per person. The food was delicious, if not exactly what I thought it would be. Almost all the dishes were lip smacking good. The pasta was perfectly al dente. The service was extremely warm and helpful, although the pacing between dishes (particularly at the beginning) was decidedly authentic Italian. Just a great time!

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

Related posts:

  1. Big Bottle Madness at Kali Dining
  2. Amarone at Oliverio
  3. Tony Terroni
  4. Luminous Lechon Pigout!
  5. Hedonists at La Paella
By: agavin
Comments (5)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Dessert, Gusto, hedonists, Italian cuisine, pasta, Wine

Assaggi – not the first 3 letters

Jan14

Restaurant: Assaggi

Location: 4838 Bethesda Avenue. Bethesda, MD 20814. 301-951-1988

Date: November 27, 2012

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent neighborhood Italian

_

A night out with friends in Bethesda (outside of Washington D.C.) brought us to this modern neighborhood Italian.


A fairly typical menu.

I love Amarone. It’s made in the “ripasso” (rested) style. This means the grapes are sun dried into raisons on straw mats before pressing. This gives it a richer raison quality than otherwise.


Can’t beat the pig. This is a mixed large plate of prosciutto di parma, lonza, cacciatorini, salame nostrano, and capocollo.


And some cheese to go with it. From left to right: smoked mozzarella, mozzarella di bufala, and burrata. This is all not so different than Obika.


And some marinated veggies in case the above wasn’t healthy enough.


Salad of local beets, baby spinach, toasted pumpkin seeds, and lemon vinaigrette.


Bigoli pasta with “maple leaf farm” duck and porcini mushroom ragu. A nice winter ragu.


Orecchiette pasta with “path valley farm” punpkin, goat cheese, and toasted pine nuts.


After killing the Amarone, we switched to this Taurasi. Taurasi is from near Naples and made with mostly Aglianico which is a delicious southern Italian grape.


Some gluten free pasta with tomatoes and olives.


Agnello. Slowly cooked lamb shank, mint mashed potatoes.


And its beefier cousin, classic osso bucco.


Finish with a little gelato.

For Washington, which isn’t known for great Italian, this was a solid meal. Service was friendly, the food was modern Italian American (not the dreaded “red sauce” style) and everything tasty.

For more Washington dining reviews click here.

Related posts:

  1. Quick Eats: Caffe Delfini
  2. Seconds at Sotto
  3. Hostaria del Piccolo – Pizza + Pasta
  4. Locanda Portofino – In the Neighborhood
  5. Quick Eats: Osteria Latini 2
By: agavin
Comments (0)
Posted in: Food
Tagged as: Assaggi, Bethesda Maryland, Buffalo mozzarella, Italian cuisine, pasta, Prosciutto, Washington
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