Pizza :: All Things Andy Gavin

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Eating Venice – Rossopomodoro

Dec27

Location: Calle Larga San Marco, 404/408, 30124 Venice Italy. +39 041 243 8949

Date: July 30, 2024

Cuisine: Neapolitan Pizza

Rating: Best pizza I’ve had in years

We were wandering around Venice and happened to pass this pizza place while looking for lunch. It just caught my eye. Later I discovered it’s a smallish (15-20 branches) chain. The name means “Red Tomato.”

This branch is just off Piazza San Marco. My son and I stopped in for some quick lunch.

The interior was huge.

Margarita. My son liked it — although he had a bit of trouble with the “cut it yourself” factor.

Mortadella and Pistachio. Wow, this was a great pizza. crust filled with buffalo ricotta and pistachio pesto, mozzarella Fior di Latte and out of the oven, mortadella Bologna IGP Casa Modena, crumbled toasted pistachios, Grana Padano DOP wafer and lemon zest. Really fabulous. Best new pizza combo I’ve had in a long long time and probably the best pizza I’ve had in a couple of years.

Great pizza and not too bad for a tourist zone. Turns out they are a bit of an international chain.

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Eating Venice, eating-italy, Italian Cusine, Pizza, Venice

Awesome Ospi

Sep28

Restaurant: Ospi Venice

Location: 2025 Pacific Ave, Venice, CA 90291. (424) 407-1957

Date: January 30, April 3 and May 9, 2024

Cuisine: New (slightly southern) Italian

Rating: Delicious!

Part modern Italian, part classic Italian, Ospi (short for ospiante or “host” in English) is our version of a casual lunch trattoria, familial dinner restaurant, or a fun recovery brunch spot on the weekends.

Ospi is located in the heart of Venice, right near the water.

The chic interior.

The menu.

Crispy Provolone w/ Vodka Sauce. This sauce will end up being a staple tonight.

Beef Tartare. tonnato, crispy potato, parmigiano. Great flavors and textures. The chips really added.

Caesar Salad. local greens, colatura cacio e pepe dressing and foccia croutons.

Cauliflower. Calabrian chili tahini, dates, pepita, fresh herbs. A little bit of a kick.

Copione Pizza. sopressata, honey, chili. Nice and crispy with that yummy spicy, salty, sweet vibe.

Vodka Pizza. That sauce again.

Stracciatella for the pizza.

Margherita pizza.

Cacio e pepe pizza.

Spaghetti Tomato, gluten free.

Spaghetti Tomato. Jame’s pomodoro, basil, parmigiano.

Ricotta Gnudi. Brown butter sauce crunch.

Lemon Tagliolini. Lobster “fra diavolo”, basil, pistachio. One person found it way too spicy — I thought it was just bright.

Slide!

Spicy Rigatoni. Alla vodka (again).

Malloreddus. Beef check ragu napoletano, thyme, toscano.

Mezze Maniche. cacio e pepe, single origin pepper. Super creamy and cheesy. They said it was parm. Could have used maybe a hair more pepper but the pasta texture was also fabulous.

Cannelloni. lamb neck & pine nut “alla sorrentina.” Soft, cheesy, meaty and oh so delicious.

Chitarra. blue crab, jalapeño, vino bianco. Very interesting for a crab dish — and quite spicy and a little bit smoky. Very unique.

Raschiatelli. spicy pork sparerib sugo, crema di pecorino, pangrattato. Also spicy with great texture.

Cavatelli. pork sausage, fresh black truffle, housemade truffle butter. The flavor was awesome and I usually love Cavatelli — although they could have been a bit better formed.

Dry aged New York strip.

Cannoli. citrus marmalade. Super soft cheese and nicely crunchy shells. Some of the best cannoli I’ve had in LA.

Nutella Mousse. chocolate shortbread crumble, whipped mascarpone, olive oil. Nice too.

Ospi was really good. Very carby. Unusually spicy (not that I mind) and lots of meat but some serious Southern Italian vibes here and really excellent execution. It was so good that I went here 3 times in fairly rapid succession.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: italian, pasta, Pizza, Venice California, Wine

Eating San Fran – Delfina

Sep15

Restaurant: Delfina SF

Location: 3621 18th St, San Francisco, CA 94110. (415) 437-6800

Date: January 16, 2024

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Modern Rustic Italian

Second work dinner of this January SF trip.

Delfina, San Francisco’s beloved James Beard Award-winning trattoria, has been pioneering Cal-Italian cuisine for over 20 years. Owners Craig and Annie Stoll opened the classic eatery in 1998 to immediate success, with Food & Wine naming Craig Stoll Best New Chef in 2001. Over the years, Delfina has earned a James Beard Award and expanded operations to include Pizzeria Delfina, serving up some of the best Neapolitan-inspired pizza and seasonal dishes with four locations across the Bay Area. With warm hospitality, excellent service, and memorable dishes that are rooted in Italian flavors and driven by the Bay Area’s seasonal bounty, Delfina has solidified its reputation as a true San Francisco classic. In October 2022, Delfina reopened with a gorgeous renovation by Fucinaro Architects and Roy Hospitality, reimagining the restaurant’s interior.

The menu.

Fryer Creek Deviled Eggs. smoked whitefish mantecato, horseradish.

Mortadella. Rovagnati.

Warm Castelvetrano Olives.

Insalata di Campo. chicories and greens, Delfina pancetta, walnuts, parmigiano, balsamico.

Parm on the side.

Fryer Creek Squash Sformato. parmigiano fonduta, chestnuts, aceto balsamico tradizionale.

Mezzalune Val d’Aosta. fontina, almonds, white truffle butter.

Kuri Squash Tortelloni. sage-brown butter, cavolo nero.

Spaghetti Pomodoro.

Bistecca alla Fiorentina. 2lb dry-aged prime.

Umpqua Valley Lamb Leg Marocchino. spiced yogurt, olivata, butter beans da Delfina.

Fryer Creek Tokyo Turnips. bagna cauda, breadcrumbs.

Butter Beans da Delfina. garlic, sage, xvoo.

Buttermilk Panna Cotta. passion fruit. A touch sour.

Cocoa Nib Pavlova. caramel gelato, warm chocolate sauce, hazelnuts.

Very solid semi rustic Italian.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Delfina, italian, pasta, Pizza, San Francisco, Wine

Bar Monette

Jan24

Restaurant: Bar Monette

Location: 109 Santa Monica Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 310-8575

Date: April 27, 2023

Cuisine: Pizza

Rating: Great pizza

New “tapas” (not really) Pizza Bar in Downtown Santa Monica.

Now that I’m working here, too bad they aren’t open for lunch.

Cute and crowded inside.

The short menu.

Aunty Wendy’s Trevis. Passion fruit, basil. Basically a passionfruit pesto, this dressing was a surprising and wonderful counterpoint to the bitter raddiccio. Nice little (and it was little) saiad.

Poached Prawns. Saffron Bisque. The saffron was subtle, but the sauce was every bit one of those shellfish shell bisques. So yummy. Great little dish.

Sugo Puttanesca. Not as pungent as I might have liked, but certainly delicious with that umami quality.

Burnt Romesco. Awesome smoked romesco flavor. really tasty.

Scissors to cut the pizza!?!

Margherita. Basil, Stracciatella. The dough on these pizzas is so soft, chewy, and perfect. Maybe the best pizza dough I’ve had.

Zucchini Blossom Pizza. Piquillo Pepper, buffalo mozzarella, garlic. Lovely.

Pesto & Dungeness Crab Pizza. Pine Nut, basil, aged cheese. Very interesting pizza. Great.

Spicy Calabrese & Honey. Oregano, Sun-dried Tomato. My favorite pizza of the night. It was so salty/savory good. Yum!

Overall, a narrowly focused but really brilliant little pizza bar. A touch loud, but the service was great and the food to-die-for.

For more dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: bar, Pizza, Santa Monica, Tapas

Lunch Quest – Pizzeria Sei

May28

Restaurant: Pizzeria Sei

Location: 8781 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90035. (424) 279-9800

Date: October 10, 2022

Cuisine: Pizza

Rating: Very good, but very specific Neo-Neapolitan pizza

There has been a lot of buzz about Pizzeria Sei. I’ll just quote from Michelin who wrong it up:

Thick or thin. Sauced or left bare. Traditional or irreverent. Pizza is the shape-shifter of the culinary world, with seemingly endless variations and an insatiable appetite for the newest iteration. Enter Pizzeria Sei, where individual pies are made with a Japan-meets-Italy flair. A handful of diners perch at the counter to watch the chefs hard at work prepping these savory treats. Wondering where the Japanese comes into play? It’s the cornicione—with its trademark puffy pinch with a mochi-like chew. White pies are more offbeat, as in the Bismarck topped with a poached egg, while red pies lean more Italian. The Margherita is a go-to, topped with simple tomato, basil, fior di latte and olive oil, then cooked in an gas- and wood-fired oven.

Anyway, it’s hidden in a little (I mean little) storefront at the corner of Pico and Robertson (by definition pretty much the kosher zone).

This is about it: The oven.

And the toppings counter.

Today’s minimal menu.

Giardiniera. Pickled farmer’s market vegetables, castelvetrano olive, italian herbs, extra virgin olive oil, toasted bread (vegan). I like me some pickles.

Toast. Didn’t need this.

Bismarck Pizza. Fior di latte, prosciutto cotto, egg, pecorino, basil, truffle oil, sea salt.

Diavola Pizza. Tomato, fior di latte, basil, soppressata, olive, parmigiano reggiano, chili flakes, extra virgin olive oil.

Tiramisu. Soft and creamy. By far on the better side for restaurant tiramisu. Not quite mine, but still.

This was some good pizza, as the crust is very chewy and addictive. Toppings seem of very high quality, but there aren’t that many options. It’s certainly one of the best pizzas I’ve had in LA, but I do not think quite as good (to my taste) as Bar Monette but that’ll be for a later post.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Lunch Quest, Pizza, Pizzeria Sei, Quick Eats, Sei

Mother Wolf – Carb Coma

May10

Restaurant: Mother Wolf

Location: 1545 Wilcox Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90028. (323) 410-6060

Date: September 27, 2022

Cuisine: Roman-style Italian

Rating: Really good, really salty, total carb bomb

Mother Wolf was one of LA’s most anticipated 2022 openings, being the first “post Felix” restaurant from pasta master Evan Funke.

Chef Evan Funke is a highly respected and accomplished chef in the culinary industry. He is known for his passion and expertise in Italian cuisine, particularly pasta-making. Funke has worked in some of the most renowned kitchens in the United States, including Spago and Rustic Canyon in Los Angeles. He also trained under Italian pasta masters in Italy, which sparked his love for traditional Italian cooking techniques. Funke is also the founder of the popular Los Angeles-based restaurant, Felix Trattoria, which has received numerous accolades and recognition for its exceptional pasta dishes. In addition to his work in the restaurant industry, Funke is also an author, having published his first cookbook, “American Sfoglino: A Master Class in Handmade Pasta,” in 2019. He is widely regarded as one of the top pasta makers in the world, and his dedication to preserving the traditional techniques of Italian cooking has made him a beloved figure in the culinary community.

Mother Wolf is “Roman” themed — not ancient Roman, despite the obvious Romulus and Remus logo — but reflecting the food of the city. Most specifically his own take on those foods, particularly the pasta.

The interior is huge and gorgeous. It’s located right next door to Mes Ami (RIP) and part of the same management group.

The menu.

2004 Dom Pérignon Champagne P2. VM 97. The 2004 Dom Pérignon P2 is precise and wonderfully refined, just like the first release. There’s a hint of reduction from extended time on the cork as well as a feeling of effusiveness that is so appealing. Readers will find a super-classic DP. Dried flowers, brioche, apricot preserves, sage, mint and chamomile are seamless in the glass. The 2004 can be enjoyed now or cellared for another decade plus. Some editions of the P2 series have been pretty austere in the early going; the 2004 is not among them. (Drink between 2022-2034)

PIZZA ROSSA. salsa di pomodoro, sea salt, olive oil. Gift from the kitchen. Nice texture and char taste to the dough. Chewy. Great for being such a simple pizza (I like them more complex).

SUPPLI AL TELEFONO. risotto croquette, guanciale, pomodoro, mozzarella di bufala, pecorino romano DOP. Classic Roman risotto balls (supplì). Cheesy center. Very temperature hot. Suppli are like the pizza flavored arancini. Basically a tomato soaked risotto and some melting mozzarella. It’s battered with egg and deep fried.

From my cellar: 2020 Capichera Bianco Capichera VT Isola dei Nuraghi IGT. Awesome high salinity Vermentino that I bought at the winery in Sardinia.

FIORI DI ZUCCA. squash blossoms, ricotta romana DOP, parmigiano reggiano. Very nicely fried and soft ricotta inside. Like many dishes at MF, this is a Felix transplant.

RUCHETTA. wild arugula, parmigiano reggiano, lemon, black pepper. Bracing and refreshing salad, perfect with all the fat and carbs.

2019 Paolo Cali Vittoria Mandragola. We bought this off the wine list at the Somm’s recommendation and I LOVED it — bought a case on my phone while we sat there.

LA MORTAZZA. mortadella di bologna, ricotta fresca, pistacchio di bronte, agrumato. A pizza version of a bologne sandwhich? Really good mortadella actually with a lot of nice very fresh ricotta. TONS of crust.

GAMBERI IN SALSA VERDE. blue prawns, green garlic salsa verde. Head sucking good. Salsa brightened things up. These are pretty much a Felix thing too.

SALSICCIA PIZZA. mozzarella di bufala, salsiccia, sweet peppers, spring onion, pomodoro, origano selvatico. This was pretty much my perfect classic sausage pizza. Great char and chew to the dough. Soft and chewy in the middle. Really liked the sausage and cheese offset along with the classic oregano vibe. Like a fancy version of those New Jersey pizzas.

SPAGHETTI CON BOTTARGA. aglio, olio, bottarga di muggine. Simple but perfectly al dente and with good botarga flavor.

1954 Marchesi di Barolo Barolo.

TONNARELLI CACIO E PEPE. pecorino romano DOP, black pepper. This probably would have been very good if we hadn’t also had the gricia (which was stunning and had that extra porky flavor). Pretty heavy but very al dente.

SPAGHETTONE ALLA GRICIA. guanciale, black pepper, pecorino romano DOP. One rarely sees this fourth pillar of the Roman pizza quartet and this version was absolutely perfect. Such seductive porky flavor! Insanely good pasta.

MEZZI RIGATONI ALLA CARBONARA. guanciale, egg, black pepper, pecorino romano DOP. Unusual pasta type but very “creamy” and incredibly rich. I liked it a lot but it was making me very full.

From my cellar: 2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano. VM 95+. The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is powerful, deeply colored and still carrying a considerable amount of tannic heft for a twelve year old wine. Dark cherry, plum, smoke, tobacco, scorched earth and licorice give the wine much of its distinctive virile personality. The Madonna del Piano is one of the bigger, brawnier 2004s readers will come across. As such, it needs to be served alongside similarly rich, hearty cuisines. (Drink between 2016-2026)

RIGATONCINI ALLA VACCINARA. oxtail ragu, guanciale, peperoncino, pecorino romano DOP. Solid meaty rigatoni.

PUTTANESCA. sugo di pomodoro, pomodorini, acciughe, green and black olives, basil. This wasn’t Puta enough. It was solid, and perfectly cooked, but I couldn’t really taste the anchovy. I wanted to be bowled over by the pungency.

ARROSTICINI. new zealand lamb belly, insalata di cipollina, lemon. Interestingly middle eastern. The mint “salad” was really good for offsetting the fat.

The dessert menu.

TORTA DI CIOCCOLATO. letterpress chocolate, arancia candita, gelato di pistacchio. Lovely rich tart and I really liked the candied orange and pistachio.

MARITOZZO ROMANO. monterrey strawberries, crema chantilly. Like a nice donut with strawberries and cream. Hard not to like as it was very soft and fresh.

Our wines.

Overall, this was a great meal. It was heavy though. It didn’t seem like it exactly, but I slept terribly. Everything tasted great, but it was extremely well seasoned (aka salty) and between the massive carb overload and the salt it really through my system out of whack. But of course I have no one but myself to blame as I did the ordering. And do notice that with four people I ordered three pizzas (actually one was on the house) and six pastas! That’s half a pizza and 1.5 pastas each, not to mention the other stuff. But really I probably ate about 2.5 pastas myself. haha.

And Mother Wolf, like Felix before it, is all about the pasta. They were darn good, particularly the carbonara and the gricia. I was almost tempted to order all 9, but I had to draw the line somewhere. They make good pizza here too, very good, but not totally mind blowing. The pasta is better. And they do have all 4 of the sacred 4 Roman pastas: cacio e pepe, amatriciana, gricia, and carbonara. They are all Southern Italian. The appetizers and mains are fine, but more forgettable, and not even totally regional.

Too bad MF is so far from me and reservations are so hard to get. Six months later you can get them, but only for 9:45pm. lol. And it’s a big restaurant. I guess Los Angelenos don’t mind $25-30 rustic pastas if they are good enough! I don’t.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Cacio e Pepe, Carbonara, Evan Funke, Foodie Club, Gricia, Italian cuisine, Jeridan, Mother Wolf, pasta, Pizza, Wine

Old Baroli at Etta

Jul23

Restaurant: Etta

Location: 8801 Washington Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232. (424) 570-4444

Date: November 10, 2021 and June 10, 2022

Cuisine: Italian Wood-fire grill

Rating: Tasty, hearty

Etta is a new “transplant” from Chicago bringing a sort of modern Italian American wood-fire grill thing to LA.

It’s located adjacent to the Shay boutique hotel in Culver City.

The interior is large and attractive with a lively bar scene.

On 11/10/22 we brought an all Italian slate of mostly old Baroli, plus this bonus white of mine.

2015 Azienda Agricola Valentini Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. AG 93+. Good bright yellow. The pure, complex nose suggests lime, yellow apple and botanical herbs. Then very precise, intense and penetrating, if still youthfully unevolved, conveying a powerful, three-dimensional impression of extract and a deep, textured, multilayered mouthfeel. The wine closes very long and juicy, with herbal and saline elements that titillate the taste buds. Another outstanding wine from Valentini, who never misses a beat with his Trebbiano d’Abruzzo.

1937 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva.

1958 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva.

1961 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva.

1964 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva.

1967 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva.

1970 Francesco Rinaldi e Figli Barolo.

1978 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva.

The menu in November 2021.

And in June 2022.

Fire- baked focaccia. Ricotta, honey, truffle. Nice and fluffy.

Meatballs. Sunday sauce, fire-wilted kale, herbed yogurt, grilled bread. A bit of heat.

Roasted eggplant. Tahini ricotta, buttered hazelnuts, Calabrian chie, herb salad. Pretty darn spicy actually.

Bubbling shrimp. Ginger, chiltepin chile, mint.

Rack-roasted oysters. smoked-tomato butter, lovage, lemon.

Grilled pork jowl. Smashed cucumbers, peanuts, herb salad.

Little Gem Salad. Avocado, cucumbers, creme fraiche vinaigrette. Nice textures.

Pizza toppings.

Wild Mushroom Pizza. Goat cheese, black truffle raclette. Excellent except for the truffle oil.

Fire Pizza. Sausage, giardiniera, chile de arbol. Spicy sausage basically.

Cacio e pepe agnolotti. Pecorino, black pepper.

Lumache. Sun gold pomodoro, basil, olive oil.

Casarecce bolognese. Parmesan fondue.

Spaghettone. Uni, lemon, black pepper.

Orecchiette. Crispy sausage, cavolo nero, tomato jus, fennel pollon. Lots of hearty flavor. Some spice.

Cacio e pepe. Mafaldine, pecorino, black pepper. Lovely, nice emulsion.

Orecchiette with red sauce.

Brussels sprouts. Honey dijon vinaigrette, crispy bacon, dill yogurt, herbs.

Market haricot vrt. Grilled romano beans, sweet peppers, lemon vinaigrette, purslane.

40oz bone-in hearth-roasted short rib. This is the fixings tower.

Herbs.

Pickles, sauces, and more herbs.

The actual meat. 40oz bone-in hearth-roasted short rib. You made your own pita/taco like things out of this. delicious.

Bread and “sauce”?

Dry-aged whole branzino. Brown butter, capers, parsley, lemon.

Spinalis. Last of the season tomatoes, wild arugula, parmesan & date vinegar.

Hanger steak. Tamarind glazed bok choy, pepita butter, charred cipollini, crispy buckwheat. Nice steak.

Dessert menus from the two days.

Mint chip semifreddo. Devil’s food cake, creme de menthe, chocolate sorbet.

Chocolate ice cream. Caramel, brownies.

Strawberry ice cream. Olive oil, sea salt.

Double Chocolate Mousse. Feuilletine crunch, dark chocolate cremeux, banana sherbert, oreo crumbs.

Etta was good. Hearty and perhaps just as much American as it is Italian — maybe more than 50% — but it is pretty tasty. The space is large, loud, and attractive. Service was pretty good. Very friendly for sure, although I had to go “grab” some glasses because I’m impatient.

Our wines on this Barolo night (the second visit was more casual) were really awesome. Old Borgogno rocks!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Barolo, Culver City, Etta, Foodie Club, Italian cuisine, pasta, Pizza, Wine

The Rooster Crows

Mar16

Restaurant: The Rooster

Location: 2301 Santa Monica Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90404. (310) 264-0999

Date: January 31, 2020

Cuisine: Wood-fire grill and California / pseudo-Italian

Rating: Tasty, but too pricey for its vibe

Continuing our streak of family dinners during my mom’s 75th birthday week, the gang of us headed off to the Rooster.

Bruce Marder, The Rooster’s chef/ restaurateur, lists Capo, The Brentwood, Cora’s Coffee Shop, and Marvin as his current successes. Renowned for his world class cuisine, his skills encompass a deep appreciation for international flavors that he unabashedly blends into an American style menu that celebrates our cultural diversity.

Bruce Marder’s latest addition to the Santa Monica scene features dishes kissed by almond-wood flames including tender, grilled meats served up family style, to pizzas and flatbreads baked in the wood fire oven.

The finest of ingredients, sourced from the farmers’ market, our personal garden, and highly regarded local ranchers, are the foundation of a cuisine that exemplifies the purity of the flavors without unnecessary adulteration.

Big, colder, more casual dining room and wood-fire grill.

Open kitchen.

I’ve always been a fan of Capo, despite a bit of attitude there, and have been at least 40 times, so I was interested to see what they did here in this larger more casual space.

The menu.

From my cellar: 2013 Chartogne-Taillet Champagne Beaux Sens. 93 points. This is 100% Pinot Meunier. One of the few vineyards where the wines have not been grafted. Mostly because it comes from a vineyard of purely sandy soil. There’s spice and sunflower seeds and a very nice balance to the wine. Soft bubbles. Very well done.

Fried bread and eggplant spread

Artichokes. Lemon, horseradish. These were nice wood-fired artichokes.

Eggplant. Rocca reggiano, tomato sauce. Basically a kind of skillet eggplant parm, this was quite delicious.

Warm seafood salad. Beurre blanc sauce. Incredible sauce. Really tender seafood. Seafood was grilled. I’m not normally a huge fan of the warm seafood salad, but this one was fantastic. Big hunks of very tender and flavorful seafood, and then the beurre blanc was perfect. Same one basically that’s on the crab torta I love at Capo. They even threw in the bread to sop it up.

From my cellar: 2004 Tenuta Corte Pavone Brunello di Montalcino. 93 points. The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino is a fresh, vibrant offering bursting with dark cherries, violets, underbrush, minerals and sweet toasted oak on a medium-bodied frame. The wine reveals terrific balance in an energetic, focused style, with firm yet ripe tannins. The finish is long, clean and refreshing. This is a gorgeous effort from Loacker. (Drink between 2013-2019)

Spicy pepperoni pizza. Solid wood-fired pizza, although nothing stunningly original.

Simple pasta.

Cacio e pepe. Nice, but a touch disappointing. Maybe not creamy enough, or peppery enough. I’m not sure.

Spaghetti Roma.

From my cellar: 1999 Paitin di Pasquero-Elia Barbaresco Vecchie Vigne Sorì Paitin. 94 points. The 1999 Barbaresco Sorì Paitin Vecchie Vigne is dark, powerful and opulent, with more than enough stuffing to age well for the better part of the next decade. Smoke, menthol, tar, black fruit and French oak blossom in the glass as this resonant, exuberant Barbaresco show off its unique, totally compelling personality. The French oak is present, but well balanced at the same time. (Drink between 2014-2022)

Loup de Mer.

Babyback ribs. Very tasty with lots of meat. Not super sauced or anything.

Lamb chops. Excellent lamb.

I don’t usually show the bill, but I thought I would tonight to make a point. We had 6 people (eating). So basically $100. Not crazy, but we didn’t order drinks or dessert. They charge for bread/butter. Corkage was a perfectly fine 3X$35. I have no problem with that. I had expected the Capo deal of high corkage, 1 or 2 bottle limits, and vetting to make sure one’s bottle was not “on their list.” I did see any of that and they just let me open my 3 bottles. This may have changed because Erick said that when he went months ago they had the limits. Limits suck, but for this 1/31/20 dinner and my experience, corkage was totally fine.

Food is actually quite good, if a bit too much emphasis on the wood-fire. Now I like wood grills, but (almost) everything is a touch much. The space feels loud, colder, and not “cozy” like Capo. Menu is more limited (but with some pizza).

Service was very friendly, but our server was a touch good-naturedly confused. 4 of us guys shared dishes and she brought them out in the weirdest order. I had to send a thing or two back (for a bit) because it made no sense. I’ve presented it here in the post in the order it SHOULD have come in. But they brought the pizza, pasta, and eggplant all right away, then thought to bring the artichokes as a “side” with the meat? Strange. The 20% service fee is also included and mandatory. I always tip 20% anyway and so this feels a bit weird.

It was Friday night and they were half empty. I don’t think the feel of the place warrants the pretty high prices. Capo is very expensive, but manages to make it feel LA swanky in this way that works. I suspect the Rooster will have trouble and at the very least change format a bit.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Grill, pasta, Pizza, Santa Monica, The Rooster, Wine, Wood-fire

Ancient Italian (wine) at Sixth & Mill

Dec25

Restaurant: Sixth & Mill

Location: 1335 E 6th St, Los Angeles, CA 90021. (213) 629-3000

Date: November 11, 2019

Cuisine: Italian Pizza

Rating: Super Tasty Pizza, but far (for me)

This post documents an interesting combo event. My friend Walker, member of the Foodie Club, put together this event at his friend, Chef Angelo Auriana’s new pizza place downtown (located next to his other restaurant, Berea).

Chef Angelo’s pizza is his very own version of the pizza Napoletana, which was initially exported by the first waves of immigrants in the 1800s and quickly became what most people abroad identify Italian food by.

Beside the pizza, the cuisine of sixth+mill focuses on other traditional recipes that capture the uniqueness and versatility of the regional southern Italian food and include appetizers, fritters, homemade pasta, meat & poultry, seafood and desserts, keeping an eye on traditions and looking at today’s necessity of lightness, healthiness and simplicity.

The dining experience at sixth+mill evokes joyous times of travel and memories through a casual-refined atmosphere that recreates the feel of a night by the Gulf of Naples and it is the platform to celebrate and share the culture and the life style of the Italian people.

It’s in the left half of the Berea building, and is a bit of a transplant from Vegas as the chef opened this concept there first.

Inside is a mix of contemporary and “factory.”

Walker organized this HUGE (too huge) dinner with like 50-60 people to showcase the pizzas and his ancient and unusual Italian wines. The chef is in the blue in the middle of the above picture.

I also brought some wine. From my cellar: 2010 Borgo del Tiglio (Nicola Manferrari) Collio Friulano Ronco della Chiesa. AG 94. Borgo del Tiglio’s 2010 Ronco della Chiesa shows what this hillside site in Cormons can do in cooler vintages. Still bright, focused and intensely saline, the 2010 bursts from the glass with grapefruit, lime, mint and crushed rocks. The 2010 will probably be appreciated most by readers who like tense, vibrant whites. Next to some of the other vintages, the 2010 lacks a little mid-palate pliancy, but it is quite beautiful just the same. I especially like the way the 2010 opens up nicely in the glass over time. (Drink between 2013-2020)

Mozzerella from Southern Italy with peppers.

Margarita with Gorgonzola. Pretty normal Margarita, but for the strong flavor of Gorgonzola — took it up a notch for me. Very salty and strong.

Parmesan with purple cabbage and almonds. A strongly cheesy pizza with a bit of crunch and a hint of bitter from the cabbage.

From my cellar: 2007 Paolo Bea Montefalco Rosso Riserva Pipparello. 94 points. I’m a sucker for Bea and my infatuation may blur my objectivity as a result. However, it would be disingenuous of me if I were not to gush over this bottle. A tree full of ripe cherries, pie spice, asphalt, charcoal, smoke, mushrooms, damp forest floor, teriyaki…it was a feast for the senses. After 11 years of age it’s still fiercely tannic but it’s not enough to bother considering the character. The finish lasts for minutes. I realize that making wine like this is scary and the results aren’t for everyone but my God, I am thankful that the Bea’s have the guts to do it.

Mushrooms with butternut squash and arugula.

Oxtail and smoked mozzarella. Strongly meaty, probably my favorite.

Margherita fior di latte with Apulian EVOO and oregano.

Gnocchi with Alfredo sauce. Cheesy and very very soft. Perfect pillows of potato.

Much of the wine lineup.

This was Jerome and Emma’s first full evening in Los Angeles (just in from the Netherlands) and we dragged them through 2+ hours of LA traffic!

The wines are all pictured below. Far too many to write up. This was an oddball event. I’ll break it down.

The pizzas were very good. Not 2+ hours in traffic good — no pizza in LA is — but good. I’d happily have them if there were closer. They are about the same (good) level as Pizzana. There wasn’t enough food for my taste, mostly because of the format (more on that later), but what we got was great.

The wines were very interesting. These are unusual varietals that I, of course, know because of my Italian wine studies, but unusual. Mostly far Northern Italian wines made from Spanna (a Nebbiolo variant). But you NEVER see these wines nearly this old! They varied from a bit rustic or acidic to delicious. This is surprisingly long lived stuff. Pouring was a bit uneven due to the format.

The format problem with this dinner was the size. There were huge numbers, perhaps 50-60 people, and first of all the restaurant can’t produce pizzas THAT fast, so they would periodically drop one on our table, giving us a piece each, then we would wait for a good while as they kept dropping pizzas on the other 10 tables before switching to a new pizza type. Initially there was only the salad and 4 small (slices of) pizza(s). We begged for the 5th pizza and the gnocchi, but it still wasn’t really enough. I think the concept originally was for it to be smaller and for the chef to try the wines and improvise on pizzas, but because of the scale he couldn’t really do that. The wine also suffered in pacing because Walker was opening and pouring EVERYTHING so he was one busy bee — but he still couldn’t get around fast enough at the beginning. These are pretty hard bottles to even open as the aged corks take some time to work through.

But anyway, other than the ludicrous LA traffic getting to the Arts District fairly early, it was a lot of fun.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Angelo Auriana, Arts District, DTLA, Foodie Club, Italian wine, Pizza, Sixth & Mill, Walker Wine Co, Wine

Angelini Osteria

Sep04

Restaurant: Angelini Osteria

Location: 7313 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036. (323) 297-0070

Date: July 12, 2019

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: An LA classic

It’s been years, maybe even 10 years, since I was at LA classic Italian Angelini Osteria. Foodie Club member Larry goes all the time so he organized this dinner.

The frontage is located on busy Beverly Blvd in West Hollywood.

The menu.

Erick brought: 1985 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon. JG 96. The 1985 Dom Pérignon is still several years away from its peak of drinkability, and while it is certainly quite approachable at this stage in its evolution, this wine will continue to improve with further bottle age. The bouquet is deep, complex and still a tad adolescent, as it offers up scents of tart apples, pink grapefruit, gentle herbal tones, a touch of limepeel, stony minerality and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and still quite young, with a rock solid core of fruit, bright acids, fine focus and balance, tiny bubbles and superb length and grip on the racy finish. While some tasters around the table thought this wine was drinking beautifully, for my palate it remains still a bit bound up in its minerally adolescence and will offer up significantly more opulence and toasty charm with another five to ten years of bottle age. It should prove to be an absolutely classic vintage of Dom Pérignon.

Pizza bread.

A kind of free amuse in the form of some kind of grain and veggies.

Salumi Board. Prosciutto di Parma, mortadella, salmi, fresh burrata, mixed baby greens. I wouldn’t really call this a board, as it’s a pile of meat and cheese on a bit of salad — but it was delicious.

From my cellar: 2012 Azienda Agricola Valentini Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. VM 93+. Light orange-yellow. Forward but racy aromas of tangerine, ginger, white flowers, sweet spices and medicinal herbs on the complex nose. Rich and round, but with lovely acid lift and energy to the concentrated flavors of apricot, pear and botanical herbs. Finishes long and pure. Not the most concentrated young Trebbiano d’Abruzzo from Valentini, but has a rich, ripe seamless personality that is hard to resist. Good to go right now but ought to age for 15 years at least. Really lovely wine.

Maryland Soft Shell Crab, rice flour deep fried, arugula, capers, lemon cream sauce.

White Marinated Anchovies, red beets, mixed baby greens, red onions, balsamic. I love white marinated anchovies. I touch odd paired with beets though.

Polipo, Warm Mediterranean Octopus. Arugula, cherry tomatoes.

From my cellar: 2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano. VM 95+. The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is powerful, deeply colored and still carrying a considerable amount of tannic heft for a twelve year old wine. Dark cherry, plum, smoke, tobacco, scorched earth and licorice give the wine much of its distinctive virile personality. The Madonna del Piano is one of the bigger, brawnier 2004s readers will come across. As such, it needs to be served alongside similarly rich, hearty cuisines.

Pizza Margherita, ‘nduja, cherry tomatoes, olives, burrata. Sligtly odd pairing of meaty Margherita with the olives. Maybe I just don’t like black olives on my pizza.

Tagliatelle, duck ragout. Solid duck pasta, much like the classic with pheasant.

Homemade Spaghetti Chitarra alla Norcina, summer black truffles, sausage, parmigiana reggiano. Pasta Norcina is one of my utter favorite pastas, but this didn’t feel like a classic Italian Norcina. Now it was good, and very truffled, but the sausage (and cheese) were a bit subdued.

Veal Shank Agnolotti, parmigiana reggiano sauce. Awesome meat agnolotti. Sumptuous, soft, delicious.

Linguine, Santa Barbara Sea Urchin, garlic, chives. Very solid uni pasta. Not the best I’ve ever had, but very good.

Trish brought: 2004 Gaja Langhe Nebbiolo Sperss. VM 97. The 2004 Sperss is one of the most finessed wines I have tasted from Angelo Gaja’s property in Serralunga. The darkness and gravitas of Serralunga are tempered by the supreme elegance of the year. Dark red and black cherries, smoke, tobacco, menthol and licorice flow through on the deep, resonant finish. This is another powerhouse wine that has been given an extra level of refinement in 2004.

Risotto al Frutti di Mare. Risotto Acquerello, cuttlefish, lobster, calamari, shrimp, mussels, clams. Excellent seafood risotto.

Whole Mediterranean Branzino roasted in sea salt, aromatic herbs, sautéed mixed vegetables.

Comes with these classic vegetables.

They do the filleting fortunately.

The finished plate. Very moist delicate white fish.

Larry brought: 2004 Tua Rita Redigaffi Toscana IGT. VM 93. The inky-colored 2004 Redigaffi, 100% Merlot aged for 16 months in new oak, offers expressive, nuanced aromatics along with sensations of richly-textured blue and black jammy fruit, minerals, mint, chocolate, spices and sweet toasted oak on big, powerful frame with notable underlying structure and a warm, resonating finish. Although it has enough structure and acidity to drink well for another decade or so, I enjoy Redigaffi most in its youth.

Lamb Chops Scottadito. Grilled Colorado lamb chops, arugula.

Mixed Italian Cheeses.

The dessert menu.

Cassata Italiana. Semifreddo, carmelized hazelnuts, pistachios. Half frozen ice cream with Italian nuts.

Panna Cotta, vaniglia bean, raspberry sauce.

Budino di Cioccolato, vaniglia gelato, chocolate sauce.

Chocolate Peanut Pretzel Gelato — testing a new 80% chocolate fondant base made with Valrhona and Callebaut Chocolates — then layered that with a house made salty peanut pretzel ganache — you can’t see the base, it’s under the ganache — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #peanut #chocolate #valrhona #Callebaut #ganache #pretzel

Bellini Sorbetto! — French White Peaches and Prosecco — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — I love the Pozzetti (round tubs), but I do need to figure out how to decorate the small batches in an attractive way — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #sorbetto #Bellini #peach #Prosecco

Overall, a very nice meal. Angelini Osteria hasn’t slipped at all and remains a great example of 90s/00s LA Italian. The kitchen is still very on point and the dishes are a mix of old 90s favorites, LA favorites (lots of burrata), and pretty solid contemporary Italian dishes not too different than you might find in Italy. Execution is spot on and service excellent.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: BYOG, Foodie Club, Gelato, Hollywood, Italian cuisine, Osteria Angelini, pasta, Pasta Norcina, Pizza, Risotto, Wine

Eating Houston – Bombay Pizza

Jul30

Restaurant: Bombay Pizza Co.

Location:914 S Main St #105, Houston, TX 77002. (713) 654-4444

Date: June 15, 2018

Cuisine: Pizza and Indian!?!

Rating: Not bad

One of my son’s math contests brought us to Texas and so I returned to Houston for the first time in 25 years.

This was next to our hotel and I was intrigued by the name/concept and had to try it.

Looks like a pizza parlor.

The menu features normal pizzas, slightly Indian ones, and kati rolls.

Fries.

Cheese pizza. My wife liked it.

Tandoori Chicken Kati Roll. Basically a CTM burrito (with naan). Not as good as the smaller, plated, Akbar version, but still pretty tasty. A touch dry.

Tandoori Masala Shrimp Kati Roll. Not bad either, particularly with the mint chutney.

I wish I had had time to try one of the more interesting pizzas, like “Gateway of India” or something. I’ve long argued with some of my Indian restauranteur friends that they should make naan based pizzas with curry toppings. These aren’t naan on the pizzas though.

For more Texas dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Bombay Pizza Co., Eating Houston, Eating Texas, Houston, Pizza, Texas

Eating Tasmania – Cargo

Mar06

Restaurant: Cargo Bar Pizza Lounge

Location: 51 Salamanca Pl, Battery Point TAS 7004, Australia

Date: December 27, 2017

Cuisine: Pizza

Rating: Ok

Our first night in the Tasmanian city of Hobart was the same night as the end of the big Sydney to Hobart sailing race so the city was packed.

Wandering around we found this pizza bar and lounge.

Odd format where you order food at one counter, drinks inside, then wait at a table for it.

So sort of fast casual bar.

The menu.

Garlic bread.

Lame caesar salad.

A sort of weird salad with various Italian deli meats in it. Described as Bresola, rocket, Spanish onion, cherry tomato, parmesan, fetta (spelled that way) & white truffle oil. This isn’t any bresola I’ve ever seen.

Kid’s cheese pizza.

Pizza with cherry tomatoes.
Hoi Sin Duck Pizza. Roasted duck, peanuts, cheese, hoi sin sauce, chili, spring onions & stir fry vegetables. Dough wasn’t the best but the toppings were actually pretty good. I love hoisin sauce.

Overall, a nice enough atmosphere, but a so-so dinner.

For more Australia dining reviews click here.

People waiting on the harbor for the sailboats to head across the finish line

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Australia, Cargo, eating-australia, Hobart, Pizza, Tasmania

Eating Adelaide – Coopers

Mar01

Restaurant: Coopers Alehouse

Location: 316 Pulteney St, Adelaide SA 5000, Australia. +61 8 8223 6433

Date: December 26, 2017

Cuisine: Australian

Rating: Decent pizza

Just a super simple pizza dinner at a local pub.

Cute old style Adelaide building. A lot of older Australia has a sort of “old west” style because it was built in a similar time period.

I love cider on tap. Local too.

Kid’s pizza.

Margarita pizza.

My weird pork, BBQ, and pita chip pizza. Not bad, if a little odd.

A pub with pizza, but decent pizza.

For more Australia dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Adelaide, Australia, beer, cider, Coopers Alehouse, eating-australia, Pizza

Pizza at Pizzana

Nov17

Restaurant: Pizzana

Location: 11712 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 481-7108

Date: October 9 & 24 and November 16, 2017 plus January 20 & February 26 & September 1, 2018

Cuisine: Neo-Neapolitan pizza

Rating: very good pizza for LA

Brentwood’s former Osteria Lantini location has been rebooted as Pizzana. Candace and Charles Nelson, the couple who brought you Sprinkles Cupcakes, are opening a pizza restaurant called Pizzana in Brentwood on Friday. Chef Daniele Uditi, who is from Naples, is making Neo-Neapolitan-style pies using 48-hour fermented dough.

Right on San Vicente.

Looks like Osteria L, just repainted and no customer accessible upstairs.

Very crowded all the time because it got great reviews.

The menu. Lots of pizzas which is nice.

Pizza oven.

Caesar salad (10/24/17). Crunchy fried capers. Nice texture and good flavors. Not as potently bright as I like a (great) caesar — and this didn’t seem to have anchovy — but fine.

Carulina Salad (1/20/18). Baby butter lettuce, crispy prosciutto crudo, charred corn, parmigiano oregano dressing. Nice salad with a lively texture, good crunch, and nice flavor.

Cavoletto di Bruxelles (9/1/18). Shaved brussels sprout, lolla rossa, apple, toasted pistachio, caramelized shallot vinaigrette.

Carciofi Arrostiti (2/26/18). Charred articoke heart, fried baby artichoke, toasted pine nut, parmigiano, lemon olive oil. Very crispy and salty tasty.

Pate di Fegatini (10/9/17). Housemade chicken liver pate, san marzano jam, wood fired bread. This is about as good as chicken liver gets. Pretty darn good.

Instagram shot!

Kid’s cheese pizza (1/20/18). Basic, same size, but it’s nice that they make a kid’s version.

Pizza Margherita (10/9/17). San marzano dop, fior di latte, parmigiano, basil.

Pizza Corbarina (10/9/17). San marzano dop, squash blossom, burrata, cherry tomato, gremolata. Very bright flavors. Nice cool burrata. The gemolata (like a chimi churri) had lots of lemon juice in it.

Pizza Carnivoro (10/9/17). San marzano dop, fior di latte, spicy soppressata, fennel sausage, prosciutto cotto, parmigiano, basil. Like a spicy artisan version of the Little Cesars “Meatser Meatser”! But a really nice pie. I like it meated up like this.

Zoom!

Uovo pizza (1/20/18). Fior di latte, cherry tomato, prosciutto crudo, bacon jam, arugula, egg. I really liked this pizza with it’s very bright acidic flavors and sweet/savory bacon jam. Photo isn’t as good though because it was shot on an iPhone instead of the real camera.

Pizza Amatriciana (10/24/17). Housemade amatriciana sauce, fior di latte, cripsy prosciutto crudo, red onion, shaved parmigiano. Nice crunchy ham and a good approximation of amatriciana, but I would have maybe liked more of a Guanciale porkier vibe. Pizzana is good, but a little pulled toward mainstream and so they don’t really feature those more Italian funkier flavors — like that pork jowl.

Pizza Pignatiello (11/16/17). Neapolitan Sunday Gravy, fior di latte, parmigiano crema, basil. The “gravy” is a tomato based Bolognese like sauce, very rich and savory – as good a beef/pork gravy as you will find. There are chunks of short rib here too and two types of cheese to brighten it up. Very good pizza, less acid than the other ones I had here, but a good hearty rich beefy taste. Very much like some kind of beef cannel or something in Southern Italy.

Carbonara Pizza (9/1/18). Fior di latte, carbonara sauce, pancetta, parmigiano, activated charcoal bread crumb. Very nice meat and cheese pizza with a good eggy quality. Tasted a lot like a carbonara, although I could have lived without the charcoal.

Vanilla gelato and chocolate sauce.

Overall, I need to go back. I liked the dough, very stiff and chewy. I liked that there are a lot of different pies. I have to try more to get a real verdict. Certainly now there with Milo and Olive as the best dedicated westside pizza joints.

After four visits I like the pizza a lot. Good variety and great dough. Service can be a little dicier. On visit four it took 15 minutes for anyone to come to our table (and a good 5 after I asked) and then several tables that sat long after us got their food first. It was quite noticeable (other tables were sympathetic) and I mentioned it and the server just said sorry — she should have comped the ice cream or something. Still, if the food is good I’ll keep going back.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, Pizza, Pizzana

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

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.

By: agavin
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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

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!

The slightly different change on the second visit.

The 10/1/19 menu.

And the 10/22/19 menu. Surprisingly, they change up the specific pizza and pastas all the time.

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.

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.

TREVISO (10/22/19). salsa di acciughe, lemon, pangrattato & pecorino romano. Another nice salad. Less bitey than the one above.

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.

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

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 Bologna

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.

Fichi e Prosciutto pizza (10/1/19). Late summer figs, prosciutto di parma, mozzarella di bufalo & robiola. A love prosciutto on pizza.

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.

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.

Chitarra (9/10/17). Ragu abruzzese & pecorino stagionato.

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):

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.

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.

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

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:

Special spinach and cheese stuffed pasta (10/22/19) with…

Expensive but delicious white truffles.

And cheese. Awesome, awesome dish.

STRANGOLAPRETI (10/22/19). heirloom spinach, ricotta & burro fuso e salvia. Really nice burnt butter balls.

Loads of flour.

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.

Bistecca di Maile (9/10/17). Peads & barnett pork shoulder steak, peaches & basil. Very slightly different.

Carre di agnello (9/10/17). rack of lamb, adriatic figs and mint. Great stuff.

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.

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

Chocolate Tart, cherries (10/22/19).

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).

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Evan Funke, felix, hedonists, Italian cuisine, pasta, Pizza, Wine

Eating NY – PizzArte

Sep01

Restaurant: PizzArte

Location: 69 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019. (212) 247-3936

Date: July 6, 2017 & November 30, 2019

Cuisine: Neo-Neapolitan pizza

Rating: Tasty!

Alex and I had an opportunity to go out to dinner by ourselves in New York — then 2.5 years later he and my wife and I returned…

…so of course we chose pizza.

The menu.

Olives to start.

Bread.

A glass of Aglianico.

Prosciutto e Burrata. 24 Month Aged Prosciutto Di Parma, Burrata Cheese, Castelvetrano Olives, Grilled Country Bread Bruschetta.

Spinaci. Spinach, beets, goat cheese, mango, pistachio nuts.

Polpettine Passi e Pinoli. Home-style Neapolitan meatballs, Italian pine nuts, raisins, broccoli rabe.

Simple pasta for the boy in 2019.

Margherita pizza. San Marzano Tomatoes, Mozzarella, Basil (Alex declined the basil as usual).

Ragu Napoletano. Smoked Buffalo Mozzarella, Traditional Neapolitan Veal And Pork Ragú. Not a traditional topping, but it did make for a delicious pizza.

Cavofiore e Tartufo. Roasted cauliflower, mozzarella, sausage, black truffle sauce. Interesting, but a bit weird.

The dessert menu.

Chocolate and Vanilla gelato.

Amalfi Coast-Delizia al Limone. Lemon and cream sponge cake.

I LOVE this traditional (circa 1900) Sorento dessert. Traditionally, it’s a dome-shaped lemon sponge cake with limoncello cream and has an amazing Sorento Lemon flavor. You can see one at the source here.

Clearly Alex hated the gelato.

He looks older but not too different 2.5 years later!

In 2019, as we were rushing off to see Hamilton I felt the extreme need for speed (aka caffeine) in the form of this macchiato.

PizzArte didn’t disappoint. For whatever reason it was much more satisfying than Marta a couple days before and Alex and I enjoyed our meal immensely. Our server was friendly and delightful and the food was straight up and delicious.

For more New York dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: eating_new_york, New York, Pizza, PizzArte

Italian? – Tom George

May24

Restaurant: Tom George

Location: 707 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90017. (424) 362-6263

Date: April 16, 2017

Cuisine: (Sort of) Italian

Rating: hits and misses both

Saturday night brings me Downtown to meet up with pal Sebastian.

He loves this difficult to park at unless you valet corner. And Tom George is a newcomer, a big attractive space that hosts a strangely named “Italian.” It’s the kind of Italian I don’t really get — where it doesn’t feel that much like an Italian restaurant.

The menu is kinda Italian. It has pasta and pizza. But kinda American too. And it’s certainly nothing like a menu you’d find in Italy.

We bought a Verdiccio or something like that off the list too, forgot to take a picture of it.

From my cellar: 2004 Tenuta le Potazzine Brunello di Montalcino Riserva. VM 93. The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva naturally offers a bit more structure and depth than the straight bottling. Powerful and intense, the Riserva also shows the wilder side of Sangiovese, with plenty of game, smoke, tobacco and licorice undertones. The 2004 has aged well, even if it is a bit rustic. Still, there is plenty to like.

Nduja sausage pizza. arugula, mozzarella, basil. This was a good pizza.

Hand chopped beef tartare. Quail egg, toast. Pretty straight up decent tartare.

We ordered some white truffle and just had it shaved to add ourselves.

They gave us lots of it, problem was it had no flavor — out of season?

Seb brought: 2007 Castello dei Rampolla d’Alceo. VM 97. Dark raspberries, cloves, menthol and crushed rocks wrap around the palate in the 2007 d’Alceo. Rich, voluptuous and sexy, the 2007 is very much a product of a vintage that yielded a crop of resonant, generous wines. The ripe, silky tannins will make the 2007 accessible relatively early, but it also has more than enough depth to age well for years. Today, the flavors are naturally still quite primary and there is still quite a bit of baby fat that has to melt off before the 2007 enters its prime drinking window. Still, there is a lot to like, including the wine’s huge, palate-staining finish. Grace meets power in the 2007. In a word: dazzling!

Spaghetti Carbonara. Guanciale, black truffle. This was a solid Carbonara. Definitely good. Not the best I’ve had in LA, nor even close to a good one in Italy, but certainly very enjoyable. Guanciale wasn’t crispy. I like it crispy.

Fettuccine duck ragu bolognese. Total fail. Looked good, but very little flavor.

Penne Vodka. Pork cheek bacon, basil. This was salty but delicious.

This wasn’t on the menu, but obviously it’s a whole fish with a ratatouille.

Seb also brought: 2014 Sine Qua Non Syrah Piranha Waterdance. VM 95-97. A striking, vibrant wine, the 2014 Syrah Piranha Waterdance is beautifully focused and energetic from start to finish. Plum, blueberry, lavender, mint, violet and sweet spices all take shape in the glass. This is an especially nuanced, sculpted Syrah long on class and personality. There is so much to like here. The 2014 is 81% Syrah, 8% Petite Sirah, 6% Mourvèdre, 4% Touriga Nacional and % Graciano, done with 26% whole clusters, all from Sine Qua Non’s estate vineyards: 35% Eleven Confessions, 34% Third Twin and 31% Cumulus.

Half jidori chicken, roasted miatake, brown butter sauce. I’m not normally a chicken fan, and this certainly isn’t very Italian, but it was good.

Butter lettuce. Cucumber, mustard vinaigrette. Never seen a salad like this in Italy.

Matcha Tiramisu. White chocolate. Nice texture, but the whole matcha and white chocolate is certainly very inferior to the traditional zabaione, coffee, chocolate, rum vibe.
Gelato. The dark is chocolate sorbet, which was good for no dairy but still a sorbet. The white was basil gelato. Nice texture, but the flavor was very very sweet and very mildly basil.

Overall the food here was a bit hit or miss. It didn’t feel terribly Italian, certainly not authentically Italian, although I heard one of the owners or managers speaking Italian. Some of the dishes were good like the pizza, the carbonara, and the chicken, but non were terribly memorable. Service was perfectly pleasant and the space lovely.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Italian Cusine, Pizza, Tiramisu, Tom George, Wine

Quick Eats – Mod Pizza

Nov16

Restaurant: Mod Pizza

Location: 8985 Venice Blvd k, Los Angeles, CA 90034.

Date: November 5, 2016

Cuisine: Pizza

Rating: Like a low-rent 800 degrees

I keep passing this place on my way to work at our new restaurant-under-development and on a Saturday with my son (who is a pizza fiend) and in a time crunch decided to try it.

It should be prefaced that we eat at 800 Degrees all the time (even though I have never written it up) — and that chain was co-founded by my partner.
Mod pizza is a similar concept. Made to order pizzas. It’s cheaper (and 800 Degrees is pretty cheap) and uses a fixed price model. Toppings don’t cost, only your pizza size and extras.

The ingredients aren’t terribly gourmet. They do have basic bases (like white, pesto, red etc), but there are no fancy cheeses, no Calabrian chilies, etc.

The buildout is simple and efficient. Drive-thru like almost. Not much style really.

Various drinks.

This margarita + mushrooms.

My custom meatser. Various sausage, pesto base, sweet peppers. The crust isn’t great at all, and the toppings so-so. And this pizza was REALLY REALLY salty, which tasted ok but left me feeling salted out.

Our son, who LOVES pizza and who declares 800 Degrees is his second favorite restaurant ever ate only one piece of his cheese pizza. He was confused why it was “worse.”

So Mod Pizza is kinda like 800 Degrees, but a little cheaper and quite a bit worse. Given that I don’t care about a $2 difference, no way I’d choose it in any kind of head to head. In fact, I’m unlikely to go back unless I’m desperate for some reason. They are cheap and fast. They do have flexible sizes (having that little size is good for kinds). But quality is meh.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Culver City, Mod Pizza, Pizza

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

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.