Preview Dinner at Lucia

Let me tell you about Lucia.  I know you know that David and Jennifer Uygur are opening a new Italian place.  Kevin Dean will be the sous chef.  How can they go wrong?  Remember Lola?  Before a restaurant opens they generally ask people in to be their guests while they go through a “dress rehearsal” for the restaurant to come.  Hubbard and I were lucky to be invited.  We met our friends Slade and Becca at Eno’s for a glass of wine before we walked over to the restaurant.

Bishop Arts District is so alive.  It reminds me of lower Greenville, too many years ago to count.  A nice picture window looks down the length of the dining room.  Lucia is intimate, seating less than 40 people.  This immediately takes me back to Rome.  So many outstanding restaurants in the ancient city look just like this.  Inviting, comfortable.  This could be what I’ve been looking for.

Our server is very pleasant.  He, also, reminds me of Italy.  He does what he’s there to do… make sure you have everything you need.  He’s trying to make sure you have a nice time.  I never wanted for a thing.  I don’t remember an empty glass or ever looking around for him.  It was all just magically there when you wanted it.  And this is a trial run? 

The conversation was great.  The food was unthinkably good.  I was back in Rome.

The food is fantastic.  Taking simple, fresh ingredients and making them into something rich and complex.  This is real Italian.  The menu is set up in four courses and I would suggest you stick with the true experience and order from all courses.  You might share a course if you like.  Have a bottle of Terlano Pinot Grigio or Cascena Bruni Barberi.  Open with a bubbly Montesel Prosecco.  We did all that. 

The menu you see might not be the menu we were offered.  They’ll serve what is most inspiring through the seasons.  We started with the Salumi Misti.  It’s hard for me to believe that a person can produce cured meats like this.  Orange and fennel sausage.  Coppa.  Black pepper sausage.  And spicy, spreadable n’duja smeared on a slab of fresh bread.  I would have been happy with just this.  But, I sure did love that chicken liver crostini with fig mostarda.  It was one of Slade’s favorites, too.  Hubbard had the seared beef tongue with roasted onions and salsa verde.  Unbelievably wonderful.  The crudo of sea scallop with shaved fennel, radish and olive was bright and refreshing.  More wine!

Your next choice will fall under the heading of Primi.  Order your pasta.  These dishes are offered with a two tier pricing option.  You can have an $18 full serving or go for a smaller $12 pasta.  Slade had the tagliatelle al ragu and I really loved that.  I had the gnudi.  Little spinach and ricotta balls that I think of as nude ravioli.  Just the wonderful stuff inside ravioli sprinkled with Parmesan and brown butter.  Hubbard had the ravioli di zucca.  Winter squash ravioli with sage, butter and crush amaretti.  I was fully prepared to be unimpressed with “winter quash”.  It was perfect.  So flavorful and tender.  Toasted spelt spaghetti with braised duck.  Are you kidding?

You might notice that we got through the entire pasta course with no red sauce or mozzarella cheese.  Don’t think about that kind of Italian.  That’s not what this is.

There were four Secondi offered and that’s what we had.  Our meat courses consisted of slow roasted pork with corona beans and broccoli raab… Quail al mattone (split and flattened) with pancetta, polenta and vincotto… Slow cooked wild Maryland rockfish with pistachios, olive and chard… Skirt steak with cauliflower, fried bread crumbs and garlic anchovy butter.  Stealing bites from each other’s plates.  It was all impossible to resist. 

Does hazelnut cake with poached pears and brown butter gelato sound good?  I was running out of steam at this point.  Hubbard always has room for dessert and that pannacotta with dry figs and bay syrup was outstanding.  I had to take a bite.

I’ve talked about Lucia for a long time.  I ate for a long time.  I talked with my friends and people at neighboring tables.  I drank wine and forgot I was in Dallas.  I really didn’t want to leave.  I bet we’ll all be talking about Lucia for a very, very long time.

Nonna for my Birthday

The morning of my birthday was a Wednesday.  As I was driving to work, I was thinking that the only place I’d really love to go for dinner was Nonna.  We had not been there in a while and I was craving some real Italian food.  A few hours later, Hubbard called to tell me he had made reservations for that evening at (where else?) Nonna.  What a good husband.  I didn’t even have to ask.

This was a an evening like we spent in Rome. Eating course after course.  Sipping wine.  Lots of sharing of plates.  In fact, the only thing we didn’t share was dessert.  Nonna doesn’t frown on this practice.  It’s a perfectly acceptable way to dine in Italy.  Just let them know and they’ll serve the dish appropriately with extra plates, etc.

We started with a bottle of Falanghina, Terradora Dipaolo, Campania ’08.  I love white wine and this one was priced right.  A small plate of olives and some lovely flatbread arrived at the table.  I’ve talked about this bread before.  It’s a big round puff.  When you cut into it, the interior steam escapes and it becomes flat.  Very yummy.

For the antipasta we chose the sformatino of roasted cauliflower with sunnyside up quail egg.  This is like an Italian version of souffle.  Excellent.  Nice and light, with two cute little fried quail eggs staring up at us.  Hubbard said, “How can I not order something with fried quail eggs?”. 

We moved on to a white pizza of cherrystone clams, sweet onion and fresh herbs.  This is one of the few dishes that remains on the menu every night as Chef Barsotti changes the menu daily.  We order it every time.  No cheese.  Just a cracker-crisp, insanely thin crust, slathered with a layer creamy sauce, sprinkled with clams and herbs.  It’s fantastic.  I could eat it every night.

For the pasta course, I hesitated before I ordered the gnocchi with camelized chanterelles and telleggio.  I knew Barsotti was a great chef, but I’ve had a lot of unremarkable gnocchi.  In fact, before we went to Italy, I didn’t think there was good gnocchi.  I thought I didn’t like it.  I was wrong.  The tender little potato gnocchi were sitting in a light cream sauce, flavored with the chanterelles and the talleggio cheese that was melted into the sauce.  The gnocchi themselves were heavenly.  Soft and almost fluffy instead of the dense, dry potato dumplings that you find in so many Italian places around Dallas. 

I told our server that this was the best gnocchi I had tasted since Rome.  She told the chef and what did he do?  Came to our table to talk gnocchi.  He told us the secret was in the pasta flour that he used.  We told him about the gnocchi we had in Rome in a butter sage sauce.  We agreed that his was just as good, maybe even better.  He was so pleasant and fun to talk to.  Before we left, he came back by the table with a plastic bag containing a sample of this special flour for me to try at home.  He didn’t have to do that.  Isn’t that nice?

Before the next course, our server came by to drop off a complimentary taste from the bar.  A milky yellow drink, served in a cordial glass.  Tasted just like lemon pie.  Such fun!

Our final course was the Maine sea scallops with salsa verde and artichoke mashed potatoes.  It was exactly that…  three huge scallops topped with a chopped herb salsa sitting on a mound of mashed potatoes with little chunks of artichoke hearts mixed in.  Simply delicious.  Not over-sauced or cooked.  Just lovely.  A perfect way to end a meal if we didn’t have to have dessert.

The dessert is always the same for us.  Another item that stays on the menu, the praline nougatine semifreddo with pistachios and acacia honey is not to be missed.  Semifreddo is a frozen dessert.  The name means semi-frozen.  This one is almost like frozen mousse or something.  It’s hard to describe and easy to be wild about.  We sometimes stop in after a meal elsewhere just to have this dessert and a coffee drink.  Mine arrived this evening with a candle in it for my birthday.

What a sweet night.  Sweet husband.  Fabulous food.  What more could a girl want?

I Cooked A Rabbit

I know.  I know.  I’ve been very tardy about posting.  But, with the Rangers and the Cowboys and my birthday and company in town, October has been a very busy month for me.  My apologies.  I hate to have kept you waiting while Bugs was potentially boiling away in the pot.

The rabbit landed in the freezer while I agonized over recipes that might work.  It’s hard for me to trust just any source, especially when I have no experience with a dish.  Finally I thought, “what would the Italians do”?  They’re great with strange animals and body parts.  I picked up my Cook’s Illlustrated Italian Classics.  They had one rabbit recipe listed, “Braised Rabbit”.  That was it.  And easy, too.

I was surprised to find when I went to unwrap the bunny that this was, in fact, America’s Favorite Rabbit.  I was unaware that America had a favorite rabbit.  Paying $18 for the little guy seemed more tolerable in light of it’s popularity.

The first thing I noticed about the naked rabbit was it’s longness.  I don’t know, I guess I just thought it would be all round like when one is sitting in a cage.  Not so.  And what’s up with that liver?  Did this rabbit have a drinking problem or something?  That’s one hell of a liver for an animal this size.  The recipe called for reserving the liver for the sauce, which I did.  Other guts went into the trash.

It looks a little less weird once it’s chopped up.  Notice the loin was cut into two pieces.  Evidently it’s much more tender and will dry out quickly.  It goes in at the end of the cooking time.  Also notice the poultry shears which made this little butchering job 100% easier.  My knife skills are not very wide ranging.  I can chop the hell out of something.  But, cutting through joints and back bones is a challenge for me.

 Brown the parts in olive oil and put them aside.  Then get your sauce ready.

Your ingredients:
1 medium onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced or chopped (or more!)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup dry white wine
14 oz chicken broth
14 oz can diced tomatoes
pinch red pepper flakes
3 bay leaves
1 sprig fresh rosemary
parsley

The original recipe called for 1/4 cup kalamata olives pitted and slivered lengthwise.  I’m sure that would have been good if I was in the mood to go to the grocery store for one ingredient.  I left them out.

The rest goes pretty much as you might expect.  Saute the onions until soft and light brown (about 15 mins).  Add the garlic, tomato paste and flour, stir to incorporate until fragrant.  Raise heat to high.  Add wine, broth, tomatoes, pepper flakes, bay leaves and rosemary and stir.  Add the rabbit pieces back to the saucce EXECPT the loin pieces and bring back to a simmer.  Reduce heat, cover and cook for 45 minutes.  Add the two loin pieces and cook another 10 minutes. 

Transfer the rabbit pieces to a plate.  Bring the sauce to a simmer over a high heat.  Add the liver and mash it into the sauce.  I promise it won’t taste “liver-y”, it just gives the sauce some body.  I used a potato masher to break it up.  Cook the sauce until it thickens a bit.  Here’s where you add the olives (if you’re using them) and parsley.  Add the rabbit back to the sauce and reheat.

I failed to take a picture of this dish on the plate.  And it may not look terrific.  But, we thoroughly enjoyed it.  The rabbit wasn’t the least bit pungent or gamey.  Very nice, indeed.

Arcodoro Pomodoro for Restaurant Week

I’ve come up with a new use for Restaurant Week.  We’ve gone out as a couple, with another couple and with a big group of friends.  It was all fun.  But, this year my friend Lori A and I decided that a girl’s night out might be a good idea for restaurant week.  Lori L and Cornelia came along and we super indulged at Arcodoro Pomodoro.  None of us had been there before.

I asked if we could see a normal menu, as well as the RW menu.  The hostess agreed to go get one and we never saw her again.  Whatever.  The RW menu looked fine.  Lori A ordered a bottle of Proscecco to start.  Perfect!  Our very good looking waiter was quite patient with us.  Unfortunately, no one can remember his name.  He was classically tall, dark and hansome.  He made recommendations, explained the dishes and kept our glasses full.  He gets an A+ for the evening.

The appetizers were not quite as stunning as he was.  I had the Isalata de Polipo e Bottarga.  This translates into a celery and fennel salad with tender octopus and slices of fresh bottarga drizzled with lemon olive oil dressing.  I was especially interested in the bottarga.  I’m still interested about it’s flavor because I couldn’t ever really identify its presence.  Let’s say the salad was refreshing.  Not bad, but not exciting.  Lori L and Cornelia had the Carpaccio di Manzo al Pesto di olive.  Cured carpaccio of Angus beef tenderloin with black pepper and sea salt, served over chopped romaine heart and cherry tomatoes, leccino olives and sundried pesto dressing.  The meat was sliced so thin you could see through.  Not that that is a bad thing.  But, Cornelia said that sauce and salad was lacking.  She suggested an accompaniment make-over was in order.  Lori L agreed.  Lori A ordered the Crostini de Melanzane e Mozzarella di Bufala.  This was described as Paesano bread crostini topped with orasted egglaant mousse and melted buffalo Mozzarell, served over arugula salad and fresh fig balsaba.  This place really knows how to make a dish sound good on the menu.  Lori A said it was disappointing and that she couldn’t even taste the eggplant mousse.  That’s a problem.  The wine pairing for this course was the same for all of us.  Lughente, Vermentino di Gallura.  It was good.  But, I was surprised that it was served with all three dishes.

On to the main course.  Lori A had the Paella Sarda, Sardinian style Paella made with Fregula pasta insted of rice, simmered in homemade lobster stock with a medly of seafood, calamari, clams, mussels, shrimp scallops and saffron.  I don’t usually like saffron.  But, I tasted her dish and the saffron was just right.  No saffron overkill.  Lori A pronounced it “yummy”.  It had tons of fresh seafood.  I was surprised by the amount of seafood actually.  It was also a very pretty dish.  Lori L and I both had the Salmone alla Saba e Rosmarino, fresh filet of Scottish salmon baked with Saba, rosemary, lemongrass and fresh dill.  Served with a fresh green bean and cherry tomato salad with a Fruttato olive oil saba sauce.  What they didn’t mention was the balsamic reduction sauce over the fish.  Lori L said the sauce and the fried beet chi on the salmon was the most memorable part of the dish.  I have to agree.  The salmon was well prepared, though I couldn’t help wishing I had the paella instead.  Cornelia had the Maccarrones de Puntzu alla Cagliaritana.  The dish was Arcodoro’s handmade semolina dumplings with white asparagus, sun dried tomatoes and mascarpone cheese.  Cornelia said it was to die for.  She’s a white asparagus girl.  I thought it was very tasty.  Something like a grown up mac and cheese.  We all had the pairing wine which was the 2008 Terra Saliosa. Tasted so good, we ordered a bottle for the table. 

Finally, dessert was served.  Lori A and I got the Seadas al Miele, a traditional Sardinian puff pastry filled with sweet cheese, lightly fried and drizzled with bitter honey.  Lori A said she expected the cheese would have been a little sweeter, but that the honey did the trick.  I agreed.  I’m not that big on really sweet desserts.  Cornelia got the Tiramisu Cioccolato, chocoalte sponge cake, topped with layers of mascarpone and ladyfingers, finished with thin cracked chocolate.   I tasted this and Cornelia was right, nothing special.  Lori L ordered the Fragolata al Mirto con Sorbetto al Limone.  This was a swwet strawberry salad topped with Mirto liqueur and lemon sorbet.  The good looking waiter told her it might not be lemon sorbet, maybe raspberry.  She ordered it anyway.  But, hey, it’s either lemon or it’s something else, right?  Wouldn’t they tell him what it was?  Turned out to “not lemon”.  She was a little bummed.

We really enjoyed our evening.  The most important part of the meal was the entree and we all agreed it was the best part.  It’s funny, because I asked around before going to Arcodoro and some people said it was really bad.  One guy even said to go to Pizza Hut instead.  Really?  I can’t even imagine how a person could say that.  It’s a beautiful dining room.  The food was good.  The service was great.  I have this theory…  I believe that some people only want “American” Italian food.  No red sauce?  Forget it.  I’m not that way.  In fact, I’m basically the opposite. 

Next year, I’m sure we’ll do another girls night.  We had a fabulous time!  And that nightcap at the Palomar wasn’t a bad idea either!

Italian Bread Salad

I had some day old bread yesterday and I was thinking of making one of those Italian bread salads.  I’ve never made one before.  Next thing you know, Lynn Rossetto Kasper is spilling out this recipe for one on her Splendid Table podcast that I listen to every weekend.  I was saying to myself, “That’s fate.  Lynn’s talking about it.  I’m thinking about it.  So, I should make it.  Right?”.

Then I started thinking about stale bread soaking in a vinaigrette.  Barf.  I hate soggy bread.  I can’t even stand to touch it if it ends up in the sink.  I’m sure the salad is good.  The Italians don’t go around eating a bunch of crappy stuff.  And this would be a terrific use for bread that would otherwise only be good for croutons or bruschetta.  But, I just can’t make myself do it. 

Any input here?  Have you eaten or prepared one of these salads?  Will just any bread work?  (besides Wonder bread, of course)  Do you promise it’s going to be good?

Jimmy’s is Hoppin’!

Have you been to Jimmy’s on a Saturday afternoon recently?  When we pulled up, it looked like they were hosting a wedding reception or something.  Cars and people everywhere.  Luckily, we swooped in and found a parking spot right by the side door.  There were cars all up and down the street.  Hub had called ahead.  So, we had our Cuban sandwiches in just a few minutes.  We grabbed a couple of beers and sat at the bar overlooking the street.

Jimmy’s may have been filled with beautiful people this Saturday afternoon, but Bryan & Fitzhugh is still Bryan & Fitzhugh.  As we sat there munching our fabulous sandwiches and drinking Spaten from the bottle, we watched a lunatic punching a metal telephone pole with his fist.  Interesting.  Would have been a little less amusing if I had been sitting at one of the tables outside the restaurant.  Even a lunatic knows when he’s out-numbered.  He moved along quickly.

Despite how many people were packed into this place, we were able to order our sausage and meatballs and check out relatively quickly.  We got the mild Italian and tried a new one; parsley and cheese.  I’ll let you know what we think of the second choice once we try it.  Hubbard asked Mike about the crowd as he rang up our deli purchase along with some cherry Bordeaux ice cream.  He said, “12 to 3″.  Evidently it’s a madhouse between noon and 3:00 on Saturdays.  So, now you know, folks.  If we want to have some personal space at Jimmy’s on Saturday, get there early or after 3:00.  If you want to see and be seen, hopefully you can nab a good parking spot.

Nonna Tata for Lunch

The worst thing about Nonna Tata is that it’s in Fort Worth.  I just don’t make it to Cowtown that often and this is the kind of place you would really be lucky to have in your neighborhood.  I believe if it were in Dallas, I’d eat my way through the entire menu.  Hubbard had to be in court in Granbury.  So, we made a deal.  I’d tag along and keep him company if he would take me to Nonna Tata for lunch. 

The first thing about it that reminded me of Italy is that it is very small.  I’m talkin’ really, really tiny.  Bill Addison said in his review that it seats 21 people.  Luckily, we got there at the end of the lunch rush and only one other table was seated because 21 people would get to know each other pretty well in that space. 

Hubbard and I both started with the pea and salami soup.  Sounds a little different.  Just think of the salami as a substitute for diced ham.  It was very tasty.  With grated Parmesan on top, the soup was a little on the rustic side, not strained or silky.  Bits of pea and salami lent some texture.  The flavor was savory and the cheese gave it a nutty bite.  It clearly tasted homemade.  We slurped up every drop.

The soup was followed by a Caesar salad.  The dressing was good.  But, the Romaine was a bit limp and the croutons weren’t very crunchy.  It was the least impressive dish.  I still ate it, though.  I’m not saying it was awful, just unimpressive.

Then came the main event.  I got the bresaola and Hub had the orecchiette and meatloaf.  My plate was simple and full of Italian elegance.  Bresaola is basically a dried, salted beef made from the loin.  It is often used as part of a salumi offering.  Super-thin slices of the beef were arranged on the plate and topped with olive oil, arugula, shave Parmesan and a simple potato salad.  It was a perfect lunch.  I made sure I had a little of the greens and Parmesan folded into each bite.  The flavors were a marvelous mix.  The potatoes were dressed with a little olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.  Very typically Italian.  I could easily imagine myself on the patio of L’Angletto in Rome. 

Hubbard’s pasta was obviously hand made and coated in a creamy tomato sauce.  The pasta was good.  The meatloaf was outstanding.  It was a mixture of beef, turkey and veal, wrapped in slices of mortadella.  Again, Italian seasoning of the meat made it a perfect partner for the pasta.  I couldn’t put my finger on what was flavoring the meat, making it taste so ethnic.  Hubbard even said, “This isn’t like any meatloaf my mom ever made.”  The plate was piled so high with pasta that he couldn’t finish it all.  Of course, that didn’t stop him from having dessert.

Hubbard had almond ricotta cake topped with a lemon sauce.  He said it was very good about four times.  So, I’m guessing it was pretty good.  I had a bite.  But, I don’t really like lemon flavored sweets.  If you like lemon, you’d probably like this.

We split a bottle of wine that we brought in.  No fees for that.  The entire lunch cost about $46 before tip.  Excellent value, considering the quality of the food.  The service was great.  Everyone is very friendly and unpretentious.  Nonna Tata has an casually comfortable atmosphere.  Now I’ve just got to think of 20-25 good reasons to go back to Fort Worth and taste everything else on the menu!

A Walk Around Snider Plaza

You know, Snider Plaza really is a food destination, much more so than I realized.  I had been meaning to visit Flavors From Afar for quite some time now.  When I mentioned it to my friend, Lori L, she thought it sounded like a good idea, too.  So, off we went.  I had not been to Snider Plaza in years and then it was just to go to Kuby’s.  I didn’t know that so many food oriented businesses were right there in the same little area.  We not only visited Flavors From Afar, we went to Doughmonkey and Kuby’s, too.  If it had not been so hot we probably would have checked out a few other places.  But, there is only so much fun I can have with sweat dripping into my eyes. 

I fell in love with Flavors From Afar.  Not only do they carry a wide variety of Italian foods, oils, condiments, etc. but they are just the nicest people.  Often times, in small boutiques, I’m intimidated by the attitude of the place.  This is especially true in University/Highland Park.  Not here.  Everyone was so engaging.  The Krabills are so enthusiastic about their products that I found myself wanting to buy everything I touched and tasted.  There’s a lot of tasting going on at Flavors From Afar, too.  Today they were celebrating the fig.  All fig products were 50% off.  I think we actually did buy every fig thing we tasted!

I got those cute bamboo spoons.  Four pint sized beverage glasses.  A can of Bellini mix.  Balsamic Glaze with Figs.  This stuff called Dinamite Calabrian Viagru.  It’s like a chili pepper pesto.  And look how cute the packaging is.  It’s over to the right.  Looks like a wick is coming out of the top, resembling dynamite.  I almost don’t wan to open it.  I bought some Sulla Honey with Hazelnuts.  A Calabreze hot salami.  And a jar of Carmelized Red Onion & Fig dip-topping-spread.  All of this with an additional 20% off the non-sale items.  I recently subscribed to their newsletter and this coupon was at the bottom of the page.  Oh!  And a bag of free figs for each of us!  I felt like it was Christmas or something.  Free figs?  Are you kidding me?  I can’t wait to go back. 

A couple of doors down we freaked out on Doughmonkey.  Those chocolates are absolutely beautiful!  They let us sample a couple.  Then we bought a little box of them for home.  Those ended up at Lori’s house or I’d have a picture to show you.  I also picked up a bag of Cayenne Peanut Brittle.  I love peanut brittle.  There were so many things there to try.  Unfortunately, we had lunch planned after shopping.  So, I was not so sure how a bag of pastries would do out in the car during lunch.  Lori was right.  We should have brought a cooler.   

Then over to the sign-less Kuby’s.  It almost looked shut down.  But, all you had to do was open the door to smell the German goodness that has been Kuby’s for so many years.  I first visited Kuby’s when I was in high school.  I had to have a little wurst salad.  Lori bought some pig ears for the dog. 

We would have gone farther.  It was just too damned hot to walk around outside.  We left Highland Park with a car full of goodies and headed back to the other side of Central for a visit to Sushi Axiom for lunch.  There we talked of life and death.  Sampled each other’s sushi and tossed back a couple of cold Kirin beers.   

Rough morning, huh?