Grubtrotters » Italian

Adorable Ado

grubtrotters — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:18:35 +0000

Ado's Prosciutto di Parma e Burrata

Only in Venice would a neighbor at the next table see me salivating over her truffle pasta and offer me the first bite. It was Saturday night at Ado, the cute little Italian joint in the homey space formerly occupied by Amuse, and Allison was in the mood to share. I happily accepted her offer, even while wondering where on earth they found truffles this time of year. Australia?

Ado, a joint venture between Paolo Cesaro (Hidden and Via Veneto) and Chef Antonio Mure (Piccolo, La Botte, Locanda Veneta) opened last month with little fanfare, but the place already is already buzzing with a distinct party vibe. The space is tiny — only about 10 tables — and a little hot upstairs, but the service is fantastic and the food is pretty darned good.

My only beef about Ado is the price. Vic and I ordered two appetizers, one pasta, two entrees and two glasses of Nerello Mascalese wine. Even without dessert or a full bottle of wine, the meal tab came to $178 with tip. They actually charged us for three glasses of wine, but Vic caught the mistake. Still, the bill was pretty steep for an Italian meal in this economy, and I ate better for less last month on a trip to Florence. Not that the Venetians at Ado seemed to mind. Everyone was having a great time. And I must admit that the appetizer portions at Ado were huge. You could easily save a few bucks by ordering an appetizer and pasta instead of a main course.

When we arrived at Ado, a gaggle of gorgeous Italian men greeted us with “Buona Sera” and showed us upstairs to a table covered in white cloth and a single candle. There seemed to be almost as many servers as diners, which made for highly attentive (but not annoying) service that was rather polished for such a new place. We started the meal with a Parma Prosciutto and Burrata cheese appetizer (pictured above). The cheese was creamy and luscious, the prosciutto a salty winner. You can’t go wrong with this one. We also tried the Warm Baby Artichokes Hearth with Dungeness Crab Meat, Mache salad and Grape Must Reduction. This starter had a boatload of crab meat but could have used a tad more flavor — more of the must reduction, perhaps.

Fillet Mignon with Crispy Prosciutto

Next we shared the Home-made Pappardelle served with Rabbit Ragu, Porcini Mushrooms and Dried Prune. Dried prunes? I was a little concerned about that, but they actually added a sweet little flavor kick that balanced out this hearty dish. The thick ribbons of pasta were cooked quite al dente. Nice overall, but not especially memorable.

My main course, however, was a huge winner. The Grilled Colorado Lamb Chop stuffed with Pesto and served with a Red Wine and Mustard Sauce was fantastic. The meat was tender, cooked flat and then rolled up with the pesto filling. The sauce was salty — I like salty — and complex. So good. Vic ordered the Pan sautéed Beef Filet Mignon served with Crispy Prosciutto and a Pink Peppercorn Sauce. Sounded wonderful, and it wasn’t bad at all. But if you have a choice between the filet and the lamb chops, go with the lamb chops for sure. The sauce was just better, the dish itself more interesting. Both of our entrees were served with a side of carrots, potatoes and sunchokes, also known as Jerusalem artichokes, which looked like potatoes and tasted sort of like a crunchy root vegetable.

I wish we’d had room for dessert, but like I said, the portions were massive, and we were stuffed by the end of the meal. The service was so friendly, the folks at Ado made you feel like you were stopping by their home for a dinner party. The valet saw us coming down the stairs and brought us the correct car without us even giving him the ticket. What a great place for date night. I have a feeling Ado is going to be hard to get into very soon, but if you do make it, don’t forget to share some truffles with your neighbor. — Jenny

Ado: 796 Main Street
Venice, 310-399-9010.

Delizia Is Not

grubtrotters — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 03:19:58 +0000

If you name a place Delizia Cafe, the food had better deliver. Unfortunately, what they call food at Delizia is anything but delicious.

Victor and I had been stuck inside our Venice Beach pad most of Sunday and wanted to get outside for a nice walk and to grab a quick bite. I have bladed past Delizia many times since it opened last year and have always wanted to try it. Something about its modern outdoor decor, bright orange sign and simple Italian menu made it looked enticing. But clearly the boardwalk location is the only thing keeping this place hopping.

Delizia has sunset specials every night that include beer, drinks like sangria and what they call “tapas.” Perhaps the use of the Spanish word “tapas” instead of the Italian “cicchetti” for small plates — not to mention the Spanish Sangria — should have tipped us off that this would be nothing like the Italian food we spent our honeymoon grazing on every day. The only authentically European thing about Delizia was the vast number of smokers. (Their palates must be burned out.)

We ordered the pizzette, cannellini crostini and four pieces of dark meat roasted chicken with greens and garlic. The four tiny squares of pizzette on thick bread ($5) barely resembled any pizza I had ever seen. It looked and tasted like it had been sitting around all day. The cheese was burnt. The toppings were dried out. One of the pieces tasted like cardboard. We complained to the waitress, and she said, “I’m sorry, should I bring some olive oil and vinegar to spice it up?” OK, but no amount of oil and vinegar was going to make this pizza edible. The Amy’s Organic and Trader Joe’s frozen pizzas at home are far superior, and that’s kind of scary.

The crostini topped with a mixture of white beans, onions and parsley ($5) was bland but edible. It also tasted like it had been mixed hours before and refrigerated. Clearly they don’t make the tapas fresh at Delizia. I splashed some vinegar on that just to kick it up a notch, too.

Next she brought out chicken, along with a supposedly “clean” plate that had bits of food still stuck to the surface. Vic’s plate was also dirty. At this point, I was a little afraid to eat the chicken. It was slightly pink in the middle, and I had visions of salmonella running through my brain. Victor was equally unimpressed by our meal.

Despite our trepidation, we asked for fresh plates and did eat the chicken ($10). It was moist and mildly spiced, accompanied by broccoli and greens that were drowning in lemon juice and chunks of garlic. It’s been an hour, and I haven’t gotten sick so far, but that’s probably the ony compliment I can generate. The roasted chicken at Ralph’s is much better.

If you’re on the Venice boardwalk and need to eat, head to Figtree’s Cafe or grab a sausage at Jody Maroni’s. I’m sad to say Delizia was the worst $23 we have spent on a meal in months. –Jenny.

Delizia Cafe and Catering, 301 Oceanfront Walk, Venice Beach

–Photo courtesy of YoVenice.com

Oh, Mother of God

grubtrotters — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:50:57 +0000

Esquire admits that its feature on the Best Sandwiches in America is incomplete. We will help fill at least one gap.

The only real downside to Bay Cities Italian Deli in Santa Monica is that the parking lot during lunchtime is the automotive equivalent of a steel-cage death match. Even that hassle is not enough to dissuade devotees of scrumptious sandwiches from packing the place like a pope’s Mass.

You can reduce your waiting time inside the deli by ordering online or via fax. The deli has a separate area for such pickup orders. If you choose to make an in-store order and wait for your number to be called, be prepared for your hunger to explode exponentially. You’re surrounded by such tempting sights and smells — and other people getting their food ahead of you — that it almost seems unfair. But it is worth the wait.

The menu is extensive, but we have our favorites. Jenny usually chooses the Godmother, a combination of Genoa salami, mortadella, coppacola, ham, prosciutto and Provolone that she tops with Dijon mustard, peppers, lettuce, tomato, olive oil and vinegar. My standard pick is the meatball sandwich with tomato sauce, onions and sliced red bell peppers. But if it’s a Tuesday, I will often opt for the daily special of the sausage and peppers hoagie that looks like it came off the set of “The Sopranos.” Their rolls are excellent. The crust has that nice crunch, but the rest is soft, fresh and tasty.

If you do decide to order online — and this is our recommendation — be careful which buttons you press. We once ended up with two Godmothers instead of one, but I hesitate to call this a mistake because it simply extended a pleasurable meal. In fact, I wonder if Jenny will order two instead of one accidentally on purpose from now on. — Victor

Bay Cities Italian Deli; 1517 Lincoln Blvd., Santa Monica, Calif., 90401. 310-395-8279. Closed Mondays.