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KeithA

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Everything posted by KeithA

  1. I've walked by Pisco y Nazca downtown numerous times but never had the chance to try it before lunch today. It was overall a really enjoyable experience. It is a nice, comfortable setting with an open kitchen tucked in the corner. Service was very good and attentive but not intrusive. The lunch menu is huge with lots of options (it may be the same as dinner menu) but I had seen online they also have a regular lunch 3 course menu for great price $26 with a few upcharges for certain items but still a lot of variety in the apps and entrees. I had to ask for the 3 course menu, but they brought it right away and we ended up ordering from it. The table next to us had a really good looking and they said really tasty and ample Japanese style tuna ceviche from the regular menu that I'd try next time. I started with the ceviche of the day, which was a small portion of the cremosa ceviche - raw white fish, onions, disk of roasted sweet potatos, what appeared to be plump large size corn and tigre sauce. It was pretty good but I think I'd try the tuna or another ceviche next time. They were fine with leaving out the usual shrimp from the ceviche when I requested that since I don't eat it. My fellow diner had the Causa de Pollo which is a chilled, whipped potato dish with shredded chicken, mayo, avocado, and sauce all layered - it was a large portion. She said it was very good. For main course, she had the Chaufa de Pollo - essentially peruvian fried rice which was really big and she said it was tasty. I loved my lomo saltado (biggest upcharge at $11 but worth it) - perfectly medium cooked cubes of steaks, great steak fries, sauteed onions and slices of tomato with a mound of rice with a great thin, soy based sauce that was delicious - tangy, sweet but not too sweet. I'd eat the lomo saltado again anytime. It was a really big plate too. We finished with the two dessert options - a small slice of cheesecake and a small piece of flan. I had the flan and it was really good caramel flavor, with the right amount of slightly dense but still not too heavy. It had small pieces of grilled pineapple around the base which were a nice complement but a bit overpowered by the rich caramel. I'm going to have to add this to lunch rotation and check it out for dinner sometime too. It was nice to see the restaurant more than half full downtown on a Friday - and this is without any sidewalk seating. I have hope for downtown just yet as I expected it may be deserted.
  2. We've been spoiled with good Pizza nearby from 2 Amys and Vace but I recently got my kids to try Pupatella as our new delivery pizza option instead of boring Angelico's. The Dupont Pupatella store is good and fast with delivery up to Cleveland Park. Glad to say I've converted the family after 4 or so orders in the past couple of months. The pizza is very good and similar to 2 Amys. I still like 2 Amys topping combos better (not to mention the non-pizza side dishes which rock) but it is hard to compare as I almost always eat that fresh from the oven in the restaurant vs. Pupatella has been solely delivery so far. The kids like the plain bimbis and wife is happy with the Margherita. I've been trying different ones and I like the pesto although I think I'll leave off the walnuts next time. The eggplant combo and the calabrese with salty briny anchovies and olives was good. I customized my calabrese and added cararmelized onions for a sweet/salty combo that hit the spot last night. I also have enjoyed their fried aranchini/suppli with roasted eggplant. Now I just need to remember to preheat the oven while waiting for the delivery instead of almost every time getting the pizza and then waiting for my oven to preheat with the pizza stone to reheat the thin pizza that does get cold during the delivery drive.
  3. Anyone been to Japan recently with tips on places to eat? We are traveling in the early Spring to Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo. Finding restaurants is overwhelming me a bit as I hear you should go to a local place but don't know them or get reservations, but I don't know where and every place recommended on line seems to instead have these huge lines. My family is primarily looking for good eats, doesn't need to be the absolute best or Michelin-starred or the hottest instragram site and we will not be waiting hours in line. Would love some suggestions for good quality food likely near the usual tourist neighborhoods. We are looking to explore most types of Japanese food - sushi, kushikari, katsu, ramen/udon, etc. Thanks.
  4. I don't think there is a shortage anymore, I've seen bottles in lots of places including non-Asian grocery stores. I recently replaced by very old bottle with a new one from Streets.
  5. The cumin lamb noodles are one of my faves - yes a bit oily but very tasty. I regularly get them for carryout and enjoy it greatly. The rare occasions where I have left overs, I toss them in a wok for a minute or so to revive and they are great. The fast casual styles has always been the setup at the Dupont location and sounds like Shirlington too. I haven't eaten in for a long while, but when I did in Dupont for lunch, I found the service to be very friendly and a bit more catering to customers then your typical chipotle or other fast casual place. The real difference for me is the thought into the ingredients and composition (more chef-driven then mass produced at other places) and great quality of the food make it a stand out. I think their prices (at least in DC) pretty accurately reflect this nice balance too (a bit more than the chains, but still very nicely priced for great food).
  6. Great service and very enjoyable meal last Saturday for dinner. The place is very small and so we made a reservation. When we showed up on time it was full inside and several people eating on the patio (they had heat lamps but we wanted to be inside). After waiting a few minutes, they figured out that people were lingering and so they offered us drinks and chips and salsa outside while we waited. It did take a while to move inside, but the servers regularly checked on us and the housemade purple chips and salsas (3 types - roasted tomato, tomatillo-serrano, and seed oil (this last is really good and different than you find other places) are excellent). Mango and classic margheritas hit the spot too. Once inside, the 4 of us had some great food. The steak quesdallia was huge and very good - beef was seasoned and charred nicely. The kid's burrito did the trick. My wife and I opted for the extended RW menus - $55 for a lot of food including more chips/salsas. First course was a really nice salad with roasted and raw veg and a room temp not too spicy guajillo pepper pozole soup with hominy. Both we large portions as were the entrees too. The soup was interesting but lacked some flavor - although I like the texture of the hominy. I'm not partial to not hot soup though so maybe it was just not to my personal taste. Entrees were a very special pink mole with duck breast to be eaten straight or wrapped in homemade mini tortillas and rice. The mole was really good and had a nutty-ness to it that hit perfectly. The duck was a bit chewy and would have been better more rare. The other entree was a big branzino with pickled vegetables on the side and covered with a black thick sauce (like a mole but more paste like). It was very good and also came with rice and tortillas. For dessert we chose the chocolate tres leches cake which was a very good rendition and not too chocolaty, but the second choice was excellent - horchata sorbet. It tasty like a solid, creamy version of a horchata drink but then added sprinkles of crunchies to it that made it wonderful. The servers who constantly checked on us, refilled waters, etc. said it took them a really long time to develop the sorbet. Even without RW, it is really nice place with great food and the menu offers a chance to expand your taste beyond the usual Mexican/Tex-Mex offerings but elevated versions of those typically offerings are still available if some of your party really want tacos and quesadillas.
  7. I was reading the comments in the Rasika topic about RW being a good deal or not at it and other restaurants and then I read this article about restaurant fees/surcharges - https://dcist.com/story/24/01/23/dc-restaurant-fees-service-charges-lawsuits-travelers-united/. I'm curious what people think including those who run restaurants. I think (I may be wrong as I'm not in the biz) that restaurants may be scared of raising menu prices to cover additional costs because they think it will turn off customers but if everyone was required to list correct menu prices without additional surcharges, I think it would be better for all. No bad feelings by customers, no need to explain by staff, and no threats of lawsuits. I've personally been surprised at some of the restaurants where I've been where the total per person cost is $50-100 and then after the fee/surcharge % is calculated it is only about $3-8 more per person. I can't imagine most people eating at pricier restaurants are going to skip a meal if the price difference is a few dollars. I mean whether an entree is $32 or 34 or a glass of wine is $12 or 14 dollars is likely a negligible difference for most diners. Granted people do notice when a price goes from $28 to $32 but I'm sure smart restaurant staff can adjust menu prices in ways that wouldn't turn off customers but still get that less than $10 per person without the confusing surcharges. Per my opening, I'm not in the biz and so open to critique by restaurants if there is some aspect I'm missing. I also think that with the surcharges, the article is correct that some people tip less if they have to pay a surcharge (whether rightly or wrongly described on the menu per the AG's advice). The whole point of getting rid of tipped salary was to give staff a steady paycheck and so if that means menu prices go up then they should go up. IMHO.
  8. RR has become one of our regulars in the carryout rotation about once a month. Chicken is still great, fries are still so so, but I will add they made good milkshakes too. Not surprised they are expanding even more.
  9. Yeah, it is not closed - really only change in ownership and name. This weekend, I got carry-out from them through the Indique site which is still in use while the new website is being setup. They have signs on the windows that it is currently open 5-9pm. The food was as good as ever - I had their mango lassi, onion kulcha bread, chicken biryani, and bindhi/okra masala. I especially enjoyed the okra. We'll see if the menu changes over time but for now it is the same.
  10. We didn't get them this year because it is a bit of schlep from DC to Kemp Mill, but I agree I've had them a few times over the year and always enjoyed Kosher Pastry Oven's sufganiyot. Next year, we'll have to compare.
  11. We ended up trying two additional sufganiyot during Hanukkah. Call Your Mother raspberry-guava jelly filled and Dunkin Donut's jelly donuts. CYM were huge - almost the side of 2 donuts each and very nice fresh cake with good coating of powdered sugar all around. The jelly was sweet but not too sweet and tasted homemade. Overall a great option. I may have liked them the best, but my wife convinced me that Breadfurst was better as their unique method of getting the jelly across the whole top (still inside the donut though) whereby you got jelly in every bite. DD were not good. Tasted of sugar with crappy jelly and cake donut was a bit stale. Avoid those. So the overall rankings: 1. Breadfurst Close 2. Call Your Mother 3. Astro Zero - Dunkin' Donuts.
  12. About a year ago, I upped my fermentation equipment and got glass pickling weights (about $20-25) that fit perfectly in my quart jars so there is no worry about them not keeping the produce submerged. I also now do my lacto-ferment cucumbers in the same way I mention above in my 2016 post but instead of 5-7 days, I usually do 2 weeks sitting on the counter with airlocks before refrigeration. Gets to be a very nice full sour flavor.
  13. Reviving this old thread. So far this Hanukkah, we've had sufganiyot/donuts from Astro and Breadfurst (later in the week we are getting Call Your Mother). From Astro we got 6 varieties of donuts: 1. Jelly donut - very good. Nice cake, well-dusted with powdered sugar, and decent amount of jelly inside. 2. Smores - not good. Chocolate cake which was bitter, needed more sweetness, with rich chocolate glazes studded with graham pieces and a gooey toasted marshmallow in the center. This would have a been a rich delight except the actual donut was meh. 3. Red velvet - pretty good, not great. Probably wouldn't get again. Surprisingly, a plain cake donut covered in red sugar glaze and red velvet cake crumbs. Not sure why they didn't make the actual donut a red velvet or at least chocolate. 4. Hanukkah cookie - good. Vanilla cake donut with blue/white frosting swirl and a star sugar cookie on top. 5. Creme brulee - So so. Yeast donut filled with vanilla cream and the outside is glazed and torched a bit. Maybe best eaten right away when the glaze is more freshly cooked. I liked it but others did not. 6. Vanilla glaze - Good. yeast donut with standard glaze. All of their donuts are rather large so great if you want to cut a piece and share. We got 2 of each and would have been fine with half of that. Breadfurst - only make raspberry jam filled cake donuts. They didn't look great as they were a bit misshapen and the powdered sugar had melted into the donut. But adding a fresh dusting of powdered sugar made them beautiful again. Most importantly these tasted great. Technically they were really cool too. They managed to get the delicious fresh jam to cover the whole top of the donut (still under a layer of dough) - a bit hard to describe but the key is that every signal bite of donut had a bite of jam and cake. Easily beat the jelly from Astro.
  14. First today - Upper NW had a run on plain bagels at 1pm. Went to CYM for quick bagel lunch. The place was busy with lines and people eating in. What I didn't realize and never experience before midday in a bagel shop, they were out of plain bagels with no ETA on when they would get more. I don't know 100% but I guess the CT Ave location doesn't cook them there but rather they get them delivered from a central bakery. Not a big deal since I like onion- oh wait CYM never has those on the menu 😉 My ET with candied salmon cream cheese was fine. Luckily, I snagged the final two plain bagels (sourced from Bullfrog) at the Den in the basement of Politics & Prose, so the picky eater kids can enjoy their bagels. I glad CYM is doing good business but running out of plain midday is not great for a bagel place. My local favorite is still by far Baked by Yael - but they don't have maple cinnamon, zaatar or pumpernickel either - but they do have really good onion bagels. Yael's also gets their lox from local Ivy Citysmoke house vs. CYM slaps their own sticker on still good but non-local Acme.
  15. Last night was left over grilled steak (when I bought and cooked way too much for an earlier dinner party) which I reheated in a low 250 degree oven for 20+ minutes and then seared in pan on the stove for about a 1 min or so a side. Great tip for reheating from Food Network. I then sliced the steak, warmed tortillas and turned into make your fajita night. Sauteed some bell peppers and onions, made some rice, a few jarred salsas from the store (red and green), plus some chopped jalapenos and cilantro. Plus tortilla chips for more dipping. Everyone was very happy - including our guests. This was a big point because despite it being a quick, causal weeknight meal with good friends and their kids, but my wife really hated the idea of serving leftovers to guests. My thought is they don't know they were leftovers and if I can make it all into a delicious meal, no one would care. I'm taking the win.
  16. This is a review of the 14th Street and T location. The place is beautiful - the outside of the building is brightly colored and inside has very nice and tasteful decor. Service was rather attentive. They have a great set of lunch deals too. You can either get a discounted entree (with a lot of choices and it is same size as regular menu) or choose from 3 courses (app, entree, and either a side or dessert). We were only so hungry so we got the guacamole to share and each ordered various enchiladas. The guac was very fresh with good chips, but spicier than usual. My enchiladas suizas - smoky pulled chicken rolled our soft tortilla and covered in a creamy sauce with a bit of cheese were pretty good - also a bit spicier than I expected. I don't know if I'd get them again but I don't usually go for enchiladas. I saw some ordered of tacos and a big sandwich that also looked good.
  17. Went for the first time last night as part of a work group dinner. I wasn't looking forward to the meal as I find steakhouses as often plain and lackluster and overpriced. Two of the people sitting with me had this appropriate conversation: "You aren't vegetarian and you ordered the Gnocci Pomodoro and not something off the regular menu at this steakhouse? Reply: "Yeah, I didn't want a boring, plain steak." Well I leaned into the steakhouse and got the cooked to order temperature boring filet and wished I had a little sauce or something. It was fine but plain. The side dishes were also ok - mashed potatos, sauteed mushroom, and broccoli - great for unadventurous eaters, but not me. The caesar salad as the same. The most flavor was in the asparagus tempura that came with a thickish dipping soy-based sauce - nothing special though. The service was very attentive and people were generally pleased as the food was decent quality and prepared as expected, but I could and would have made a much better meal at home. I usually try to help organize work dinners to avoid boring choices like this one, but didn't do so this time. I also am going to an upcoming work dinner at Morton's - low expectations. Note I say all of this as someone who loves a good steak - we are regulars at Medium Rare and had a very beef-eating good time in Italy this summer. I almost forgot, the one highlight was dessert. The Chocolate Sin Cake was rich and delicious. Nice sized wedge of flour chocolate cake on a plate with a white and milk chocolate sauce that paired very well to cut some of the richness and as creaminess.
  18. We love Red Truck Bakery - always try to stop there on out farther out outings in VA, especially on the way to Shenandoah. Hopefully, they don't mess with the recipes too much as their cakes are really good. I guess change is in the wind, I was sad to hear that our other fave Griffin Tavern in nearby Flint Hill changed hands and menu somewhat (as mentioned a while back on this board in the VA travel section). As we head out to Shenandoah this fall, we'll likely check out both spots and I'll try to remember to report back.
  19. Pesto - use up any end of summer fresh basil. It freezes great and then you have homemade pesto anytime you want during the year. Also any stocks like chicken stock freeze great too. While it may be obvious, but end of summer fruit makes great ice cream too 🙂
  20. Several months ago, I was in mid-town and had read about Urban Hawker and so checked it out for a quick to go lunch. It is a big food hall with lots of vendors serving up fresh dishes. It was a bit overwhelming with so many choices. I originally planned to get the Hainanese chicken I had read about but it seemed a bit plain and had a long line. I opted for a different stall - can't remember name - and ended up with a really good rice/salad with fresh grilled mackerel that I really enjoyed. Definitely worth stopping by if you are in mid-town and want to grab something casual.
  21. Great review. Thanks for sharing. I have to ask what is neptune's pillows?
  22. After we left Florence last week, we headed up to the Liguria region - specifically Santa Margherita Ligure - a wonderful medium/small town with beautiful architecture, great food, nice shopping and a busy boat-filled harbor. SML is just north on the peninsula from the more famous but much smaller, Portofino. SML was full of Italian vacationers and a much smaller amount of non-Italian tourists - the ratio switched a bit when we went to Portofino. Ligurian is known for its focaccia, pesto, and seafood. All were great. SML has several fishing boats that dock in the harbor - one even does little cones of fried seafood on the back of its boat and there are several seafood markets. There are also many small groceries offering some pre-made dishes as the town caters to many vacationers who rent apartments. Here are our food highlights: SML: 1. Oca Bianca (white goose) was the best meal we had in all of Italy. It is known as the place to eat meat in SML since most places specialize in seafood. The restaurant is almost 100% outside on their shaded patio in the summer and they have several fine dining touches from special boxes to put purses on, amuse bouches, nice bread basket with a good variety of breads, and very friendly and more attentive service than most other restaurants in Italy. We started with excellent gnocchi with pesto - it was very tiny and just melted in your mouth. We also had a very creative and delicious appetizer of fried onion chips that were filled with a cheesy cream and topped with pine nuts, raisins, beet sauce, another sauce and braised cabbage. On the menu and my description make it sound like a mess and odd, but it was beautifully presented and wonderful. We also had their T-bone bistecca fioerentina where they had a nice selection of different sizes so we were able to get one that was just right for us to share. The wines by the glass suggested to us were very good too. The only hiccup was the dessert - we got a "cheesecake" but it was more like a loose cream in a cup with a bit of a crumble and some fruit - not too tasty. Luckily we found a gelato place nearby to satiate the sweet tooth. 2. Gelato - lots of places around town and many very very good. Two we liked a lot were Gelateria Gepi Mare, a bit south of the busier section of the port but still on the road alongside the harbor and Gelato Generali - famous for their Pinguino (Penguin) where they careful scoop your gelato into a cone shape on a cone and then dunk it in very good dark chocolate for a dip cone. 3. Apertivo and Breakfast buffet at Hotel Blu di Te - this is the boutique hotel we stayed at. In addition to great cocktails, they give a really nice spread of apps - wonderful thick fries, tomato salad, rice/tuna salads, and super fresh fried anchovies. It was so good we did it two days in a row. The breakfast buffet was also big and very good - lots of the usual pastries and cereal, but I really enjoyed the fresh greek yogurt with granola and fresh berries drizzled with chestnut honey. They also had a variety of excellent local cheeses, various hams which I didn't try, soft/hard boiled eggs to order and various cakes/tarts plus fresh squeezed orange juice, coffee and tea. 4. Focaccia and baked goods- so many little bakeries selling fresh from the oven throughout the day focaccia in a variety of flavors. The plain olive oil is great, even better was the rosemary. If like me you love onions, the thinly slice covered in onions version was good for a meal too. There also are pizza like focaccia with tomato sauce with various veggies. The best one is Panificio Fiordiponti which is very popular with the locals where you take a number and wait 5-15 minutes for your turn. It is on a back street one block behind the main shopping drag and worth searching out. They also have a variety of other breads and pastries. We also really like the focaccia and sweets (rich cream filled sfogiatella and strongly flavor almond horn cookies) at Panificio Canale in Portofino While SML is a seafood lover's place, we don't eat shellfish so we were a bit more limited. Lots of places offering the special local red prawns and fried calamari. We had a really nice fresh sea bream ligurian style with potatos and olives but the rest of the restaurant wasn't worth recommending. Also everywhere serves trofie pasta with super light, flavorful pesto. We found they are more delicate with less garlic than we usually get in the States. A word about Portofino - all of the guidebooks warn you that it is crazy expensive. I found that to be a bit misleading. We only ate at some bakeries and gelato places but we looked at menus and it is a real mix between overpriced places and pretty regularly priced places. Similar to the town itself which while known for the mega yachts and rich visitors, also caters to more middle class folks. So if you visit, I'd recommend looking around and you'll likely find a place that isn't too much more expensive than similar places in SML or other nearby towns and avoid those that are overpriced. The shopping is the same - you can go to Ferragamo, Gucci, etc but also cheap places selling tourist trinkets and everything in between. One last good to know thing is that you should make the hike up the hill to the Brown Castle for amazing views and while there -they have a small cafe with snacks and drinks so you can have a mini-apertivo if you like before heading back down.
  23. After Rome, we recently were in Florence for 4 days. Some of the highlights: 1. Trattoria Za Za - north end of historic area near Mercato Centrale. A reservation is essential here as it is super popular with tourists. They have a whole system for seating people where non-reservation people wait in a pretty slow and long line. Reservations wait a few minutes in a short line (just go up to the host and tell them you have a reservation as it isn't apparent at first). The place is known for their pastas and we enjoyed a nice pesto. The porcini mushroom crostini was only so so. We also learned about bad bread here. I don't know why but many Italian and Florentine especially restaurant serve you slice Italian white bread in a paper bag which is either almost stale or definitely lacks any salt or flavor in it. While we thought this was odd, we had the same experience at a few restaurants that we thought ok maybe it is just us and this bread is solely for mopping up pasta sauce. However as we went to better restaurants we learned that was a bad assumption - other places give you nice soft bread with good flavor, perfect for a swipe through olive oil. So beware the tourist places with their bad bread. On the positive side, we also got a grilled beef filet which was super flavorful and good. Florence loves steak and my kids ended up eating steak almost every night. Note this was one of the more reasonably priced filets of beef for one person and not the big Bistecca Fiorentina. The nice thing about the filet was they cooked it medium like the kids liked vs. the big Bistecca's are almost all rather rare. This place is busy and loud but most of the food was good so I would still recommend it. 2. La Gelateria - very good gelato near #1. Again so many good gelato places I didn't keep track of them all but we did manage to hit 1-3 each day in Italy 🙂 3. Nino and Friends - we happened upon this place on a busy street in the historic center. We were drawn in by the strong A/C and literal wall of chocolate waterfalls. Glad we did as that night they were giving out many free samples of small chocolates, creme filled cookies and little bon bons filled with limoncello. We bought a few different things for later. Good place for some food souvenirs. Everything was tasty. 4. I Fratellini Sandwiches near leather market - well known cheap but big focaccia sandwiches with a variety of options. I had them customized the bresaola with rocket by adding truffle cream. Really good. Lines but they move quick and they actually have two separate lines for identical storefronts next to each other so pick the shorter line. 5. Pizza O Vesuvio - pretty good pizza across from #4. It looks like a dive but like most places in Italy the pizza is made in a real deal pizza oven and surprised us how good it was. Not a destination place but good if you happen by. 6. It took us a while to get into Apertivo - happy hour but it is great. For the price of a drink you get free snacks - depending on the place you may only get some chips at a tourist lunch spot or you may get almost a full meal of specially made apps. We stayed at the Westin Excelsior which has a well known but really pricey restaurant/bar on the roof top. The views are amazing and for a really overpriced but good cocktail (20+ euros vs the usual 8-10) they provide a mini meal of snacks - cheeses, fried bits, nuts and chips. 7. Fumo Fiamme - we finally had a huge bistecca fiorentina here. You walk in past a case of sides of beef ready to be cut and cooked. They roll out a trolley with a scale and your mammoth steak and then like most places they will serve it cooked rare and presliced. The steak was seasoned a bit too lightly but still very good. Also it was served on a sizzle platter so my wife had the smart idea to turn some pieces and let them continue to cook a bit more for the kids. We also enjoyed a simple but good pasta pomodoro and mostly pecorino cheese plate. 8. Caffe dei Fossi / Caffe New York - on via del fossi - large variety of gelato - all homemade by the very friendly family who runs it. Some unusual flavors like passionfruit and vanilla with a pistatchio top, really good mint too. They also serve pastries that looked good and have a small bar. The friendly server encouraged us to take taste and made my wife a mint mojitio with mint gelato (it looked cool but the regular gelato was better). 9. Caffe dell'Oro - slow service and we missed the buffet at this hotel restaurant on our way to the Ponte Vecchio which is very close by, but ended up having a very nice continental breakfast with a variety of muffins and pastries and excellent pancakes. Breakfast was suprisingly hard to find unless you want a quick so so pastry at a grab and go so this was a nice find. 10. Osteria Pastella - a really popular and very good place made more so by Instagram as everyone wants their famous fresh made in front window tagliatelle pasta that get finished with truffle cheese sauce made in a giant wheel of grana padano set aflame. Definitely make a reservation. There is a long slow moving line for the non-reservations. The pasta was really good but definitely strong on truffles and is very rich. I'd suggest one portion to share and then get other things too (we did a double portion and it was a bit much). We also had a very nice pasta stuffed with smoked eggplant and tomatos and mozzarella. The steak fillet with wine reduction sauce and mashed potatoes was a hit too. They also provide some little drinks, amuse bouche, and ending limoncella which were nice touches too. The desserts are more creative and while I liked the two we tried, the rest of my group was ready to go out for gelato afterwards. 11. Antico alla Vinaio - probably most famous sandwich place with multiple locations in Florence and elsewhere. Long line at one near Galleria de Academia where the David sculpture is. Didn't move that fast, but the sandwiches were very good even for the vegetarian ones we had. #2 veg was crisper and thinner bread but great whereas the caprese style we had them made off menu was a puffier bread. All of the sandwiches are made to order with hot bread fresh from the ovens in the back. The #2 veg had the famous pistachio creme which really did make the sandwich. 12. Bandolino - really wonderful. Unclear why it is not packed except their AC could be better. Services was very nice and the food was exceptional. Second best meal we had in Italy. The bread was very good. The pastas, meats, risotto were all very good. Great wine too. 13. Gilli - historic candies and dessert and bar on the Piazza Republique that is open very late. Great cookies, cannolis and candies. The bartenders look legit too but we didn't have a drink as it was very late and we got desserts to go. Some of the candies are so beautiful, another great place for a food souvenir. Final recap will be of Liguria that I'll add in a separate topic soon.
  24. Recently got back from several days in Rome. We had some great food and some ok food. The highlights were: 1. Caffe Doria - small, fancy cafe connected to the Doria Pamphilij gallery. Great intro to Rome when your small cafe has a fountain inside it. Lots of fancy cakes and a few types of gelato to choose from plus cafe drinks and also looked like a great place for cocktails (big selection of different gins) - we skipped the cocktails since it was early afternoon. A nice hidden find that we happened on by accident. Very friendly service too. 2. Mastrociccia Osteria Bistrot - near Piazza Navona, very popular place in a busy part of town so I recommend a reservation. Great Roman style pizzas made fresh in the wood oven in the back. We especially enjoyed the rosemary focaccia (more like plain pizza dough). Also had a nice fish and oxtail ragu gnocchi. 3. Two Sizes - really popular Tiramisu place across a tiny street from #2 that serves a few types of small and large tiramisu and cannolis. The large pistachio tiramisu was really good but they only had nutella cannolis that night which weren't great. The filling was simply nutella (which I like but was hoping for a blend with usual cannoli cream). There will be a line but it moves pretty quick. 4. Fior di Luna -in Trastavere - probably the best gelato in 10 days in Italy. (however the runners up were close, there is just so much good gelato). The flavors here seemed to be fresher and the consistency was creamier but still light which is why I say this was the best. It has won several gelato awards too. Small place with a good selection of 10-15 flavors too. They also have good macarons and cannolis (didn't try the cannolis). 5. Capitoline Museum cafe - the food was pretty good - cacio pepe tonarelli pasta, bresaola with rocket and parm, and spritzes. The best part though is the great terrace view of the city. 6. Antico Forno - in the back of the Trevi Fountain piazza - this is actually a small but fully stocked grocery, deli, and bakery with pizza by the slice. We only got a few baked goods, but wish we had come back for more as the mini sfogiatella pastries were amazing. One word about gelato - we read a lot of advice to seek out the places where the flavors are covered and not displayed in big mounds as these are supposedly better. We ended up eating both and didn't find this advice held true. What was better was simply researching which places were more popular and which were labeled Gelato Artignale - meaning artisan/homemade vs. mass produced. That being said the worst gelato was still very tasty. The other bit of advice I would share which holds true from prior trips to Italy, stick to the fruit flavors or more traditional nut (like hazelnut or pistacio) or stracciatela (vanilla with chocolate drizzle) as they are usually better. Some places have unusual flavor which may also be great too - I had a really nice coconut in one. In the separate forums I'll share food from the rest of our trip in Florence and Liguria.
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