Thursday, June 18, 2009

Locanda Verde

Locanda Verde is DeNiro's finest restaurant yet. On a recent visit, I enjoyed everything I tasted.  Sitting outside along Greenwich Street, I became progressively excited each time the waiter arrived to our table with a new dish.  Starting with the house bread - the bar was set high.  Doughy foccaccia smothered in tomato sauce. Le yum...

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We began with the mushrooms agro dolce.  I was initially put off by the mini portion, but it was small potatoes in comparison to the rest of the meal.  Plus, what we did get of the 'shrooms was fantastic - sweetly pickled and flecked with crushed red pepper flakes, the dish was a mix of hen of the woods, crimini and beech.

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Next up came a blue crab crostini with jalaeño and zucchini.  The blue crab was rich and creamy, hinted with old bay and spice.  Jalapeño added an ever so subtle tang and the zucchini was sliced on top so thin as to balance out the decadence.  Taylor commented that he could eat about twenty of them. So it was serendipitous when the kitchen mixed up and sent us out a round two! :-)

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Soon, a stack of lightly charred bread came with a sizable scoop of sheep's milk ricotta.  Sprinkled with herbs and granules of sea salt, the cheese was aromatic.  I am curious from where they source it...

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Last but not least, we went for the maltagliati with pesto - YUM. This might have been my favorite.  Pasta was cooked perfectly and laced with tomatoes, olives and green beans.  They all tasted as if they'd been picked from my Italian neighbors garden.

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This dish alone would get me back to Locanda Verde... but then again, there's so much more that I want to try.

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