Jen P.
Yelp
I chose Arlo based on the reviews of other Yelpers and the beautiful photos of their dishes. I feel like my expectations were met and everything was as delicious and beautiful as I had hoped.
I started with a spritz cocktail, which was very citrus-forward and light. It included a sprig of fresh sage leaves, which I broke off to chew with each sip. Delightful!!
This was followed by what was listed as a 'chicory' salad, but came with radicchio (is radicchio a kind of chicory? Maybe...) - it was perfection - colorful, flavorful, and a good portion size. Besides the radicchio leaves, the salad had a 'pesto' of yellow squash which was the base, and it was 'decorated' with fried sage leaves, edible flower petals, chunks of a kind of feta or goat cheese, nuts, and strips of either cucumber or zucchini which were rolled. I loved this so much I will be recreating it at home...
For my main dish I had the roasted potatoes small plate which came with roasted and smashed blue potatoes and a chunky 'sauce' made with chorizo and almonds. This dish was balanced and savory and I also really enjoyed it.
For the table, we got the obligatory bread with 'quite possibly the world's best butter' (so says the menu) and it lived up to the hype; we could have ordered one per person...
My dinner companion selected the braised short rib ravioli for her main - there was a generous portion of fresh-made ravioli pockets filled with the beef, sitting on top of a pesto with some radicchio leaves and sprinkling of grated cheese - she used the bread to wipe the bowl clean.
We also decided to indulge in dessert - my friend went with our server's suggestion to get the chocolate pudding, and loved it - a serving of scratch-made dark-chocolate pudding on top of berries macerated in sherry served with a kind of toffee or caramel crisp. Decadent but not over the top. I opted for the lime tart, which came in a pastry shell and was decorated with mini meringues and dollops of what I think was a raspberry puree - it was tangy and complimentary to the tart, but I could not distinguish the specific flavor. The consistency of the tart filing was velvety, and overall I thought this was very balanced between sweet and tart.
The bill for 2 people, several courses, including alcohol and dessert, was over $100 including tax and tip, but I felt that was on par with similar dining experiences in other cities when considering the quality ingredients, visually-appealing plating and excellent service. Definitely recommended!
Note that parking is free but on the street, and the restaurant is located in a residential area, so you may have to walk a little. There is also a beautiful outside seating area. The day we visited we felt was too hot for us, but several other diners took advantage of being outside.