Kathy X.
Yelp
I discovered this Italian restaurant {only a few blocks away from home} when a few friends who came over ordered delivery from here. Although I didn't get anything that night, I was able to try the blue crab ravioli, salmon with vegetables, and margherita pizza with extra basil.
That blue crab ravioli in butter sauce was amazing... The pasta was cooked perfectly al dente, the crab filling was well seasoned and bursting with flavor, and the sauce was rich and delicious! I thought the salmon was pretty good, but the vegetables were kind of bland. The pizza was very thin, which is not my preference, but the tomato sauce and mozzarella were really tasty together. They definitely skimped out on the basil though. The "extra" basil was just a large basil leaf in the center of the pie, which doesn't equate to "extra" in my book.
A few weeks later, I decided to order delivery from this place for myself, and selected the shrimp oreganata, as well as the half rack of lamb with garlic oil pasta.
I enjoyed the shrimp oreganata, which is baked shrimp topped with garlic, olive oil, and bread crumbs. This was absolutely wonderful. The shrimp was a decent size and quite juicy, with a satisfying slight crisp. All the seasonings mingled together beautifully.
The rack of lamb were New Zealand lamb chops grilled with a scrumptious medley of herbs, including rosemary, thyme, fresh basil, and more. The lamb was extremely tender, succulent, and there was plenty of robust savory sauce to ensure that each piece of meat had great flavor.
The accompanying pasta was not the best. There wasn't enough garlic flavor from the garlic oil, so the pasta was pretty tasteless.
I visited the restaurant to see what the ambiance was like and ordered take out. There was a warm and rustic feel. The host and bartender who took my order were very nice.
This time, I chose the half order of Calamari, as well as the 4 Cheese and Pear Fiocchi Pasta. The Calamari was very lightly fried, so it wasn't crispy enough for me. It was also too chewy for my tastes. I did enjoy the 4 Cheese and Pear Fiocchi, which was served with a very rich, creamy, flavorful Gorgonzola sauce and candied walnuts. The 4 cheese and pear filling was in purse-like pieces of pasta, and cooked to just the right consistency, which was very soft and silky smooth. The dish was full of great seasoning and I really enjoyed the crunchy sweet candied walnuts.
I would be open to returning to try the Sicilian Rice Balls, Pork Chop and other Pasta dishes.