Well, it took me a couple of years but I finally made it to Salt and am glad I did. I went with three academic associates who, when I pushed my duck fat fries towards them, gobbled them up shamelessly (after they'd all had arugula salads, seemingly putting me to shame with their health food vs my lack of same.) I had the crispy duck breast that was not crispy enough for me but was tasty and they were enthralled by their tuna (sushi quality, rare), monkfish ("oh boy," said he) and strip steak. The bill was $250 (incl wine and tip) for 4.
I liked Boccacio in Little Italy. So when I heard they had closed and most of the kitchen and front staff were going to move into the exBrasserie Tatin space, renamed La Famiglia, near Hopkins, gave it 2 weeks and then went. Friday night it was bursting at the seams and hasn't been reviewed or advertised yet. We thus had a wait (15 min) despite Colette's having made the reservation in person beause Comcast had screwed up their phone service. They've moved the seating back quite a bit and it's an impressively large space and maybe too much. Both Dino Zeytinoglu, the host and owner and our waiter couldn't have been nicer. I started with wonderful roasted peppers of various colors which with some salt and pepper did the trick. The mains, however, were another matter. Colette's veal piccata had a sauce that was visably gelatinous and while the veal was tender, was barely acceptable (the accompanying steamed green beans were standard). I probably shouldn't have ordered the pasta Bolognese since none will ever equal that prepared in a cooking class with Luigi Buitoni at the Locanda della Rocca in Paciano (Umbria); but even mine two weeks ago at the cavernous jazz emporium, the Cantina Bentivoglio, in Bologna, was better. In any case, both our mains were too generous and I wish they'd pay more attention to quality than quantity. With a bottle of Chianti Classico and no dessert or coffee, before tip, our bill was $76.85. Since this could be our "cook's night out" place, I do hope Dino succeeds in whipping up the kitchen and he eliminates the garish neon sign outside that just does not fit into this residential neighborhood (both the Brasserie Tatin and Jeannier’s presence was so much more subtle.)
You're review seems little too harsh, you might want to reconsider your ideas about food.
Posted by: josh | February 23, 2009 at 06:56 PM