For dinner, I had chicken marsala, with a nice side salad and pasta with marinara.
The location was serendipitous- I did a little research this afternoon, trying to find an interesting Italian place we hadn't tried yet, but came up empty. Everything looked either average and run-of-the-mill (key indicators: heavy use of Provel; exceptional reliance on pizzas and toasted ravioli) or intriguing but pricey (small plates; $260 bottles of wine (pdf)). In the end, we just went to the Hill and drove around, and somehow came across delicious Italian magic.
Lou Boccardi's had the lost-in-time feel I like in family-run Italian restaurants. The silver tinsel garlands, Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack, and neatly clad waitstaff added to the atmosphere. The menu listed slightly toward the Provel-and-toasted-ravioli end of things, but with one big difference- they did it really, really well. Jon ordered some toasted ravioli as an appetizer, and they were amazingly crispy and chewy and delicious.
The salad was pretty good, a typical iceberg affair with a tomato half, grated Provel, and house Italian vinaigrette. Their other house dressing is "anchovy celery", which Jon tried. It was interesting...it needed more lemon juice or vinegar to cut the fish flavor- and I LIKE anchovies.
The marsala was incredible, but not at all marsala-ey. The sauce looked suspiciously thick and glossy, but it tasted like pure essence of chicken, like the best chicken soup ever. The only thing I can figure is that lots of chicken fat was involved.
The pasta side was the only disappointing part of the meal. The marinara was thick and exceptionally good, but the pasta was seriously overcooked. I don't blame the restaurant, considering no one in St. Louis seems to know the meaning of al dente. It was just a surprise because they were above average in so many other ways.
Showing posts with label marinara. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marinara. Show all posts
Friday, December 4, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
Ravioli at Home
Tonight for dinner, I had some red pepper ravioli in a garlic butter sauce with a glass of rosé.
I didn't really know what I wanted for dinner, so I wandered aimlessly around Central Market looking for ideas. I came across some yummy-looking clams at their seafood counter, and started planning for pappardelle with clam sauce. Their seafood counter was grossly understaffed. I waited several minutes, only to discover that they were not utilizing their take-a-ticket system and it was line-jumping anarchy. I was seriously annoyed, so kept wandering. I found the papardelle, grabbed some wine, and looped back around to seafood, as I hadn't found anything else I really wanted for dinner. The congestion was actually worse. I found it interesting that twenty or so people were clogging the seafood counter, while the meat counter had exactly one customer. Usually it's the opposite. Maybe all the Texans need a warm-weather respite from all the beef. I was irritated that the two unoccupied meat counter guys weren't popping over to help, and finally gave up on clams.
I ended up with some red pepper, mozzarella, and basil ravioli. It was really red pepper ravioli, with only the slightest inkling of mozzarella, and none of basil. Still pretty decent. I got some Alessi marinara sauce to go with it, but decided at the last minute to make a simple garlic butter sauce instead.
The wine was the standout of the meal. Santola is a Portuguese producer, and I'd had their vinho verde and their red before, but never their rosé. It's delicious. I was looking for a French-style rosé (usually pretty dry, floral and herby) rather than a California-style (usually sickly sweet and fruity), and this is passably close. It's sweeter than a French rosé, but it has the most amazing smell- lots of heady grassy and floral honey smells. It doesn't taste nearly as good as it smells, but it smells fabulous.
I didn't really know what I wanted for dinner, so I wandered aimlessly around Central Market looking for ideas. I came across some yummy-looking clams at their seafood counter, and started planning for pappardelle with clam sauce. Their seafood counter was grossly understaffed. I waited several minutes, only to discover that they were not utilizing their take-a-ticket system and it was line-jumping anarchy. I was seriously annoyed, so kept wandering. I found the papardelle, grabbed some wine, and looped back around to seafood, as I hadn't found anything else I really wanted for dinner. The congestion was actually worse. I found it interesting that twenty or so people were clogging the seafood counter, while the meat counter had exactly one customer. Usually it's the opposite. Maybe all the Texans need a warm-weather respite from all the beef. I was irritated that the two unoccupied meat counter guys weren't popping over to help, and finally gave up on clams.
I ended up with some red pepper, mozzarella, and basil ravioli. It was really red pepper ravioli, with only the slightest inkling of mozzarella, and none of basil. Still pretty decent. I got some Alessi marinara sauce to go with it, but decided at the last minute to make a simple garlic butter sauce instead.
The wine was the standout of the meal. Santola is a Portuguese producer, and I'd had their vinho verde and their red before, but never their rosé. It's delicious. I was looking for a French-style rosé (usually pretty dry, floral and herby) rather than a California-style (usually sickly sweet and fruity), and this is passably close. It's sweeter than a French rosé, but it has the most amazing smell- lots of heady grassy and floral honey smells. It doesn't taste nearly as good as it smells, but it smells fabulous.
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