Deep Fried & Frosted

Funnily enough, I just mentioned Davanti in my last post! We really did wait 2.5 hours. Not joking. We’ve gone back numerous times, for brunch and dinner since then because we love it so much. 

The food is simple and delicious. We typically order a handful of the same things whenever we go because they’re just so yummy. 

Eggplant Spread:

Ligurian focaccia. This is one of two dishes they are best known for. I wouldn’t even categorize this as a focaccia; it’s absolutely wonderful. Even better with local honeycomb!

This is the other dish they are known for: their soft polenta served on a board with various braised meats (this one is braised pork cheeks; the pork/veal meatballs are also killer):

It’s so good that we’ll get it to eat while we’re at the restaurant and then get another (usually for me) to-go, so I can have it again when I get back down to school. 

Finally, we got a pizza with arugula and prosciutto:

I could probably eat Italian food every single day for the rest of my existence. I had to have been Italian in my past life. 

For all of you who think you should’ve been born Italian, get your butt on a plane and head straight for Eataly. Do not collect $200. 

It’s like everything in the world packed into a square block and made accessible. Wonderful!

Thankfully it’s conveniently located several hundreds of miles away because otherwise my life savings would have been gone by now. But, I do now know what heaven looks like: a huge Italian grocery store and restaurant all packed into one and offering anything and everything I would ever want. 

These people must want to be Italian, too. Or they were just enjoying dinner like we were (this was night no. 1, by the way). 

Charcuterie and cheese plate:

Side note: the cheese on the end on the left side was this UNBELIEVABLE ricotta. That + honey + bread = cake, pretty much. So, so good. 

Crostini (left to right: golden beet, salmon, ??? and broccoli rabe):

Pardon the blur on the beets, please!

Quick note on Eataly: Unlike most restaurants where you sit down and order whatever you would like to eat, Eataly offers different “stations.” It’s sort of like a huge food court that makes gourmet food. The crostini and charcuterie/cheese were from La Piazza, a stand up food and drink area. They also have a “pesce,” “verdure,” “pizza e pasta, “birreria” and “dolci” sections. 

Naturally, we tried to hit up more than one of these sections at each of our visits, which, to say the least, is actually quite difficult when there are only two of you. 

In addition, they have their “grocery” section strewn all over the restaurant/store — a beautiful case of handmade pastas, different breads, fish, meat, etc. etc. You name it, they probably have it!

Andiamo alla pasta!

I pansotti: handmade “pansotti” (essentially ravioli) with this brown butter, sage, lemon and pistachio sauce. whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat. 

Not many foods make my mother almost faint. This did. 

Night #2

The best part of being on vacation is overindulgence can always be filed under “when’s the next time we’re going to be here? Why not?” 

This is also why we went back to Eataly. Too good to not go back. But this time, we brought a friend along to help us overeat and allow us to order more food (no, it was for the company, I swear!). 

Olives:

Hand-rolled mozzarella:

“French fries of the Sea” (I honestly can’t remember what fish these were…):

Razor clam ceviche (on the half shell!):

aaaaaand finally, the Montauk Squid, which, if you can’t tell, has actually been put back together as we got a little over-zealous once food came out. Woops!

And of course we had gelato after dinner, but I didn’t snap any pics of that unforch. Salted caramel and pistachio were both unreal. Yum yum yum. 

Just a heads up for everyone out there: My last meal? Eataly, please.

My mom and I do this thing where we go on trips, solely for food. Some people think it’s ludicrous, while others think that it’s awesome. I would have to side with both, actually. 

The extent that my mom and I will travel and go to for food is sometimes ridiculous. Many times, like this time I’m about to describe, has me with my hands over my face, asking myself, “Oh my God, why are we doing this?” It’s not that it’s dangerous or reckless, it’s just a constant reminder that it’s something that will only happen when I’m with my mom on a trip for food. 

Day .5 — Most people would say Day 1, I said Day .5. Why? Because most people like to get off the plane, go to their hotel room, unpack a little bit, relax, etc. You know, do all the things “normal” people would do. 

My mom and I head to a restaurant — bags and all. 

We (more like me) Google’d the location/phone number/hours of this restaurant as we were walking out of the airport. Normally that would be okay, until it turns out that heading to our hotel from La Guardia is kind of a hassle.

Which then prompts the question from my mom: “Why don’t we just go there now?”

Me: “What?”

Mom: “We could just head straight there instead of going back to the hotel first. Call the restaurant and see if they have space for our bags.”

Me: “No. What? I am not calling the restaurant to ask if they can hold our bags. This is ridiculous. I do not want to walk into a restaurant with all of our stuff.”

Long story short - Mom:1; Me: 0.

I did end up calling the restaurant and they did indeed have space for our luggage. 

So off we were to Tertulia, for tapas, near the West Village:

And obviously, the first thing I needed after our delayed flight and mild altercation outside of LGA, was a drink. I’m normally not a huge fan of sangria, mainly because I haven’t acquired a taste yet for wine, but their’s was awesome:

Then came food. We started with the surtido de embutidos (selection of three cured meats:

Then the Coles de Bruselas (Crispy Brussels sprouts, pork belly, mojo picon):

Tosta de Mejillones (I forgot to write this one down! But it’s toast topped with mussels, golden raisins, dill and a few other things):

Brandada de Bacalao (Cod brandade with poached eggs and toast):

(Mmm! Runny yolks!)

Bocata Cordero (Smoked lamb breast sandwich, sheep’s milk cheese, pickled cauliflower):

And, two lovely flutes of Rose’ Prosecco courtesy of Ryan, the cute (but gay, sadly) bartender hailing from Chicago:

All-in-all, it wasn’t a disaster that we came straight from the airport. We met some lovely people at the table next to us, had a nice chat and had a great lunch. To New York!