The 20 best L.A. Italian Restaurants (2007)

[rjwong]

The 20 Best L.A. Italian Restaurants / by Jonathan Gold, LA Weekly, Feb. 7, 2007

Jonathan Gold is the food writer for the LA Weekly, your basic alternative weekly newpaper for the Los Angeles area. When he wrote this list, I had to see where my favorite Italian chef (Gino Angelini) was placed. WHAT? NOT FIRST?

Okay, so I haven't eaten at every Italian restaurant in Los Angeles. Let's check the list:

1. Vincenti

2. Valentino

3. La Terza

4. Capo

5. Drago

6. Tre Venezie

7. Pizzeria Mozza

8. Il Moro

9. Angelini Osteria

10. Angeli Caffe

11. Madeo

12. La Botte

13. Il Grano

14. Pecorino

15. Casa Bianca

16. C&O Trattoria

17. Ago

18. Matteo's

19. Dominick's

20. Zelo

[SiseFromm]

I see I need to get to LA to eat Italian way more often. This is a big list to work through!

[LarsTheo]

I don't know how C&O Trattoria made the list - I thought the food there was below average. Maybe he gave it extra points for atmosphere. I much prefer Alejo's or Italy's Little Kitchen in Westchester. I still miss Chianti Cucina, which used to be on Melrose.

[Insomniac_Ron]

There's certainly nothing wrong about Chef Angelini having one of the top 3 Italian restaurants in the city and 2 in the top 9. And they're roughly 10 blocks from each other!

I really like the non-saltcrusted branzino at Angelini Osteria. And I always save room for an affogato gelato.

[moosnsqrl]

I'm a little surprised to see Valentino up there. I had a great experience there - servers and the room are wonderful - but the food was just good, not stellar. Perhaps we mis-ordered. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't bad and I couldn't point out flaws or anything, it just didn't wow me to the extent I expected to see it #2 in a city the size of Los Angeles. Maybe I need to try it again.

[rjwong]

There's certainly nothing wrong about Chef Angelini having one of the top 3 Italian restaurants in the city and 2 in the top 9.  And they're roughly 10 blocks from each other!

←

Don't worry about me. Just a little tongue-in-cheek ... As I was reading the article, the restaurant Vincenti was started by Gino Angelini. Later, he moved on to start the other two places.

And of the top twenty, I haven't even been to half of them. And there's a new Italian place that's newer than Mozza called All'Angelo on Melrose ... I can't keep up with this ...

I'm a little surprised to see Valentino up there.  I had a great experience there - servers and the room are wonderful - but the food was just good, not stellar.  Perhaps we mis-ordered.  Don't get me wrong, it wasn't bad and I couldn't point out flaws or anything, it just didn't wow me to the extent I expected to see it #2 in a city the size of Los Angeles.  Maybe I need to try it again.

←

Judy, when did you eat there? According to the article, chef Angelo Auriano is back and Valentino is apparently better than ever!!

[rjwong]

Okay, so I haven't eaten at every Italian restaurant in Los Angeles. Let's check the list:

1. Vincenti

2. Valentino

3. La Terza

4. Capo

5. Drago

6. Tre Venezie

7. Pizzeria Mozza

8. Il Moro

9. Angelini Osteria

10. Angeli Caffe

11. Madeo

12. La Botte

13. Il Grano

14. Pecorino

15. Casa Bianca

16. C&O Trattoria

17. Ago

18. Matteo's

19. Dominick's

20. Zelo

←

So far, I've eaten at numbers 3, 6, 7, 9, 13, & 15. Recently, I ate at numbers 8 and 10.

Angeli Caffe is a small casual place over on Melrose. The chef, she's into the Slow Food Movement. I had some suppli or rice croquettes which were okay. The rigatoni with meatballs was wonderful, nothing fancy, just a simple sauce with the pasta & meatballs. The chicken arrosto was a bit overcooked for me and their lemon sauce was very intense. Overall, it's not a bad place. I might give it another try.

Il Moro has a beautiful decor with lots of space, just west of the San Diego Freeway (405) in WLA. I didn't feel cramped at all. I ate at the bar on a Sat. night. Started with the sea scallop salad. You can't really go wrong with sauteed sea scallops over a bed of greens. Very nice. And on Wed. & Sat. nights, they serve Lasagna alla Bolognese. Delicioso! Bene! The gelato was okay, I had better. Mind you, I definitely want to try this place again, when I get back to the Westside ...

Then, there's this new Italian place called All'Angelo on Melrose, west of La Brea. It opened about four weeks ago. LA Times critic did a recent write-up (not a full review yet). I ordered the octopus carpaccio. Thinly sliced octopus, in the size of small flower petals, covered the bottom of the plate. Tomato halves discreetly placed and careful seasoning resulted in a very beautiful presentation. And the octopus was so tender, not chewy at all. I haven't been excited about a dish in a while. One of their specials that night was raviolis filled with mascarpone and venison. Quite filling and comforting. The filet of branzino tasted fine. They overloaded on the cherry tomatoes just a bit. For dessert, a polenta bread pudding with carmelized lemon. It was served warm and tasted great. The meal overall was great. All'Angelo is off to a wonderful start. I highly recommend this place, especially while it's not too busy yet.

[dfunghi]

Being a huge fan of J. Gold's I will say I am a bit surprised he tried to compile a list of "Italian" restaurants when that covers so many different types of cooking. Regionally as well as stylistically. Certainly the Neapolitan cooking of Sal Marino at Il Grano could easily be considered the top of the Neapolitan food scene in L.A. while he would pale in comparison to La Terza in terms of a more Northern type of cuisine. I commend J.G.'s trying and agree that almost all on the list deserve to be there IMHO. Some are really, really pricey while others are a downright bargain. I will leave my disagreements to myself as I do not wish to say anything bad as I feel that is not what EG is about. I will say I was VERY surprised to see some on there without Pace being on there. A major oversight . As to chef Gino Angelini he seems to capture some of the flavors that really remind one of Italy and eating in cities like Florence or Bologna. All in all it speaks well of our restaurants here that we even have a list of 20. Although it was a stretch to come up with 20 IMHO as there is a vast span between some of these places. Which goes back to my original idea of there are vast differences in the style and ingredient base of Italian cooking.

David

[rjwong]

Recently, I ate at two different Italian restaurants.

Over in Pasadena, Tre Venezie serves Venetian cuisine which is definitely different from your typical Northern Italian cooking. Venice has a German-Austrian influence, which, if you didn’t know going in, can make for a rather adventurous Italian dining experience. More meat dishes and dishes flavored with meat.

With a glass of white wine (Drusian, prosecco di Valdobbiadene), I started with an order of cjalson (shal – ZONE). They were stuffed half-moon shaped raviolis, which can be filled with as many as 18 ingredients. My filling included spinach, corn, chocolate, and smoked cheese. It certainly got my attention; it tasted weird. There wasn’t that much chocolate; just enough to make the flavor quite different and ... interesting.

For my entree, I ordered the halibut which came with two different spinaches and a little broth. The halibut melted in my mouth. It was absolutely wonderful. I was savoring every bite.

I ended the meal with some ice cream and hot tea. The service was good. The place is small, cozy and intimate, about 50 seats, ideal for couples and/or small groups who want to have a conversation. I would recommend Tre Venezie. Mind you, Tre Venezie is quite different and quite Italian.

*****************************

Near the top of Jonathan Gold’s list is Valentino Ristorante over on the Westside (Santa Monica/West L.A. area). I was happily greeted by the host and staff. The main dining room has an old-world feel to it, which I enjoy. Mind you, the interior needs a major makeover. The place is showing its age.

I went for the chef’s tasting menu, with an added course:

Lo Stuzzichino – Kumamoto oyster on a half shell

L’Insalata – Wild arugula, vegetables, two shirmps, lemon vinaigrette

Il Pesce – Breaded red mullet, yellow carrots, fava and butter beans

Capesante with wild mushrooms (added course)

Gli Agnolotti – Ricotta and kale filled ravioli, vegetable, black truffles

Il Risotto – Vialone nano rice mantecato, fresh mint, tarragon, and Jidori chicken

L’Ossobuco – Braised lamb shank, root vegetable sauce

Prima del Dolce – Pre-dessert

Il Dolce – Crunchy chocolate pyramid, strawberry “cream”

The Kumamoto was not bad. Mind you, the oyster wasn’t as briny as those I had in other restaurants.

I’ll admit, I do have a weakness for scallops (capesante), which tasted wonderful with the mushrooms.

I wouldn’t have mind having the risotto creamier.

The osso buco was great. I had to get use to that lamb flavor in this dish. I was feeling tired towards the end, but I finished the lamb shank.

Overall, the tasting menu was very delicious. Nothing trendy, just good dishes wonderfully prepared. The service was excellent. And with a little renovation on the interior, the decor would be even better.

[SG-]

Brought some friends out for dinner a few months back to Vincenti during truffle season. Had my first tasting of truffles and the especially memorable "Salad of Octopus and Roasted Seppia with Artichokes, Asparagus and Fava Beans". Really felt at ease and comfortable much like a local "neighborhood" joint but in a more upscale setting.