Caffe Calabria (North Park) Restaurant Review: Delicious and Kid-Friendly!

We had been to Caffe Calabria only once before, with another couple. No babysitter tonight - but I was craving wood-oven Italian pizza (mmmm). Decided to try it out with SuperBoy.

SUCCESS!

Atmosphere: Not only cool and romantic and hip for grown-ups, but cool for a little boy. The inside is made to feel like a night street, all lit up. SB liked the fake windows and facades. The other theme of the restaurant is soccer. So there are Italian Jerseys everywhere - and soccer on the screen. The fact that SB was still in his soccer jersey from his game today received kudos from the wait staff, which SB liked.

Pizza: super yummy. We liked both the Margherita and the Margherita DOC with veggies added.

Frascati wine: delish and only $6

Green salad for only $5: super delicious and enough for us to divide in three parts as an app.

SB also liked the aranciata and was super well-behaved.

Oh - and the food came out so expeditiously.  Score!!!

I asked SB if he wants to come here again. He rolled his eyes and said, "Of course," as in "Duh, Mom."  North Park is also so much fun to visit. We saw an awesome African dance class going on at Stage 7.

***
He was so well-behaved that we went next to Heaven Sent Desserts at Univ and 30th for dessert.  SB got a red velvet cake, which he liked. I got german chocolate cake, which was tasty too (and enormous).  CH got a 3-chocolate cake, which was the yummiest, in my view.

Caffe Calabria and Heaven Sent: a fantastic date night for the whole family!

Restaurant week report: Crush (Solana Beach)

Nice meal at Crush for RW.  Bruschetta entree was fantastic (grilled good bread, great burrata, tomatoes, pesto).  Eggplant was very tasty and huge portion, but very heavy - wouldn't order in future.  Great "julep noir" (bourbon, blackberries, mint, lime).  Great music too, but not so loud that you can't hear your companion talk.  Glad we went. (though I must add that a friend went the night before and was less impressed with the salmon. But we were lucky!).  This place is becoming a favorite.

More yumminess at Davanti Enoteca Del Mar

There is a definite science to ordering at Davanti Del Mar, which is fast becoming one of my go-to favorite restaurants (especially for a get-together with a girlfriend). Some items are reasonably priced, delicious, and copious (any of the pizzas, about $12). Others are tiny and astronomical (that one ravioli for $10).  So when I go with a friend, I always try to do one of the following shared plans:

--appetizer ($8-10)
--salad (8-10ish)
--Pizza DOC or Pizza con Funghi e Taleggio ($12 or $13)

OR

--appetizer ($8-10)
--Salad ($8-10ish)
--pasta ($15ish)
--fish ($19ish)

You get to try a lot of different tastes and it leaves you from spending lots of money and still being hungry.  My friend was avoiding dairy so we did the second plan.  Very successful and delectable evening as usual at DDM

App: we had the roasted cauliflower, this time with lemon, olives and lots of other yummy things. Everytime I go the roasted cauli preparation is different, but it's always delicious and a very healthy and filling and reasonable - not to mention very tasty - way to start the meal

Salad: we got the peaches with pickled apricots, bibb lettuce, nuts (hazel?) and honey citrus vinaigrette. This salad was SICK, aka CRAZY.  The pickled apricots were crazy good, and the whole salad was yummy. This is an epic salad dish.

Pasta: got the cavatelli with fresh vegetables and ricotta salata.  If you were just ordering this, you would think it was tiny and a ripoff. But after our cauliflower and salad courses, this was just the right amount of pasta for each of us to have. Light and tasty. My second time ordering this and I would get again.

Fish:  Very nice seabass special.  On top of zucchini spaghetti. I was finally full at this point and finally didn't clean my plate.

And WINE is always a highlight here, and I appreciate that they let me try a few sips before deciding.  Wasn't sure whether I wanted a medium-bodied white or red.  Tried the barbera (boring, not for me, at least this night), and also the $12 special white of Manincor Riserva Della Contessa. Blend of pinot blanc, chard and sauvignon, if I remember. Crazy delicious. LOVED IT!

Quick eating notes with SuperBoy: Vittorio's (Villa Capri 2) and Mia Francesca Del Mar (CV)

Have had two good experiences eating out with SuperBoy lately.

1. Vittorio's (Torrey Highlands): I didn't love it as much as the boys. SB pronounced his pizza (with shock) as BETTER THAN BONGIORNO'S!!! Since nothing is ever better than BG's for him, this was high praise. He wanted to go the next night too.  Good atmosphere too with a kid, very airy but not stuffy. CH *loved* the lasagna.  I thought the eggplant parm was good but not dreamable; ditto the pasta dish I had (capellini).  I did enjoy that they had a white Bourgogne by the glass (one of the negociant wines; Louis Jadot maybe?), though they call it a chard. It was very tasty and reasonable.  Bread was good too.

2. Mia Francesca Del Mar: we got in here without too long a wait on a Wed. night when every restaurant in DMH was hopping and it would have been 45 min. wait at Rimel's. We actually had a great time and great meal.  Good bread.  They didn't make the spinach like they had before (not enough garlic, not sauteed long enough either). But it was still ok.  Linguine with tuna and olives was terrific, and I enjoyed the A to Z chard from Oregon that was the suggested pairing.  SB thought his pizza was fine, and he enjoyed the great scenery (people watching toward Cineapolis).  SH liked his chicken with eggplant (he gave me all the eggplant, which was super tasty), but he noted that the menu always changes so they might not have a dish he likes next time. I thought this was a super place to eat with your kid!

Great night at Davanti Enoteca (Carmel Valley/Del Mar): Review

Third or fourth time at Davanti. One has to be careful with the menu. The giant ravioli dish is literally one ravioli for $10.  But we did very well tonight - delicious and copious and not too expensive.

JustLikeMeTwentyYearsAgo came along and we each had some of the following:
--Tenuta Luisa Pinot Grigio (researched the wine list beforehand, and found sites saying it was much better than your avg. pinot; I'd still like something fuller bodied but this was very good; better than the sips of falanghina and frascati that the server kindly brought for me to sample first)

--tomato/burrato/pesto salad with grilled bread: very delicious, nice portion; tomatoes were actually whole roasted golf-ball size tomatoes, rather than slices of cold heirlooms.

--roasted cauliflower: I had delicious roasted cauliflower the first time I went there, but this was a totally different preparation. Still, it was excellent and substantial.

--cavatelli: very light, and a perfect size for two people to share as a 3rd course. Tasty. Great crispy vegetables as a counterpart to the soft pasta.

--Salmon special. Well-cooked with some nice cubed salsa-style veggies and possibly fruit underneath (by this part of the meal I didn't notice what they were. They weren't astonishing in that I noticed each flavor, but they were tasty in a salsa kind of way.)

Walked around the mall afterwards to work some off and got a free cookie for Towne Bakery's 1st anniversary, along with a frosting shot for $1.25 (tasty). The outdoor seating is great too now at the mall. Who needs a different "main street" in Carmel Valley? (No to One Paseo!)

Got parking pretty easily too, at 7:30 on a Sat. night in the crazy Ralph's shopping center. Bonus!

Davanti is super-fun and delicious.  Love it on girls' nights!

Glass Door and Papalecco (Little Italy): Bar and Restaurant Review

Fun times at the GLASS DOOR in Little Italy (top of Portofino Hotel)! It was annoying that regular food was not available til 5 pm (no salads or entrees, only appetizers or desserts! - there was not much for a vegetarian who wanted a snack besides bread for $4).  However, who can beat the view here: the airport, downtown, and the beautiful sunset?  So glad we finally got here for Happy Hour - it's super reasonable (1/2 off = $5 for their signature cocktails or a little more for things not on their regular menu). Delicious blackberry mojitos too ($8/each). And the bread was very good for $4: nut/raisin, plus very good EVOO and shaved parm cheese.

Then onto PAPALECCO in Little Italy for Panini.  The melanzane panini was ridiculously tasty. Don't forget to look at the menu. We thought at first the only choices were in the display case but there are a lot of sandwich and other options they make in the kitchen.  YUM!!!

Fun outing, and very reasonable!

Some quick takes: Trattoria I Trulli, Blue Ribbon Artisan Pizzeria Encinitas), Tender Greens (UTC)

Some quick takes:

--had lunch with a coworker at I Trulli recently.  Hadn't been there in years. It's actually quite good. I got penne nonina (eggplant, tomato, garlic), and it was a large, tasty portion. Bread was very good, and the entree at lunch (about $16) also comes with a small salad that was light and perfectly tasty.  That's more than I like to spend for lunch (and it's not quick) but I should remember to go again for dinner. It's been out of our loop, and it's good food. Also had a nice cappucino.

--Blue Ribbon Artisan: I think it's declining in quality. I don't want to spend that much when the food is inconsistent. Got buttnerut squash soup (was fine but nothing special; for $10 at lunch I'm expecting a Wade Hagemann masterpiece).  Got the butternut squash special pizza (which had no tomato sauce). Was the best part of the meal.  I still think their tomato sauce is not good. Tasted SB's cheese pizza. Yuk. He didn't like it either. On the other hand, I didn't remember BRAP is a train restaurant - coaster came right by during the meal. Also, he enjoyed his caesar salad, and it was a large enough portion for me to take home and enjoy more the next day.  So it was a pleasant, very expensive, not that great meal on the patio, where SB sat tight in the hopes of seeing trains. I still want to hit Kealani's again soon, but it's not open Sundays.

--Tender Greens: ah, how I love thee.  On date night, we were going to the movies in this neighborhood, and I couldn't decide where to go. I don't think of TG-in-the-mall as a date night restaurant - it's a grab reasonably good food with SB in tow restaurant.  I wanted to try Seasons 52 but it was all booked.  There aren't a ton of delicious dinner options in UTC (we can do Apollonia with boy, so it's also not a special date night choice; Wired is apparently overpriced at dinner and not as good as it is at lunch).  So we went to TG because we couldn't think of anything better. Oh, TG, how I love you - the delightful surprise of a new yumminess.  Soup was broccoli-potato (divine on a cold night) or roasted veg. (yuk - glad I sampled them both first).  Thoroughly enjoyed my tuna plate (I asked for it medium, not the default of rare- must remember to do going forward), with yummy mashed potatoes and divine roasted veggies. Wasn't hungry enough for one of their yummy desserts. Tasty and delightful - and just fine for date night.

Taste of Italy (Torrey Hills/"Del Mar") takeout: okay....

We used to do takeout from them a lot when SuperBoy was a baby. Hadn't gone for a while. I had a craving for eggplant parm, and they're one of the only places in the DM/CV area that does it at all, let alone decently (the pizza place by Golden Spoon does not belong in that category).

RESULTS....

Minestrone: not as good as it used to be: at least it's still vegetarian

Garlic bread: ok, fine, nothing special

Eggplant parm: nothing special, but perfectly edible. I was sorry when I ate the last bite, as I was enjoying it and wanted more. (if it had more competition, it wouldn't rate at all, but this was fine for satisfying an eggplant parm craving)

CH thought his veal parm was ok also, nothing special.

Marinara sauce wasn't terribly good. But SuperBoy enjoyed the garlic bread and some of my spaghetti.

Atmosphere in there while I was waiting for takeout was pleasant enough for a stripmall neighborhood restaurant. Nice lighting. Playing Ella/Satchmo Dancing Cheek to Cheek. If I lived in that hood and could walk with a buddy to the full bar and walk home, I'd probably like it more. otherwise, no need for us to eat in there.  And we'll probably eat takeout from them again in another year or so....

Am meaning to go to Kealani's in Encinitas soon.  Had a Hawaiian vacation recently with SB, and want to take him for a little plate-lunch slice of the islands here in SD.  We need to remember to go!

Caffe Calabria (North Park): MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!

Finally tried Caffe Calabria with Sabragirl and her man this evening. Yum!!!!!

Delicious red wine. And they give you a taste to see what you prefer.  The waitress took a while to get to us, but then she pegged me perfectly on wine. Loved my dolcetto! (Sangiovese was good - had gotten from a busboy - but not as good as what she helped me select).

Appetizer: rosemary flatbread (complimentary): yum

Salad: Burrata: super-yummy barrata, and nice tomatoes

Pizza: Loved the verdure calzone that S'girl's Man got. Would try again. Also loved my Margherita D.O.C pizza. Unfortunately, CH didn't like his proscuitto calzone as much (or his prosciutto salad). Though he thought the prosciutto itself was very good, he didn't like the sauce/dough that much. :( Othewise, this would be a regular spot for us.

Dessert: we shared the mezza luna. Super-yum.  Loved the vanilla gelato especially. Tasted the capuccino. Very yummy.

What a great, cute place (and they take reservations, which I don't think Pizzeria Bruno does). Would love to come here again, though perhaps not with CH!

Davanti Enoteca (Carmel Valley): Super-Yum!

Was not expecting Davanti Enoteca to be so good. It's in the infamous Ralph's Shopping Center in the 92130 that has become Beverly-Hills-wanna-be central (Burlap, Mia Francesca, Urban Plates, etc.).  Had some last-minute babysitting, so gave it a try.

ATMOSPHERE: Well, it's that same we're-in-the-strip-mall-but-we're-trying-to-feel-like-hip-main-street feel.  They mean well.

but the star is the

FOOD!!

Wine: loved my $13 Gavi. They let me try a taste first - wouldn't have ordered it at that price if it wasn't super-yum. Had a disappointing :( meal at my fave Charisma recently.  Would rather pay $13 for a super glass of wine than $7.50 at Charisma for a so-so one.

Appetizers: CH got this super-yum truffle egg toast asparagus. I got two of the anti-pasti of the night on a platter: zucchini "spaghetti" with pine nuts and parmesan, and charred cauliflower with some other yummies mixed with it. Happy Foodie Mom.

Entree:  L-O-V-E-D my pizza with funghi, taleggio and leeks.  WAY YUMMIER EVEN THAN THE CUCINA URBANA pizza.  If this place wasn't in the strip mall, it would move higher on my list. CH thought his rigatoni with sausage was ok.

He didn't love it as much as me, but it was a super fun and yummy night. This is probably the best restaurant in the strip mall (leaving aside Rachel King's desserts at Burlap). Can't wait to try it again!

Cucina Urbana revisit: Will the real Jack Fisher please stand up?

Cucina Urbana is climbing in my ratings. I still don't think it has the best food in SD by far.  But it's reliable, fun...and most importantly, near the park - and with a great fridge that stores your leftovers while you are in the theater!  Also took advantage of Sunday's no corkage to get a bottle: Roero Arneis. It was better with my food than on its own - was kind of boring to sip, but actually played well with my agnolotti.

Drinks:  got the rosebud cocktail. Really, a place as buzzy as this deserves a better mixologist. This drink was tasty - and actually the most drinkable cocktail I've ever ordered there.  But their cocktail menu is hit or miss, in my experience.  Their cocktail program is nowhere on the level of the other top restaurants in town (Grant Grill, the Malarkey empire, Alchemy, etc.).

Food: loved the corn/goat cheese agnolotti. Not a huge portion. Don't remember what CH ordered.

Dessert:  This was the biggest disappointment. Disappointment, you say? What, with Jack Fisher there?  Well, I went in with high expectations, cuz I love Jack Fisher! And the dessert I got was tasty enough: zeppoles, with vanilla cream, balsalmic syrup and some other component I can't remember.  But while it was tasty, it seemed dumbed down for Cucina Urbana. They were perfectly well executed zeppole, but I could have gotten zeppole like that at any restaurant in Little Italy in NY.  From Jack Fisher, I expect....well, something like the basil cilantro cake I just had at Nine-Ten, or that crazy cashew ice cream he made for the School Lunch Chefs Confab, or any of his fab cutting-edge panna cottas from his first go-around at Nine-Ten (in the Michael Stebner days). This was a dessert anyone else could have made. If there had been more vanilla cream and balsalmic, it might have been more exciting but they were placed on very sparingly, and so it was some plain ol' tasty zeppole.  CH loved his chocolate buddino, but that was something that the server said predated Fisher's arrival at CU.  He certainly executed it nicely, but it wasn't his creation.

So....I'll still order dessert when next we go, but I hope he'll be back to pushing the envelope! I know CU's clientele are not necessarily looking for the avant-garde, but with Jack Fisher there it would be a shame if he keeps the desserts too traditional.

Still, CU is so much fun, as the menu changes often enough, and the wine possibilities are fun, and the atmosphere is great.  I may be ready to add it to my list of top 5 restaurants, even though I think there's a big jump down in food between 4 and 5

1. Grant Grill
2. Alchemy
3. Searsucker
4. Charisma Cucina Italiana

5. Cucina Urbana

Mia Francesca (Carmel Valley) Takeout Review: not quite as successful as our visit + Sprinkles (La Jolla) review

Tried takeout from Mia Francesca last night. Not as superlative as our visit.

--Boys wanted rigatoni bolognese. They didn't have bolognese last night. CH got spaghetti and meatballs, thought it was ok. Grandpa got rigatoni sardi (with sausage, hold the mushrooms). He really liked his dish. (SB got this too but wasn't wild about it - he just is not a huge noodle fan even though he said he wanted it).

--Grandma and I split rigatoni alla siciliana (with eggplant, still very tasty) and a ravioli with a mushroom-tomato sauce. It was gummy and inedible - would not order again.

--Wanted spinach with garlic and olive oil. It was my favorite dish last time. They forgot it.

--Got the insalata francesca. Didn't really like it - boring lettuce and unmemorable blue cheese.

Dessert was much better. Sprinkles cupcakes reviews:

--Coconut chocolate: very delicious.

--Lemon: I didn't eat it but SB gobbled it up.

--Peanut Butter chip: not crazy about this, wouldn't get it again.

--Milk Chocolate: the G'parents and CH got this and everyone liked it.

Mia Francesca Review (Carmel Valley): Yum in the 92130!

Mia Francesca opened last night in the now-famous Ralph's shopping center in Carmel Valley, the new gourmet gulch of San Diego. I found that it was open last night on facebook, and CH passed by today and got the menu. We made reservations for tonight at 6:15, with SB in tow.

ATMOSPHERE: The place is totally happening on day #2 of being opened. They have lots of staff, with many coming in from Chicago (where their flagship restaurants are) to make sure it's at their level of quality. Motown music, fun and lively.

SERVICE: Lots of busboys, though the waitress had a bunch of tables to do. Speed: slower than we'd ideally like with SB, but still reasonable. We had a nice meal and were done in 45 mins.

BREAD: Delicious, very hot and crusty from the oven. Not a huge fan of the rosemary in their olive oil. Could eat it plain, or ask for plain olive oil in the future.

WATER: Fantastic! They put a nice chilled, iceless bottle of water on the table. You can refill your glass, or they come by. Me like.

KIDS' MENU: Placemats just for them, with crayons. SB got lemonade right away in a cute cup. The value of the kids' meal is very good. $5.99 includes the drink (including refills), pizza or pasta, and gelato. The pizza was enormous - looked like a grownup size. Only downside: SB didn't like it that much, and to me it didn't taste that great (not like the kids' pizza I got him at Cucina Italiana). But SB was nutso for the bread and lemonade and the atmosphere, and he wasn't disappointed about the pizza - he just didn't want to eat it (but he was full up on the yummy bread!).

WINE: Here's a slight misstep. $7 for a pinot grigio that wasn't offensive, but tasted like nothing. It was drinkable, but I'd never get it again. The waitress said they had a great sommelier so I couldn't go wrong. I'll still try other things on the wine list, like the Sicilian chardonnay, but that was a disappointment after my fab wine experience at The Shores. Still, it was a generous pour.

APPETIZER: I got spinaci with oil and garlic. DELISH and totally cravable. Really, I could make this myself (though I'd probably get freaked out by the amount of olive oil needed to make it taste like this). But I'd come back just for this dish. Yum - as cravable as spanki lemonato at Athena (though that spinach is healthier!).

ENTREES: I got the rigatoni alla siciliana (eggplant, tomato sauce, fresh grated parm); CH got rigatoni bolognese. We both thought they were delicious. The folks around us at other tables were raving about everything they got, and everything that passed us looked spectacular. I thought the salmon at the next table looked fab. The nice people there said, though it was very good, it happened to be less exciting than the other dishes they got, which they called spectacular, esp.: roasted chicken, lemon chicken, and rosemary chicken.

DESSERT: Included in SB's $5.99 kids meal (including the drink and enormous pizza) was gelato. But not just a scoop - a trio! He could choose any flavors he wanted. SB tried: lemon sorbet, strawberry sorbet, vanilla gelato. He was in HEAVEN, and scarfed them all up.

SB has announced that the restaurant is great, even though he didn't like the pizza. He is excited to try pasta with butter next time (he is not a big pasta eater at home, but he'll try it there). If he's hungry, I also want to get him a salad next time. The choices look great - things like green beans and tomatoes with lemon and olive oil, which would be right up his alley.

ULTIMATE VERDICT: I wouldn't choose this for date night. It's too family-friendly and 92130-seeming to feel for me like a big night out. I'd still put Charisma ahead of it as my fave Italian restaurant in SD - that place is more intimate and the food to me is more spectacular. And it's more fun to get out of the 'burbs and hit Hillcrest or the Gaslamp for a date. But this place is much more buzzy, and is just right for a special night out with a well-behaved SB. Poseidon and Mia Francesca now promise to be our best recommendations for fine dining with a toddler!

Mia Francesca and Davanti Enoteca Del Mar: OPEN!

Haven't heard any reports yet, but their facebook page says they opened tonight. Reports welcomed! We want to try it, but probably should not venture in with Super Boy while they are working out the kinks! (on the other hand, if they are good as the Chicago hype suggests, they will be very busy very soon!).

Clairemont quick takes: Restaurant Reviews for Dino's Gyros, Cucina Italiana

Hit DINO'S GYROS this week while in Clairemont. Ok if you're in the neighborhood; not worth driving to!

Falafel was fine, a cut above Daphne's. Came with a multigrain wrap option. Greek salad and rice it came with were fine. One orders at the counter and then the food is brought to you.

By fine, I mean edible, not offensive, better than the bad Indian place next door. Hardly compares to Kebab Shop, but if you're in that mall it's a perfectly ok choice.

CUCINA ITALIANA: Got ravioli with tomato sauce. Wasn't nearly as good as the eggplant parm or pizza we got last time. But it was fine. Fast enough service for pre-movies. Decent wines by the glass. Not a place we need to go to if we're not already there, but the best in that stretch of the food court.

Sleeping Beauty Wakes + Barolo

Food first: Barolo. It's ok. Have been before. Charisma makes all random Italian restaurants in SD boring (just like we can't eat at any random Chinese places since we found Dumpling Inn, except Rendez-vous as a substitute). Decent, healthy minestrone. Eggplant parm fine. Paso Robles Peachy Canyon - eh. Even for $7.50, don't like getting cheap, unripe wines. Dessert (choc/coconut cake), ok. Served its purpose - not cravable though. Still on the hunt for good pretheater dining for the LJP.

Play: Sleeping Beauty Wakes at the La Jolla Playhouse. Absolutely stunning - a thing of beauty. CH liked it less than me, but conceded after Act 2 that it "has potential." If you are a parent, especially, and/or a romantic and/or someone who has lost someone you love and/or love modern music in musicals (Groovelily is awesome), it is an absolute must-see.

Well worth the sitter this evening!

Cucina Italiana Review (Clairemont)

Sometimes I get busy at work and don't blog for weeks. Note to self: then you forget if you liked a place or not - gotta at least type something quick!

ST sat through his first full-length movie today, Cars 2. He was a trooper even though it was scarier than the original. After, we headed to Cucina Italiana (same mall). Went in February - thought I liked it but hadn't blogged and couldn't really remember.

Verdict: Very tasty. Definitely worthwhile if we're at the movies.

Setting: Pleasant patio, good heat lamps, lots of good people and dog watching. Kept ST entertained.

Service: Very friendly and fast. Brought bread quickly (not a fan of the too oregano-y dipping sauce, though). Brought us cups of a yummy pasta fagiole very quickly.

Food: My eggplant parmagiana was very tasty - the appetizer portion was a reasonable size for not being terribly hungry for dinner. ST's pizza was actually quite good - not NY style of course, but the mozzarella was not just plain ol' - it had a very interesting character. The tomato sauce was good too, and the crust was less crispy than we're used to but very tasty. I liked it and ST thought it was really good. CH had a salad with prosciutto and thought it was fine.

Prices: Reasonable.

Verdict: Certainly worth another visit, and a try if you're in the area. It's no Charisma, but I enjoyed it very much.

Another note to self: Try to find a different place in Little Italy than Mimmo's - we need a change, and it's not that exciting (or reasonable) when you have to do waiter service!

Charisma Cucina Italiana revisit (Hillcrest): Mmmm.....

Second visit to Charisma. LOVED it! Tried not to get exactly the same thing but it was hard. Got the arugula salad with truffle oil. Mmm...truffle oil. Just as good as the salad I got last time.

Still love the lentil spread for the bread.

DH ordered the same entree as last time (veal parm) but was in a better mood so liked it better. :) He also got bruschetta, which was very flavorful tomatoes and basil on very good grilled bread.

I got the same pasta dish with sauteed eggplant and smoked mozz, but did it with whole wheat penne. Felt a little more virtuous.

Didn't like my "Tuscan blend" as much as the Nero d'Avola I got last time. However, the nice waiter brought me a taste of Primitivo, which I would order again in a heartbeat. Even better: we were seated before $6, so my Tuscan blend only cost $3. For $3, it was an outstanding Italian table wine!

So friendly there, so cute....so delicious! Charisma gets promoted to my #3 fave restaurant du moment.

Dolce Pane e Vino (Rancho Santa Fe)

Not cheap, and not the best best place ever. But had a very delicious (if pricey) date night tonight at Dolce Pane e Vino, in lovely Fairbanks Ranch.

Cool vibe, some communal tables.

Great wines.

Enjoyed my delicious (if $15) burrata, stone fruit, candied almonds, etc. salad (CH likes his too).

Bruschetta with tomatoes was fine.

My flatbread with burrata was delicious. CH kept stealing it.

His chicken cooked under a brick in the wood-fired oven took forever to arrive. Strangely, the offered me a free second glass of wine and nothing to CH (probably because I seemed impatient and not him!). He thought it was ok, a little bland.

No dessert - he was tired!

Overall, it was a very lovely option to know about, esp. if you don't have to get on a freeway to go there. Not the best price/value ratio ever, but I thoroughly enjoyed my meal and the atmosphere. Successful date night!

Charisma Cucina Italiana (Hillcrest): Now THAT's how I like to eat!

So I read reviews a lot and a place seems intriguing....sometimes I get there, sometimes I don't, sometimes it's disappointing....sometimes it's like Charisma!!!

Amen, Yelpers....I'm so glad I went here!!

OVERALL: Real Modern Italian, not Little Italy or Italian-American. Simple and perfect.....The kind of food I would happily eat for a last supper. I love California cuisine, and farm-to-table, and out-of-the box and all that....but this is simple, well-executed, and scrumptious. I could eat this any day and forget all about the celebrity chefs.

ATMOSPHERE: Tiny, but beautiful red colors, right on University Avenue.

WINES BY THE GLASS: Now you're talking! I was delighted to have an excellent selections of Italian wines by the glass for $5-8 ($2.50 - 4 at happy hour!). Had to pass on a $5 Sangiovese and a $6.50 Super Tuscan (!) for a $7 Nero d'Avola Sicilian. DELISH!

BREAD: Super-fresh and hot, from Bread and Cie. Comes with a lentil spread that was scrumptious.

WAITER: Very gracious and efficient young Italian. Who cares if I had to ask him to keep repeating each component of the specials because I understood 25% of what he was saying? He still had great recommendations.

SALAD/SOUP: I went with a nightly special, mixed greens with gorgonzola, carmelized walnuts, blueberries and a balsamic reduction. I was afraid the gorgonzola might be too heavy. It came shredded (how about that?) and the plate was beautiful. I scarfed up the whole salad. Cute Husband enjoyed the soup of the day, a chicken minestrone.

ENTREES: CH was less excited about his veal parm than mine ("this is too much food for me," he said). I loved the perfect rosemary potatoes on his plate, though, and the delicious Italian vegetables. Oh - and my pasta dish? I have never even heard of the noodle I got (and it's not on the online menu). It was a longer, straighter version of gemelli. But it came with diced sauteed eggplant, smoked mozzarella, tomato sauce and fresh basil. It was RIDICULOUSLY TASTY. Yes, I would happily eat this for my last meal.

DESSERT: I was pleasantly sated from my food. CH got a cannoli. I thought the shell was just ok, but enjoyed a taste of the filling.

PRICES: Insanely reasonable.

On yelp, they say the service can be slow - and the kitchen is postage stamp sized, so I can imagine it gets slow when the restaurant is full. We dined early so had very efficient service. WOULD HAPPILY RETURN FOR A SLICE OF ITALIAN FOOD HEAVEN! Some people say Bice is the best Italian food in San Diego - some say it's Bencotto. I vastly preferred this to Bice (simple and cheaper and tastier); after eating at Bencotto I got a horrible stomach ache. So this is an easy choice for me as the best Italian (modern or not!) in town.