Believe the Lie

A tour de force triple collaboration between Nancy Silverton, Mario Batali, Joseph Bastianich means long reservation backlogs. Karen was leaving soon for China and she had been talking about eating here. After a few weeks of miscommunication and some drama, I got invited to join her, Ted, Ronald, and Stephani on Febuary 29th to dine at Osteria Mozza. After we valeted the car (I hate the fee but love the convenience), we went inside. We were a few minutes early but our table was not ready so we went to the bar. I ordered a greyhound and they charged me $11, I think. Not cheap, but the bartender used premium vodka so I guess that’s ok. They have non-disposable metal stirrers which I really liked. It’s so smart and less wasteful. I wondered why nobody thought of it sooner.

We hung out for at least 15 minutes and since it was already 10:45 PM, I was getting annoyed. Not to mention I was starving. We finally get seated and the team immediately moves in and does their thing. The service is not perfect but it’s much better than I expected. We got bread, water, wine, all taken care of. It felt really fast and slightly overwhelming. Karen commented that it was not as hard to hear inside as the early reviews mentioned. The only tasting offered was the pasta tasting and that required the participation of the whole table which none of them were willing to do. Ah, one of those nights. We ordered appetizers to share and each got an entree. I didn’t take pictures of everything but here goes.

Sheep’s milk ricotta, radicchio, spiced walnuts, honey & fried rosemary

I thought this was so incredibly good. Their speciality was supposed to be the fresh buffalo mozzarella and while that was good, this one took the cake.

Grilled Octopus with potatoes, celery & lemon

This is an appetizer I ordered and it was GREAT. I wish I could find octopus locally so I could make this every day. Karen didn’t have any because she doesn’t like octopus or something crazy like that. I know! More for me!

Burrata with bacon, marinated escarole & caramelized shallots

Like I said, the sheep’s milk was much better. This wasn’t bad mind you. It’s totally fresh tasting and the night we were there, Nancy Silverton was working her magic behind the mozzarella bar so her hands probably touched this. Oooh.

Grilled Beef Tagliata, rucola and Parmigiano with aceto balsamico

A simple dish, well executed, with intense flavors. Great cut of beef, sliced on the bias, with an aged balsamic vinegar, rucola and just some excellent shavings of Parmigiano. I am glad I ordered this and even after sharing, I had plenty to fill me up. I want to replicate this at home. It shouldn’t be too hard. Just expensive.

Torta della Nonna; Honey & Pine Nuts

Ever since I started eating them at a local place called Via Maestra 42, I’ve been hooked on good fruit tarts. The multiple varieties of honey was a nice touch and reminded me of how different each type of honey really is. You literally can taste the field/flower that the bees were in. It could be anywhere, like in the middle of Montana or maybe Hungary. I know the same can be said about wine grapes but this is easier for me to grasp.

Almond Cornette; angerine and blood orange compote & yogurt gelato

You pretty much can’t go wrong with desserts made from almonds or hazelnuts. They simply are the best. I liked this better than the dessert I ordered but not by much.

Total for 5: $317