11/24/2008

Osteria Mozza



What a delightful meal this weekend with Win, Andra and Avi. Good food is important, combine it with dear friends and it's a recipe for a delightful evening. I was surprised how packed it was; there was plenty of energy in the restaurant, partly from the wild, Mario-chosen music piping through the speakers. We ordered family style, sharing 8 dishes in all, 3 Antipasti, 3 Primi and 2 Secondi.

The Grilled Octopus was out-of-this world. It was tender, thankfully not chewy, and tasted like the best sausage I've ever had. I know that sounds odd, but it reminded me of the pulpo in Spain. There is a Mozzarella Bar on the Antipasti section of the menu with a variety of dishes made with the cheese. We had the Mozzarella Tasting; a simple dish with burrata, fior di latte & bufala mozzarella served with 2 pieces of grilled bread with garlic and oil. It was fine, just not any different from mozzarellas I get in stores. The third Antipasti was a trio of baby lettuces salad, also tasty.

The Fresh Ricotta & Egg Raviolo with browned butter featured a plate with a 3 1/2 inch ravioli in the center. Slicing through the middle an egg yolk oozed out. The ricotta inside was soft and creamy. It was a beautiful dish both visually and in taste. Andra and Avi loved the pasta that was a little larger than spaghetti with a tomato sauce and tuna flakes. The ultimate pasta was the Butternut Squash Mezzalune with amaretti . It was the best butternut squash pasta I've ever had, so sweet I didn't need to order a dessert. The Grilled Whole Orata, a light white fish, was boned and had greens in the center of it when we opened it up. I can't seem to remember what greens they were, a few drinks does that to me. The Duck served on a wooden cutting board I do remember. It was woodsy, tender and a lovely ending to a great meal.

Side note: Hello, Osteria Mozza was packed, no sign of the economic hardship in sight. We peeked in the pizzeria around 10 and it was hopping. I was pleased to see it filled with people waiting. A funny touch, the valet attendant left a postcard in the car advertising the company's services.

Osteria Mozza
6602 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90038
323. 297. 0100

Osteria Mozza on Urbanspoon

4 comments:

Cynthia said...

There's so much cool stuff and info to gather from your site.

I have not forgotten you with the photography. Just a bit tied up with my book coming out this weekend.

Anonymous said...

I can't believe I've passed this place 1,000 times & never gone in.
What was I thinking? Thanks for the tip.

Frieda

Alli & Win said...

You won't be disappointed Frieda.

Anonymous said...

How do you do this??

I'm full just READING about so much yummy food. Must pace myself to keep up. MORGAN H.