Sotto

Peter and I FINALLY had dinner at Sotto Restaurant last month. Named one of Esquire Magazine’s Best New Restaurants in 2011, as well as L.A. Magazine’s Best New Restaurant in Los Angeles, it’s been on my personal “to do” list for awhile.

Even my favorite food critic, Jonathan Gold, wrote about Sotto when he was still at L.A. Weekly:

The menu at Sotto points to Southern Italy instead of the requisite Tuscan dishes, with things like clams cooked with fresh shell beans and the awesomely spicy Calabrian sausage ‘nduja; braised octopus tentacles crisped on the griddle and nestled into a bed of chickpeas with preserved lemon; and the little dough puffs called pittule — appetizer doughnuts! — served with fresh ricotta and a drizzle of reduced sweet wine. (full review here)

From the moment our server delivered the plate of glistening lardo (cured pork FATBACK) on crispy toast, we KNEW we were in for something pretty special. This was an unusually carb-heavy dinner for us, and it was so WORTH IT.

Photos: My First Bites at Steve Samson and Zach Pollack’s Sotto!

Housemade bread with Lardo Pestato

Grilled Pork Meatballs

Blistered little gems with anchovy, garlic pestata, breadcrumbs, aged caprino Sardo

Guanciale pizza with house-cured pork cheek, ricotta, scallions, fennel pollen

Penisola Sorrentina Gragnano rosso frizzante (sparkling red). Steve’s wife Dina (also the manager) told us they discovered this wine being served in pizzerias while vacationing in Italy.