Babbo, Feb. 27, 2006

Babbo

Sat at the bar (though there were a few tables available) last night for a late dinner (10pm).

Finally tried the Mint Love Letters...which were delicious. Really minty but somehow not overbearingly so. The chili flake in it gave it a nice kick (they did not offer any additional chili flake, which I've heard is customary - but it didn't need extra anyway). Truly a great dish and worth the praise its given on the Chowhound message board...and better than the beef cheek ravioli.

I also tried the orecchiette with sweet sausage and rapini (pic courtesy of www.laritz.info). Wow. This was incredible. And the serving size seemed larger than the mint love letters. I would consider ordering this for myself next time I go. Everything really worked. The rapini, which I suppose is a relative of broccoli rabe, was less bitter than I expected, thankfully, and added a great texture to the dish as well.

The olives, breadsticks and balsamic chickpea salad crostini (see pic, courtesy of panduh on flickr) were as good as ever and the prosecco to wash it down was solid and reasonable ($10 glass). The forsythia in the restaurant beat out the return of the Shake Shack for the first sign that Spring isn't too far off (if you look past the dusting of snow we got last night).

$28 (before tax and tip) will get you a nice bowl of pasta, a nice glass of prosecco, all the olives and breadsticks you could want in a charming, sophisticated room with great service and a warm buzz throughout created by content patrons. What more could you ask for?