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Thursday, Feb 16th, 2012

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A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to try Marc Vetri’s take on rustic Italian food when I enjoyed several courses as we celebrated Slip’s birthday. This charming trattoria is quietly tucked away at 13th and Waverly, and a wonderful spot for a dinner or a drink and some small plates.

Amis offers small(er) plates, so you have the chance to try a lot of dishes. Here’s the rundown of what we shared as I sipped on Prosecco:

Bufala Ricotta with Fresh Pepper and Grilled Bread

This creamy fresh cheese was absolutely perfect on crusty smoky bread. A perfect way to start the meal as we pondered over the rest of our choices. Including…

Swordfish Meatballs with Creamy Polenta and Pinenuts

I might not have typically ordered this dish had I not heard of it on my new favorite app, Chefs Feed (I definitely have a mission to try many of the dishes listed by the city’s top chefs). The swordfish meatballs are described perfectly as “providing a surprising explosion of flavor in such a small package” by Chef David Ansill. They surprisingly taste meaty, perfectly cooked, and bedded on slightly sweet polenta. Next up…

Pigs Trotter Arancini with Fennel Mayonnaise

Anything that tastes like bacon and includes risotto and cheese and is fried crisp… well, that’s a winner. The fennel underneath was a wonderful complement to the dish. This might have been my favorite dish of the night.

Slip ordered the Roasted Lamb with Potatoes:

This dish was simple meat and potatoes, and at the same time really unique. The top of the lamb was crispy, which is unusual but delightfully tasty, and the meat was very flavorful.

I had to have pasta. All of the pastas looked amazing, but after vacillating over the several I was choosing between I decided to go with the Pappardelle with Oxtail Ragu:

Handmade pasta is the best. The creamy meaty sauce was delicious. I could have eaten a MUCH larger plate of this delicious dish!

We shared a contorni— a side dish of braised kale with almonds and raisins. Sweet and crunchy with bitter kale— brilliant.

We ordered 2 desserts and on top of that the host sent over a third dessert for the birthday boy. Each one of them was incredibly tasty. We ordered the tiramisu because that’s an Italian staple. It was good but, because it’s an Italian staple, it wasn’t anything super special (but delicious nonetheless). Because we were so full from dinner and wanted to enjoy our other desserts, we boxed the tiramisu and enjoyed it the next night. What did we enjoy?

Lemon Poppyseed Cake with Ricotta Semifreddo:

Topped with pomegranate and a little powdered sugar this dish was not only sweet and delicious but also visually striking. The ricotta semifreddo was subtle and creamy. Next up, my favorite of the night…

Pizelle and Salted Butter Semifreddo Sandwich:

Topped with a cranberry compote and powdered sugar. Oh. My. God. This was so incredible. Who would have thought that salted butter made into ice cream would be so excellent? Pizelles are one of my favorite cookie, and their anise flavor mixed with the subtle sweetness of the semifreddo and tartness of cranberry was the best combination. Ever. We were both stuffed but slowly lingered over this dessert and it was worth it.

If you’re looking for a romantic evening for two, drinks and dessert with a friend, or even a bigger party, Amis should be on the list for a future dining destination.

∞10:33 pm: yummybites5 notes

Friday, Jan 14th, 2011

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Amis Trattoria

Last week Slip and I were lucky enough to go to dinner with our friend Brett and his wonderful mom. Brett left the dinner choice up to me, and what quickly came to mind was Amis Trattoria, owned by chef Marc Vetri who also owns Osteria. It was a great choice— this lovely restaurant in mid-town is small, charming and inviting, with great music, wonderful service, and absolutely delicious foods. The plates are on the small side so there is opportunity to try and share a lot. Here’s a look at what we had:

For appetizers we shared the arancini di riso with meat ragu, eggplant caponata, and “Sal’s old school meatballs” with tomato potato. That’s right, the menu just said “tomato potato”, and it was awesome— kind of like a tomato-ey, creamy not quite mashed potato, a great addition to the plate.

(Arancini)

(Caponata on the left, meatballs on the right)

The eggplant was also amazing— Brett who doesn’t even like eggplant was eating it up. It was earthy, creamy, and great on the crisp crostini.

For dinner I had the gnocchi alla romana with oxtail ragu. It wasn’t exactly what I expected (a bunch of yummy gnocchi in a big bowl topped with ragu), but rather the gnocchi and ragu was baked together in a ramekin topped with lots of cheese that melted into a cheesey crust. YUM. Brett’s mom had the pappardelle with veal ragu which was also a hit— very creamy and the fresh pasta was delish. If I went back to Amis I’d actually order the pappardelle, it was my favorite main course of the night. We all shared a side of the roasted squash with walnuts also and it was amazing, one of my favorite things of the night.

Slip ordered the Guinea hen leg saltimbocca with prosciutto and sage— it sounded too good to pass up. It wasn’t quite as juicy as I would have hoped but the flavor combinations were great with the perfect amount of salty.

Brett had the mixed seafood grill— scallops, shrimp, squid and the works with lemon, parsley, and some lovely polenta.

The desserts were amazing. I had some homemade tiramisu:

I love tiramisu, so I can’t complain— it was a good choice! Brett got the special, an amazing rice pudding with dried cherries, pinenuts and some other good flavors that I absolutely can’t remember. But I love rice pudding, and this one was great! Slip had a tartufo al bacio— chocolate and hazelnut semifreddo. OMG this was good.

(Rice pudding on the left, tartufo on the right)

Here’s my tip— next date night Philadelphians, this is the place to go! And I can’t wait to go back. They have a brunch menu and I think this may be my next brunch destination— breakfast bruschetta? Yes, please.

∞07:24 pm: yummybites7 notes

[amis] [philadelphia] [italian]