Italian Kitchen, Emilia-Romagna menu

Today we were at Italian Kitchen. In getting there I forgot that they have moved from their original home on Alberni Street to their spacious lot on Burrard, off Robson.

Every month Italian kitchen is featuring regional dishes from Italy. For August they are offering a taste of the Adratic Coast with 3 plate only available now until September 15th. This is the Emilia romagna menu, which is a region in Italy famous for their tradition of hand made pasta.

We were seated in the main dining area, looking out towards the patio, with our backs against a reflective wall swept in greenery. Seeing as our visit coincided with weekend brunch, we decided to double dip.

Typically a meal here starts with complimentary focaccia. However, during Saturday and Sunday brunch it is a tiramisu cake-like bread with a cinnamon sugar butter spread instead. More dessert than appetizer with espresso at the forefront. This was a wonderful way to start the meal. The loaf was a sweet and fluffy, although with the addition of the cream-butter it was a little too much for me.

With it we had some dry Prosecco as welcome start. The citrus in the effervescent sparkling went well to tickle the throat and lead us into our first surprise course.

This was our chef’s creation, an amuse bouche of ricotta stuffed squash blossom, squash purée, green onion oil, and tuna. The squash was the highlight, a crispy and starchy fritter that was fresh alongside pea shoots and tuna. Although the latter almost felt out of place and wasn’t a necessary component. I could have done without it and had more squash instead.

Upon our server’s suggestion we ordered a brunch menu salad before our Benedict breakfast. This is the Grilled Artichoke Salad with radicchio di treviso, kale, chickpeas, fennel, baby tomatoes, and parmigiano; all dressed a citrus vinaigrette.

This is one of those salads that needed all the ingredients on the plate, together in one bite. It was on the bland side otherwise, especially with the larger slices of artichoke. These would have been nicer as smaller, salted cuts. The cheese shards offered the most flavour, pairing well with the juicy tomatoes, and crispy chickpeas. I did find this more enjoyable as a side to our rich Benny, especially when compared to the plain Jane salad it comes with.

To pair with brunch we ordered an Espresso Cocktail made with ketel one vodka, kahlúa, frangelico, fresh espresso, and coffee beans. A great way to have your caffeine and enjoy your weekend in a glass. Mellow coffee and little spirit kick.

The one brunch item we tried was the Wild Mushroom & Caramelized Onion Benedict with insalata mista, charred vine tomato, and truffled hollandaise. Served with perfect crispy parmesan potatoes. They made for a nice break in the most truffle-licious sauce we have ever had. There was no missing its unique umami flavour here. Black truffle is chopped up fine and there was enough of it sprinkled into the hollandaise to have it transformed from its typical yellow hue to a cookies and cream coloured grey.

This was so good that my partner declared this the best Benny he has ever had. So rich and saucy that I didn’t even notice the fragrant onion hiding. Although, when I got a bite it gave me a French onion soup quality. Each English muffin half is also topped with a perfectly poached, gooey, and not runny egg. It offered a pleasant gummy mouthfeel alongside the lush hollandaise.

We cleaned the plate and moved on to lunch and the main reason for our visit. There are 3 unique dishes on the Emilia romagna menu, each with its own wine pairing. There are 2 pasta options, given that the region is famous for their hand made pastas. From reading it, we had to try the Pappardella Ripiena al Funghi, and were not disappointed by our choice. This looked like a full cake, a giant stuffed ravioli with frills, the presentation was stunning. Wild mushrooms, herbed ricotta & parmesan tomato fondue, and sage & brown butter sauce.

It was decadent, elegant, and rich. A sumptuous cheesy pasta that satisfied completely. Plenty of cream to double coat the perfectly prepared pasta sheets and the large slices of mushroom. The sauce was so delicious that I wanted some bread to wipe the plate clean with. I cannot rave over this more.

Its wine pairing is a Sangiovese Merlot. The juicy and acidic red was ideal for cutting into all that richness, as well as offering a bold sip that restarts and washes your mouth in between bites.

I always recommend ordering the 8oz of wine over the 5oz, so it feels like you are getting a refill on your drink. Just like you do with milkshakes, but better and boozier.

We passed on the Tagliolini Alle Vongole, which was House made egg pasta, clams, white wine aglio olio, herbed bread crumbs, and lemon oil. I would have loved to try the unique texture of these noodles that promised to be the perfect vessel to capture any sauce. However were quickly reaching our stomach limit.

Instead, we got our seafood from their Grigliata di Pesca alla Romagnola. This was an impressive platter of seafood that included grilled jumbo prawns, calamari, red mullet, sea bass, herbed garlic breading, and charred lemon. Described as the Sunday dish of summer, this is one that you enjoy with your family and friends. Here, having the traditional garlic herbed breading with seafood is typical to the area.

This was an order you eat with your hands. Between pulling the tail off the prawns when in your mouth, to picking out the smaller bones in the grouper.

The prawns were my favourite element, being able to eat the whole thing. The head fried crispy with a creamy innards centre. And the body that was charcoal grilled to contrast the sweetness of the actual prawn meat.

I also really enjoyed the stuffed squid. I never had it like this before, and had to ask what was in the filling. A tender tube stuffed heavy with the unconventional “wheat”. It gave the calamari a more fulsome bite, although I rather the squid as is, given how tender the meat was.

My partner liked the gentle breading of the cod and pairing it with all the fresh vegetables. This ate like a meal all its own, it just needed some rice pilaf.

And when we thought we couldn’t eat any more, we had to make room for dessert. Naturally it was a tiramisu, but we have never seen or had it made table side for us before. Five ingredients assembled before our eyes. Lady fingers drowned in a coffee liquor. Marsala wine added to a mascarpone whipping cream. Then cream well beaten and poured over the now coffee soaked lady fingers. All finished off with freshly grated Belgium chocolate.

Seeing it made before my eyes made me appreciate it all the more. And it was easier to discern each element coming together to make a whole. Like a cross between tiramisu and pudding, this was so soft and lush. Not what we know tiramisu to be, and we loved the variation.

This was such a fantastic meal, we have not eaten this well in a while. Between the elegance and nuance of the feature menu, the refinement of an elevated brunch, and a personalized dessert to finish. I cannot recommend them and this more and will need to return to work my way through more of their brunc, as well as their regular dinner menu. They have so much to offer.

Italian Kitchen
860 Burrard Street, Vancouver, BC V6Z 1X9
604-687-2858
theitaliankitchen.ca