Locanda Verde!!!

So I've been wanting to Locanda Verde for quite some time as I had heard many great things about it. I had heard that the maple budino was one of the best things that Frank Bruni, a food editor at the New York Times, ever ate. So I had high hopes for it. He also named it one of the best desserts of 2010 or something like that. So I had high hopes for it. After I saw the episode, I looked up their menu online but found that it wasn't there so I gave up on the idea. Recently, however, I discovered that the maple budino was back on the menu. I knew that it would disappear from the menu soon so I knew I HAD to go soon. Also being that they only serve the dessert menu for dinner, I decided to do that with me sister Mona. Walking in, I was glad I had somewhat dressed up because I saw that this was a place for classy people. The lights were dimmed low, there were candles (as seen below) on every table, and a slight buzz just as dinner was starting (we got there at 5:30pm). Overall, the atmosphere seemed really cozy. Before ordering, the busboy brought over two pieces of foccacia bread.

Now let me tell ya. At first you're like oh, bread. My first thought was WHERE'S THE BUTTER???!!!! They wanted me to eat just bread? Yes, yes they did. And let me say. This bread did NOT need butter. At all. I was willing to deal with the no bread so I picked up the soft warm bread and took a bite. Mmmmmmm!!!! was all I thought. It was super soft and warm and yes it was bread but it had some cheese on top that was probably a mix of parmesan and maybe cheddar? and something else. It was really good. A great way to start the meal. Then for an appetizer, we shared the Sheep's Milk Ricotta with sea salt and herbs.

I gotta say, I had heard that this was life changing, but honestly, it wasn't. Don't get me wrong, I thought it was a nice appetizer. The cheese was really creamy and smooth, and you could taste the sea salt and herbs. The bread it came with was slightly charred which I actually liked because at some points it kinda tasted like pizza. I know, I'm weird. I also liked that it came with at least 8 slices of bread so they weren't ripping you off. There'd better be a good amount because it was $14!!! It was good, but not great. Other things we had that night definitely stood out more. Then we moved on to a special they had that day so I don't know the complete description. It was a fondutta ravioli with mushrooms, something else, and truffle butter.

Ding! Ding! Ding! We got ourselves a winner! First off, I like that it's a house made ravioli, I think it says a lot when a restaurant makes their own pasta, especially high quality like this one. The ravioli was pillow-y soft and stuffed with a fondutta cheese. I've never had fondutta cheese before but now I can say I have! And I like it!! Me and my sister didnt know what one of the things was but we ate it anyway and it wasn't bad. The mushrooms added a nice earthy touch too. Normally, it's not my favorite vegetable, but I didn't mind it being on the plate and find it did add a nice touch to the dish. What really stole the show was the SAUCE!!! It was truffle butter and now I know, anything that has truffle butter in it, I will order it. It was AWESOME! I could've just eaten the sauce on its own!It was really creamy and cheesy and just went with the cheese ravioli perfectly. I scraped that bowl clean!Mmmmmmmm..... Then, dessert. The main reason I was there! I ordered the maple budino (that was the whole mission, mission accomplished!) and Mona had the La fantasia di Coliccio.

                     

We split this dessert so that we were both eating half of one. I had the La fantasia di Coliccio first.  I'm not sure what the name is or the exact components since they changed the menu from the one they have online. It had caramel gelato, apple sorbetto, caramel sauce, chocolate crouton like thingys and a caramel brittle on top. I decided to try each component separately first. The caramel gelato was really good. Super smooth, caramel taste was spot on. The apple sorbetto was also great. It was like POW! pure apple. It wasn't as creamy as smooth as the gelato. It was sorbetto after all, but I didn't really care. It was really good! Then I tried everything together. I scooped up the gelato, sorbetto, some of the caramel sauce, and the chocolate crouton and mmmmmmmm what a nice combo! The chocolate crouton provided a nice crunchy contrast to the creamy gelato which also played well with the fresh apple taste. It reminded me of a really good caramel apple! As I kept digging, I realized at the bottom that there were little apple cubes! I scooped those up and those were a nice surprise. Soft, fresh aples added a great finishing touch.

On to why I was there. The Maple Budino!!! This was the star of the whole night I have to say. The ravioli was the best savory and this was definitely the best sweet treat of the night! I mean, the sundae was awesome, but this was just RIDICULOUS! So over the top good! It had a maple budino which was served with a  cranberry-blood orange conserve and cranberry sorbetto. There were also some dried cranberrries and walnuts too! It all sounds so strange together but trust me they all work together to make a truly magnificient dish. The maple budino I thought had the consistency of maybe a pudding or more like flan. Really creamy and soft. It had a strong sweet maple taste that was balanced out by the tart cranberry sorbetto. I thought that individually, all of the components were great, but when I had a bite of the walnut, dried cranberry, the sauce, sorbetto, and some of the maple budino, it was like a symphony of flavors were having a party in my mouth! The sweet budino with the tart cranberry sorbetto with the nice crunch of walnuts (which you wouldn't think would go AT ALL but somehow it does!) and silky sauce was just HEAVEN! It really was PERFECT! I never say that things are "one of the best things i ever ate" because I don't really eat fancy food much, but I gotta say that this was DAMN GOOD. And that it really set the bar high for other future restaurant visits. Well done Karen, well done. You pastry genious you.

So our meal ended with the bill and it was given to us with this cute little plate of chocolate biscotti! How cute! The maple budino was so good Mona and I wanted to get another one but felt that we were in a good place so we shouldn't push it. This was a great ending to a great meal. Super crunchy and chocolatey and I think it had some golden raisins or something sweet that just made it real good. Overall, I was amazed by Locanda Verde. It was consistently good food, with friendly people and a nice atmosphere. Before we left, Mona and I were planning our next visit with our other sister and friend!! Oh, Locanda Verde. I shall see you soon. Very, very soon! :)