A Little Bit About a Lot of Things

I love Italian food. I was excited when Leah and I had the opportunity to check out La Motta in the South End. The restaurant comes to you from the same folks that run Aquitaine, Cinquecento, Gaslight and Metropolis.

I love the decor here: the warm lighting, the tin ceilings, the high back banquets, the tall windows, the exposed brick all contribute to the ambiance. They are working on an outdoor patio in the back, can’t wait for it to open!

My favorite thing about this menu is that there are a ton of small plates – they may have even been (*just a tad*) bit better than my main meal. I love to try a little of everything when I go out to eat, so small plates are right up my alley. We started with the Brussels sprouts ($12) that are skillet roasted and are tossed with truffle pecorino and toasted sesame. Yes please! This dish is really speaking my language – just enough pecorino on it to make it feel decadent (and less healthy 😉 ).

A complimentary pickled vegetable plate came over to the table which was delicious! I think the cauliflower was my favorite.

Try the meatballs! You can order 1 for $3 or 4 for $11. We had the spicy pork, veal and oregano and the classic beef, veal, pork and Parmesan. All meatballs are served with polenta and rage Siciliano. The meatballs were delicious, flavorful and just the right consistency.

The burrata ($13) is served over an eggplant caponata, and topped with smoked sea salt. While it comes with olive oil crostini, I preferred it with the softer bread that came to the table with the pickled vegetables. The burrata was so smooth and creamy – dreamy! And frankly, I could have eaten the caponata straight for my next 10 meals, it was that good.

For our first main dish we shared the Anatra gnocchi ($26), served with crispy duck, tallegio crema and marsala. I found this to be an interesting combination – the cheesy sauce, almost heavy, with the rich crispy duck – good thing that the portion wasn’t huge. While the combination was interesting, I did like the flavors of both parts – the crispy duck was excellent.

And if you know me at all, you know that I can’t go anywhere new without trying the bolognese ($25). This came with a wild boar sugo and was topped with Parmesan cheese. The sauce was light and a little creamy and the pasta was cooked perfectly al dente.

For dessert we tried the panna cotta ($8) vanilla custard with Amarena cherries and landed pistachios. I liked the individual flavors of this dish and the presentation was beautiful.

And of course we had to try the hazelnut skillet cookie ($8) that came out bubbling hot served topped with fluff and caramel sauce.

Disclaimer: I was invited as a guest of La Motta. My meal was provided complimentary. All opinions are my own.

La Motta

1357 Washington Street, Boston, MA

http://www.lamottaboston.com/

Tags: bolognese, casual dining, hosted, italian, outdoor patio, south end