North End Restaurant Week: Bricco

Last Wednesday night I got together with a couple of my college roommates, Tricia and Corinne, for a little North End Restaurant Week action, as well as some much needed catching up! I chose Bricco because both these ladies had never been and the menu (at least the antipasti and secondi courses) had a plethora of good looking options from which to choose.

Bricco gets a variety of mixed reviews; word of mouth, I've heard everything from absolute adoration to just acceptable, to "it's overrated", "I've had better down the street" and a whole lot of "it's too expensive-s". After having dined here for the first time in December, I was content to express my enjoyment, but wasn't proclaiming it a North End favorite. I definitely didn't understand certain high price points. However, I've always been content visiting the bar and I certainly liked it here enough to give the menu another try. There isn't much to complain about by way of prices when you're paying a prix fix of $33.11 for three courses. (Yes, I'd encourage a restaurant week visit!)
Their cocktail menu is well done, and while I realize this looks like a standard glass of white wine, it is actually a Left Bank ($12) Hendrick's gin, St. Germain, dry white wine, twist.
Delightful and inventive, the sweet elderflower liqueur was balanced out by the dry white wine and potent gin. Tricia enjoyed a sugary sweet cocktail of a different nature, the Limoncello Martini ($15) Pallini limoncello, Ketel one citroen, mionetto prosecco.

For the Antipasti course, of six dishes from which to choose, we somehow all ordered the same thing; the Eggplant Bake layered with bufala mozzarella, tomato coulis and eggplant. After a few bites I was confident we had ordered the best appetizer on that menu. Obviously, I had not tasted all the others, I just had a feeling this was one of the good ones. This was a refined eggplant lasagna if you will, one with about ten times more layers of paper thin al dente pasta that had been baked tender. The spongy texture of the eggplant with its mild flavors benefited from a vibrant burnt orange pool of a flavorful tomato sauce. The golden brown surface layer, bubbly and crisp was topped with olive oil soaked basil leaves. The Secondi course followed with Agnolotti al Plin. Beautiful pillows of flattened pasta with curvy ribboned edges are stuffed with braised veal and beef that mingles with fresh ricotta cheese. This perfect portion sits in a rich velvety truffle cream sauce topped with spinach. It was certainly a pasta filled meal for me, which is just what I was craving. Bricco most definitely knows their pasta. Corinne enjoyed the Veal Saltinbocca, a well prepared thinly pounded cutlet, breaded and bathing in savory juices, highlighted with crispy salty prosciutto and pungent earthy sage. That potato cake was a playful element that not only added to the presentation, but complimented well the veal with its crisp exterior and flaky, buttery layers. A side of spinach also accompanied.

The Dolci course paled in comparison to the former two courses. My thick piece of Bread Pudding was actually quite good, spiced with vanilla and drizzled in a gooey caramel sauce. I happily enjoyed it but I really wish they would have offered more choices from the regular dessert menu. Perhaps the Torroncino Semifreddo or even a traditional tiramisu. I also noticed the bread pudding on the regular menu is served with Banana Gelato, so I felt jipped! Gelato would have perfectly complimented this dessert. Speaking of feeling jipped, the Molten Dark Chocolate Torte was pretty much the definition of the word. Yes, it was a tasty bite of rich chocolate sauce contained in a warm cakey-torte, but that's all it was, a bite. We actually had a good laugh about it as it was placed in front of Corinne. (I almost feel bad saying that, the poor little dessert, but....yes, we laughed at it!) Despite some uninspiring dessert offerings on their Restaurant Week menu, Bricco on the whole has won me over. Good company never hurts to maintain the fondness associated with a meal and an evening in general; but it is also the bustling urban atmosphere of this modern enoteca with a large yet intimate dining room, a sleek wine bar pouring inventive cocktails and a gorgeous open kitchen putting out solid dishes that makes it a North End destination I have come to adore.