I turned to my husband to check his reaction.
“This place is amazing,” Philippe said, taking it all in.
That night he learned why La Viola holds such a special place in my heart.
As a broke college kid and now a broke adult, there is no better start to a meal in my humble opinion than La Viola’s Caesar salad. It has a perfect ratio of stem to leafy greens with housemade croutons that don’t crumble under a fork’s pierce. The creamy, tangy dressing is speckled with black pepper and doesn’t shy away from a bold anchovy flavor. My entrée of choice is typically the al dente tagliatelle pasta with still-pink-inside salmon in a cognac cream sauce. And it’s mandatory to end dinner with tiramisu. This three-course meal is roughly $50 per person, minus our bottle of Montepulciano, and remains unbeatable in this skyrocketing expensive climate.
Better yet, the lengthy menu, written mostly in Italian, has barely changed since the restaurant opened in 2006, except for recently added seasonal specials. Many classic dishes remain under $25 a piece and are portioned just right, meant to fill one hungry person, and not overly done with garnishes or technique. It’s Italian comfort food at its best. Over the years, our favorite plates have grown to include black linguine, a squid ink pasta with scallops, shrimp, and calamari in a blush creamy sauce. There’s jiggly burrata with roasted peppers, cherry tomatoes, and pesto olive oil that Philippe often orders as a starter. Their tender and thin lemon chicken with sautéed spinach, roasted garlic, and oil pasta is simple and flavorful. Penne al’ oriolo comes in a lightly creamed vodka tomato sauce with porcini mushrooms, peas, and pancetta. Gnocchi alla stagione with ricotta cheese, fresh basil, and Gorgonzola is surprisingly light. Oven-roasted salmon with pearl onions and capers in a light marinara sauce always hits the spot. Fusilli with hearty cannellini beans, crumbled herby sausage, and white onions tossed in olive oil is a cold-weather must.
Dining and Cooking