I should disclose that my cousin used to be a hostess at TLS, and I think we got even better service because of that. But I have been there many times without her and it has always been really fabulous.
The first thing that I love about TLS is the bread dipping oil. The bread itself is not spectacular - I wish they would start using ACME or even Grace. But it is decent normal bread. The dipping oil is what makes it fabulous. It is olive oil loaded with spices, garlic, and salt - no vinegar. It is GOOD. So good that we usually stuff ourselves with bread sopping in it before our food even comes. They sell it by the bottle, and I always mean to by some, but I think I might eat it all in a week, so I have yet to bring dipping oil home. I should probably just try to make it. But I digress......
After the bread we had an appetizer - Aspagargi e Prosciutto. Fresh perfectly grilled asparagus spears are wrapped in prosciutto, and served with a balsamic vinaigrette glaze and fresh shaved grana padana cheese on top. This stuff is so good my family has started copying the recipe and serving it at parties. The cheese is really pungent and the asparagus is still a little crunchy. We mopped up every bit of the sauce and cheese.
TLS serves family style for groups of three or more, and we opted to share two entrees. The first was a special which they have often - Linguini alla siciliana - linguini sauteed with fresh tomato sauce, caramelized eggplant and red peppers, sicilian olives, aeolian capers, imported anchovies, and basil. This is SO good. So flavorful - the eggplant and peppers are like candy. Like Patch I love salt, and this is very well seasoned. We almost always order it - and it is really really delicious.
Next we shared the fish of the day, which was salmon, marinated and grilled, served with a lemon/olive oil sauce on top of spinach sauteed in garlic, with a few roasted peppers on the side. This was crazy good. We had to send it back at first because my aunt thought it was a little undercooked, but they brought it right back and it was perfect. I think I've mentioned that I don't really like cooked greens, but I seriously ate almost all of the spinach. It was so good! I need to start making spinach like that - so flavorful, I just loved it. We were all lapping up the lemony sauce, pouring it onto our portions of salmon. The salmon was really delicious, cooked perfectly (in the end).
We skipped dessert because we had plans to hit up an ice cream shop down the street, but the chef sent us each a shot of homemade strawberrycello - like limoncello but with strawberries. It was icy-cold and so delicious - I could have guzzled a big glass, though I might not have made it back home over the bridge afterwards.
All in all it was a really great meal. We split a bottle of sangiovese, which was really perfect with the meal, even though a white might have been better (we were all in the mood for red). I would and will go back there when I'm in Berkeley (and not in the mood for chinese, because I also love King Yen next door!). A warning though - make a freaking reservation. I don't know why but Berkeley people don't seem to understand the idea of making a reservation. There is ALWAYS a line out the door at this place - but if you have a reservation, you don't have to worry about it! The yelp reviews complain on and on about the long wait - pick up the phone and CALL THEM. Also, go early. Its worth the wait!!!!!
Food - (3.75)
Experience - (3.75)
Overall -(3.75)
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For yelp reviews of Trattoria la Siciliana, CLICK HERE!
mama mia - I'll be back!
Emilia
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