Domenica

[nomadchowwoman]

John Besh's Domenica has just opened, and we went and had, overall, a good experience but they are still working out kinks. Service was very friendly but slow; servers were knowledgeable.
This is not a typical New Orleans Italian restaurant, and people who go expecting that will no doubt leave disappointed (no veal parmesan, spaghetti and meatballs, chicken w/rosemary, variety of eggplant dishes, Italian salad, etc). But there are lots of choices, and one can do a relatively inexpensive casual meal if one sticks to pizza (fabulous thin-crust pies, from basic Margherita to one with chanterelles and a fried egg) and small plates. The polenta and meatballs in a small plate is delicious, rich, and pretty filling. Besides salads (butter lettuce and baby beets was a definite "wow"--utter expert simplicity) and apps (squash blossoms, wood-grilled shrimp are great choices) as small plates, the interesting selection of pasta/risotto dishes (one with their own house-cured guanciale, another with a rabbit ragu, risotto w/pancetta) all come in a choice of large or small plate, as do a few of the meat and fish selections. The contorni we had--the braised beans and the rapini--were excellent. They also offer a good selection of salumi and cheese, and the wine list is reasonably priced and easy to navigate. Desserts looked good, but we couldn't eat another bite. The food is hearty.
Try not to succumb to the Fritti Misti--basically a fried NO seafood platter (shrimp, oysters, soft-shell crab, calamari), well fried surely, but you can get that lots of places!
One thing we tried and weren't crazy about was the ravioli-like pasta w/chanterelles--with hardly any chanterelles, the dish was dominated, not in a good way, by pecorino romano, a cheese I ordinarily adore.
And I do wish they would lose the 2-foot high breadstick centerpieces: they are both distracting and unwieldy.
The restaurant itself is beautiful and very lively, maybe a tad loud. A "dressy-casual" sort of place: We saw folks at either end of that spectrum and of all ages dining or sitting at the bar.

If you do go, make sure to make time for a pre-dinner drink in the Sazerac Bar.
We will return and hope other CHs will try it. New Orleans needs a restaurant like this, and the Roosevelt needs this more casual counterpoint to its gorgeous grandeur.

[JazzyB]

Domenica

Italian Rambla is the best description I can conjure.
The rest. was loud and packed at 7:30 Sat. evening.

The menu:

pizze: $13 8 varieties

assorted salumis and cheeses

Chef's Affettati Misti $25
platter of assorted salumis, imported cheeses, marinated olives, roasted vegetables

Antipasti small/large plates
$6-14
chilled heirloom tomato soup, crabmeat salad
sicilian meatballs
wood grilled shrimp
arugula, gorgonzola picante, pistachios, tomatoes
Burrata mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes, grilled bread
baby lettuces, beets, balsamic, pancetta
octopus carpaccio
fried squash blossoms stuffed w/ goat cheese
bresaola, arugula, parm. reggiano

Primi small/large plates
$9-18
fazzoletti pasta, guanciale, heirloom tomatoes
spinach & ricotta gnocchi, almonds, brown btter
anolni, canterelles, pecorino
tagliatelle rabbit ragu, summer squash
risotto, English peas and pancetta soffritto
lasagne bolognese
linguini, shrimp, bottarga, chilies, mint
stracci oxtail ragu, fried chicken livers
spaghetti olive oil, garlic, parm.

Secondi

pesce
monkfish, eggplant, artichokes, olives 23
whole pompano fennel and salsa verde 26
fritto misto of shrimp,calamari, crab and oyster 15/20
gulf fish peppers tomatoes and cabbage 18

carne
braciole di capretto slow roasted goat with canterelles 23
paneed Louisiana veal w/lemon, arugula 21
berkshire pork coppa borlotti bean, basil, honey 23
guinea hen local San Marzano tomatoes and rapini 19

Contorni $6
garlic roasted rapini
rosemary roasted potatoes
zucchini gratinato
soft polenta
local heirloom tomatoes
borlotti beans stewed with bacon , herbs

Dolci $8

Our selections:
prosciutto, tomato, buffala mozz., arugula pizze Very thin, crisp crust, toppings were not cooked, mozzarella was all but invisible.

margherita pizze tomato, basil, fresh mozzarella. Light hand on sauce and cheese. If you grill your crust and make your own sauce, it will be better than this. Instead, order:

Burrata mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes, grilled bread. The large seems at first glance a bit pricey, $14 for 3 dollops of room temp. cheese, some tomatoes and a few small pieces of bread. The mozzarella is silky, creamy and buttery. The tomatoes sweet and juicy. Just wonderful. I could have just eaten this.

Fazzoletti pasta (large) guanciale and heirloom tomatoes. The guanciale lends a rich pork flavor. The flat zigzag pieces of pasta were tender but I wouldn't order it again.

spinach and ricotta gnocci with almonds and brown butter. The tiny gnocchi were very light but bland. The tiny bit of almonds added some flavor, but not enough.

Lasagna Bolognese This was deceptively filling. A small casserole, paper thin pasta, bechamel, bolognese sauce. Very nice.

Since we all had fish for lunch, we ordered:

Braciole di capretto, slow roasted goat with chanterelles. Husband and son really enjoyed this. I was at my limit and had but a bite.

Borlotti beans stewed with bacon and herbs. Intensely smoky. Would have been outstanding had the beans been cooked a bit more and been less salty. Chef said they use Benton's bacon.

Your meal quality as anywhere, will be determined by your choices, of which there are many. Service was very good. Our selections plus a bottle of wine ran $200 +tip.