Osteria La Civetta
Well, the Angry Gourmet is back on Cape Cod looking to eat something other than baked schrod. Not that I don't LIKE baked schrod, it's just that, every now and again it would be nice to dine on something that is an actual FISH and in a place where the waitress doesn't ask me if I am "still working" on my meal. If I have one pet peeve, that one would score the bulls-eye. Who in restaurant-land came up with that expression? I always feel like an animal gnawing on a bone, growling to keep the other predators at bay. That's MY bone, God Damn It! You keep your waitress hands off it until I AM DONE WORKING ON IT!
Fortunately for me and the rest of us food-loving Cape Codders, a bright dining light has appeared in Falmouth in the form of Osteria La Civetta. The space has doubled in the past year so you can actually get a table, and the renovation (I think they took over the space of a dog bakery - gee, I'm surprised THAT went out of business) is a revelation: hardwood floors, some exposed brick, mirrored bar area and two beautiful window seats for dining. Very European, very un-Main Street, Falmouth. In a word, perfect.
Everything here is homemade - the pastas even have names that, without a good foundation in Italian, are un-translatable. "Maccheroncini"? - um, little macaroni cars? "Trofie"? - tiny trumpets, perhaps? Nevertheless, they are handmade and delicious. Portions are what they should be - moderate and appropriately sized, well-sauced. One of us had the duck, which came with a glaze, baked apples and potatoes. Duck is tricky. The chef wants to prepare it rare, the diner wants to make sure not to get whatever sickness that is you get when you eat raw poultry. A compromise is made. Pink, but cooked. At Osteria, they know their way around a duck! It was well seared on the outside, pink and juicy inside. A win-win in my book.
So, grab a couple of friends, order a cold Peroni, and sit in the window seat and watch the rest of Falmouth go by. Er, on second thought, sit in the window seat with YOUR BACK facing the rest of Falmouth going by. The view is better towards the bar.
The Angry Gourmet.
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Osteria La Civetta
133 Main St, Falmouth, MA 02540
