8/25/11 Il Casale: Terrific Italian in Belmont
It is always a treat to have a dinner turn out better than you thought it might, and that was our delightful experience tonight at a special B’day dinner at Il Casale. Thurs. night 8:30PM and the place was packed and bustling. Lucky for us, noise continued to diminish through the evening, as earlier guests departed.
While i did a double take after this sentence formed in my head, it is true that we did not have one thing that was less than excellent. I hadn’t realized it before, but the head chef used to be that talented head chef at Pignoli. Small tastes were all winners: Small Pork Meatballs were moist and soft and full flavored; Arancini, the arborio rice cooked in porcini broth and tomato, were the most full flavored I have ever had, easily meriting ‘extraordinary’ over the v. good ones at La Morra, the Independent and 62 On Wharf. A Special crudo- tuna crostini with avocado puree and evoo, was sublime and very generously portioned. Pasta carbonara and bolognese acted as starch sides to our entrees, Seared Scallops over a bed of white bean puree and braised kale ,and Veal Saltimboca. All plates were very robustly flavored and seasoned, and there was never a need to reach for the salt. A welcome take on sauteed spinach- this one with mascarpone, lemon and parm- was utterly unctuous. Table bread was a really superb potato based rustic loaf with a thick dark crust and dense moist interior. Gelati, cinnamon and espresso- made a perfect ending (I guess there was one thing less than excellent- but it was a lagnappe- tiramisu> pretty but lacking on the coffee front.)
Overall, the tiny bites were the highlight, robustly flavored, perfectly prepared, generous and well priced. Of the 2 entrees, the scallops plate was complete and generous but the veal plate held only the veal, and the addition of pasta and vegetable sides- raised the plate cost rather high imo. I know this practice is found in many restnts but i personally prefer an entree plate to have starch and veg. on it.
Service was very professional and gracious.Located in a historic and handsome brick former fire station, the room is a treat- a dark high ceilinged space with golden ceiling lamps and walls of banquettes. We really enjoyed ourselves and it’s easy to see why this place is so booked.
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La Morra
48 Boylston Street, Brookline, MA 02445
il Casale
50 Leonard Street, Belmont, MA 02478
Sixty2 on Wharf
62 Wharf Street, Salem, MA 01970
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May have been the worst and surliest service I've had the misfortune to endure in a local restaurant, balanced out by bland, mediocre food. Wait staff constantly changing, rushed and often nowhere to be seen. Long wait for first drinks, then food, then drinks, then food, then bill. Literally had to walk up to maitre d' to request someone take payment. All around inexcusable and weak apologies just don't cut it ("on Monday nights we are sometimes understaffed."). Food, meh (who puts steamed zucchini in their vongole?) Oh, and eye-rolling by the wait staff: definitely not okay.
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opinionatedchef
Feb 2, 2012 09:50 PM
We had another really good meal at Il Casale tonight. Those amazing Arancini again; the veal saltimboca, gnocchi w/ fontina cream, and lamb w/ farro and smoked eggplant puree. I think their bread is the best table bread i've had in boston. The moist chewy rustic texture and mildly sour tinge, the hard crust; just perfect. The gnocchi were like thick coins and were nice and soft, but the fontina sauce lacked the punch of the gorgonzola dolce and walnut sauce at Trattoria Toscana last week. Terrific waiter- friendly, helpful, professional. The room reminds me of Olives; high ceilings and big dramantic brown velvet curtains.Lots of wood. And while most of the tables were taken, it was not super loud. My only hesitation in suggesting it as a "Neighborhood Gem" is that many of the dishes don't change. But we really enjoyed ourselves and do look forward to returning.
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I have only eaten at Il Casale once but you can definatley in the "very impressed" column. We were offered the "family style" menu as there were 4 of us, but we went a la carte because of different dietary restrictions. Everyone was REALLY happy with their choices though, and I loved that you could order half orders of pasta. I've been looking forward to an oppurtunity to go back ever since and have also recomended it to others more than once.
I have been to Posto more than once and it used to be a favorite , though I always felt the service fell far short of the service. But last week might just be the last time for me at Posto. The service was HORRIBLE (we sat at the bar because the DR was packed and we had to ask twice for food menu's, were charged wrong for drinks etc.) but this time the food was horrible as well. Undercooked and limp fried calamari (the breading was wet and falling off) and really soggy pizza . The crust tasted like and had the consistancy of fresh baked pita. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE me some fresh pita, but it definatley doesn't work for pizza. What's going on with this place? -
Bugsey34
Aug 27, 2011 06:35 AM
I'm surprised since I went to Il Casale and was pretty unimpressed at the end of last year. The salumi app was way overpriced for the amount and types of salumi they served, and they also served "burrata" which was not burrata but rather something like mascarpone in a mozzarella shell. It was served with candied pistachios of all things. Maybe will try it again, maybe they changed chefs.
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re: Bugsey34
opinionatedchef
Aug 27, 2011 10:59 AM
maybe try them for something the chef actually creates, flavor wise that is, instead of composes?
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re: opinionatedchef
Bugsey34
Aug 31, 2011 04:37 PM
If the chef can't serve a burrata that is actually burrata and not some mascarpone creation, then he shouldn't serve it at all, just take it off the menu. And candied pistachios on burrata is definitely something he created, because I don't think you're going to find that combination in Italy.
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re: Bugsey34
They are still serving the burrata with pistachios, so if that is any indication, things may not have changed. I've been to Il Casale twice in the past 3 or 4 months, and enjoyed it a lot. I really liked the burrata (not that I am a burrata expert, so have no idea if it is atypical for burrata).
The first time I went, we did the prix fixe Fiat menu, which was lots of fun and a good deal. We also had a cool server who we were chatting with a bunch about food. The burrata, avocado bruschetta, bolognese, gnocchi, and grilled branzino were all excellent. We also received numerous sides, a couple of other small plates, a veal or pork entree, and desserts, which ended up being way more than the two of us could eat. The grilled fish especially wowed me as it had lots of wood smoke flavor, the fish itself tasted great, and the accompaniments of arugula and citrus slices really worked.
The second time I went, I was not as impressed, maybe because a good number of the dishes were repeats and we ordered a la carte so the whole experience was not as festive. The food was still solid, however, and definitely in my top two or three places to get Italian food in Boston. For me Il Casale is miles better than Gran Gusto. Posto was another place with an Italian bent that I enjoyed recently, but I think the pricing at Il Casale makes it a bit more of a value.
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re: nickls
opinionatedchef
Aug 29, 2011 12:15 PM
nickls, what is the fiat menu? i didn't see that option when we went last thurs.
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re: opinionatedchef
They have two prix fixe options which are a chef's choice family style dinner with plates to share. They have two price points: the Fiat for $45 per person, or the Ferrari is $60 and presumably would include more extras, although the Fiat was already more than we could eat. They might have given us a couple extras anyway as I think it was a bit empty when we showed up and the server commented that they didn't normally send out two different secondi for two people which they did for us. We got something like 4 sfizi, 2 primi, 3 contorni, 2 secondi, and 2 desserts for $90.
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tatsu
Aug 26, 2011 08:35 AM
It certainly is a nice looking restaurant and the menu looked promising. Perhaps I'll give it a shot now. I am so skeptical of Italian places for some reason. They always seem so far removed from "traditions" in Italy, just like Japanese restaurants, and so they generally disappoint me, both categories.
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re: cambridgedoctpr
tatsu
Aug 28, 2011 01:43 AM
I'll gladly dine at either place, true chef-driven restaurants! It just seems there are so many pretend Italian and Japanese places, both way over-priced. I'm like that with haircuts, I know a really good place for 30 bucks, and a great place for 200 bucks. But 100 bucks? They are worse than the 30 dollar place!
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re: cambridgedoctpr
Alcachofa
Aug 28, 2011 07:32 AM
Rialto? What have you had there? I found it shockingly mediocre. Especially as it is "chef driven"--I found it hard to believe a semi-famous chef was involved. A couple items were OK, but no big deal either. The pizza was an insult. Coppa was leaps and bounds better. There are many other places better than Rialto, in my experience.
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Coppa
253 Shawmut Ave, Boston, MA 02118-
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re: Alcachofa
A fair question: I had their regional dinner about 2 weeks ago: http://www.rialto-restaurant.com/menu...
It was very good; was it as good as my last meals at 11 Madison, Le Bernadin, Jean-Georges (where the usually reticent owner actually stopped by and chatted). No, but there are no restaurants in that class, iMHO, in Boston. But it was very good. They also have a good wine list if you are so inclined.
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re: cambridgedoctpr
opinionatedchef
Aug 29, 2011 12:21 PM
i would not direct you to via matta, and if you do a search , you will see a 'disappointed' thread from earlier this year i think.(though i'm sure you do a CH search before trying a new place anyway.) Gran gusto had the best eggplant parm i have ever had but i don't think the menu can compare w/ Il Casale.
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Glad to hear you say that. My wife and I went to Il Casale a year ago (or so) and were unimpressed, both by the food and the service. But we decided to give it another shot a month ago, and were much happier with our experience.
We started with the pork meatballs, the avocado pesto crostini, and a special tomato bread pudding. All three were delicious, with the avocado pesto being the standout. Then for entrees - my wife had the carbonara, which was great, I had the bolognese, which was very good, and my mom had a bronzino fish special that was the absolute standout. The fish was cooked perfectly and the sides were delicious as well.
The service was much more courteous and welcoming than the last time we were there.
I'm glad we gave it another shot, and Il Casale has now moved onto my "recommend" list.
