Remo's of N.Y.

The various incarnations of the Italian restaurant at 8811 Waltham Woods Road in Parkville has played a role in our lives (however small) over the past 17 years. The Minx and I first went there in 1998 on one of our early dates. We were in the area on a Saturday night poking around for a place to eat that didn't have a 30 minute wait or golden arches outside. The place, called Milano's at the time, seemed serviceable enough if a bit old fashioned with its formica table tops trimmed in shiny chrome. The food was also straight forward red sauce Italian. I don't recall exactly what the Minx or I ate, but I remember feeling pretty satisfied with it and, given my infatuation with my new love, the company was far more important anyway.

Fast forward a decade or so and we were now a boring married couple on a pilgrimage to BJ's to buy vast quantities of paper towels, toothpaste, and toilet paper. While driving through that part of Parkville, we usually stopped at El Salto for dinner, but neither of us was in the mood for Mexican, so we decided to give the old Italian restaurant across the street another try. This time it was called Pasticcio's and the decor had been modernized quite a bit. Looking more like a comfortable family restaurant with wood floors and cream colored walls, the menu still reflected the same kind of cuisine we experienced many years earlier. We still liked it, though, and the service was quite good.

Recently, we learned that the restaurant had changed to Remo's of N.Y. so we decided to give them another try. The decor has been slightly altered to pay reference to the "N.Y." in the name with pictures of New York Italian neighborhoods on the walls along with street signs bearing the names of familiar New York locations. The wait staff seemed to be largely the same, which was a good sign since the service was not something in need of change.

The menu also tries to pull in the New York Italian theme with dishes like Angel Hair Times Square, Calamari Badabing!, and Shrimp Sinatra. Despite the hokey names, the dishes show a level of inventiveness not available in the previous incarnation. I was curious about the Salmon Limocello and Mussels Fra Diavila, but since we didn't have much time, I decided to see how they could handle an Italian classic: Chicken Parmigiana.

As it turns out, they handled it quite well. The twin pieces of chicken breast were moist and tender, and I liked the fact that the parmigiana was lightly broiled on top, The accompanying angle hair pasta was not overcooked (a common problem I find with such a thin pasta), and the sauce was quite tasty.

The Minx opted for the Mignon Steak Salad. which in addition to filet mignon tips, includes fresh arugula, red roasted peppers, roma tomatoes, gorgonzola cheese, and crispy potatoes. A balsamic vinaigrette was drizzled around the edge of the plate, but Italian dressing was provided on the side. The steak tips were properly cooked and the generous mix of ingredients made for a hearty, filling salad.

We left the restaurant feeling satiated and ready to take on the challenge of warehouse shopping. With an inventive new menu, comfortable decor, and a friendly wait staff, Remo's of N.Y. will likely become a regular dinner spot for us whenever we are in Parkville,





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Cafe Gia

I hadn't heard of Cafe Gia until we started working on our book, Baltimore Chef's Table. After studying their web site, however, I knew I wanted to go there badly. Ornately painted both inside and out, Cafe Gia looks like a romanticized rendering of an Italian cafe. It's bright, colorful, warm, and inviting. The food also provides the warm, comforting feeling that one desires from Italian cooking.

On our recent visit, I started with a glass of Gia's Sangria, heavy on the wine but cool and refreshing. Since the Minx has been avoiding alcohol, the bartender recommended San Pellegrino grapefruit soda, which she seemed quite pleased with.

We decided to split a pair of appetizers. Our first appetizer was the orchard salad. The sweetness of the fruit paired well with the slightly bitter and peppery greens. The dressing was perfectly balanced, and the toasted walnuts added a new dimension of crunch and savoriness.

We were both eager to try the octopus, and we were not disappointed. Most octopus I've had is either like rubber bands when it's bad or mostly tender when it's good. It appeared that this octopus was grilled after braising, judging by the crispy suction cups. The result was a slightly chewy outside with soft and tender meat inside. This combination of textures worked quite well and reminded me of the texture of some shaped pastas when they are cooked properly.

Speaking of pasta, for my entree, I chose the fettuccine bolognese. The bolognese had a deep, beefy flavor that indicated long hours of slow cooking. Some restaurants cheat by adding heavy cream, but Cafe Gia offers an honest version that allows the beef to take center stage. The fettuccine was perfectly al dente.

The Minx chose the made-to-order eggplant parmigiana with a side of linguine. The marinara sauce was bright with fresh tomato flavor. The thinly sliced eggplant was layered and smothered with mozzarella cheese before baking, and the meaty texture could fool someone into thinking that this wasn't a vegetarian dish. It also had no trace of the bitter quality that turns me off to eggplant.

In addition to the festive decor and the delicious food, owner Gia Blatterman and the staff create a friendly and welcoming feeling as if you are visiting a friend's home for dinner. There's also al fresco dining on the second floor balcony during the warmer months, allowing patrons to enjoy chef Gianfranco Fracassetti's inventive cuisine while taking in the quaint views of Little Italy.


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Vivo Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar

If you've heard mention of "West County" recently and wasn't sure what it referred to, it's the western part of Anne Arundel County, which includes Hanover, Odenton, and Fort Meade. Not exactly the most glamorous area, unless you consider the fastest growing part of West County, Hanover's Arundel Mills development. In addition to the mall and Maryland Live! casino, Arundel Mills now boasts plenty of new housing and amenities. One of the newest communities in the development is Arundel Preserve. Just off 295 on Arundel Mills Boulevard, the Preserve is home to the swank new Hotel at Arundel Preserve and its two restaurants by New York restaurateur George Martin, Vivo and Grillfire.

Mr Minx and I were invited to taste some of Vivo's offerings at a recent media dinner. We started out with a few appetizers for the table before ordering entrees of our own.

Charcuterie plate with Sopressata, proscuitto, bresaola, gorgonzola, provolone, and taleggio,
with marinated olives, toasted stone oven flatbreads, and fig jam

We started out with a generous charcuterie plate featuring three Italian meats and three Italian cheeses, a nice combination of salty, savory, and creamy, punctuated by a sweet fig jam and olives. With a bottle of wine, it could make a nice meal in itself. And it was served on a gorgeous slab of burl wood that sadly was too large to fit in my purse....

Margherita pizza

We also sampled one of the restaurant's dozen pizzas, made in the Wood Stone oven visible just beyond the window into the open kitchen. In addition to the classic Margherita and white pizzas, Vivo has creative variations like crab imperial with mascarpone and a red pepper aioli, and proscuitto & pear with gorgonzola dolce. Yes, please!

Spinach arancini 

We also received a sampling of Vivo's arancini, which our host, Diane, says is the best she's had since her trip to Italy. The generously-sized balls of risotto and spinach were indeed quite nice, creamy and piping hot inside, with a delicate crust that was just barely able to hold in the molten rice.

Bucatini Carbonara with peas and a soft cooked egg

When Mr Minx, aka Mr Pasta, saw that Vivo offered one of his favorite pasta preparations, pasta Carbonara, he had to order it. The house-made bucatini was coated in a rich and cheesy sauce studded with bits of pancetta and peas and topped with a soft cooked egg. It was decadently delicious.

Pork shank osso buco with rosemary potatoes and tomato pan gravy

I opted to avoid pasta and chose a meat entree that came with potatoes, just to be different. While osso buco is traditionally made with veal shank, pork shank works just as well. The one I received was gargantuan, and the spoon-tender meat was glazed with a sheen of tomato gravy and a sprinkle of herbs. The potatoes were darkly roasted and had a mild rosemary flavor that did not detract from the lusciousness of the meat.

Chicken Parmesan, without the cheese

Other dishes at our table include chicken Parmesan, which our tiny host ordered without cheese because she's afraid of getting fat like me. (I'm happy to eat her cheese for her.) The breast cutlets were thin and crispy, and I liked that the breading wasn't over-seasoned.

Bucatini with lobster and shrimp

Another tablemate had the bucatini in a creamy sauce flavored with Chardonnay and thyme and studded with bits of lobster and shrimp. After tasting it, I almost regretted my decision not to order pasta, because it was delicious, with a nice brininess from the seafood. Vivo makes all of its pasta (except the linguine) in-house, from gnocchi to ravioli to rigatoni, using their fancy imported pasta machine. 

Despite being stuffed, we also sampled a trio of the restaurant's desserts, including a lovely light tiramisu served in a jar and garnished with a crisp biscotto. While cute, the jar lid was heavy and made the container a little tipsy.

...a moist olive oil cake topped with fig jam and vanilla ice cream...

...and crisp miniature cannoli stuffed with Nutella-infused ricotta.

Despite trying several dishes, we really tasted only a small selection of the goodies Vivo has to offer. We can hardly wait to go back and try the crispy Parmesan polenta, lobster risotto, malfadine Bolognese, rockfish and baby clams Livornese, and some of the more non-traditional pizzas. But first, we have to check out Grillfire, the George Martin restaurant across the lobby, which seems to have a pretty rocking happy hour....

Vivo Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar
7793-B Arundel Mills Blvd
Hanover, MD 21076
(410) 799-7440
http://www.vivotrattoria.com/





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Scoozi Restaurant, Radisson Hotel at Cross Keys

Last fall, the Minx and I went to a media dinner to preview the new restaurant in the Radisson Hotel at Cross Keys. The new place was called Scoozi and, as the name suggested, the menu would have an Italian emphasis. The dishes we tasted showed real promise and we vowed to come back as soon as it opened. Flash forward several months and, although the restaurant had been opened for some time, we still had not gone back. The oversight was even more egregious since we live only 10 minutes away. We finally resolved to return, this time with Minx's brother and father in tow so we could sample a variety of dishes.

The atmosphere felt a bit chaotic when we arrived. Part of that could be explained by the fact that it was a Saturday night, but we later learned that they were short on wait staff. Nevertheless, we were seated promptly and our waitress happily took our drink orders. She also dropped off the bread, which turned out to be strips of pizza dough nicely charred by the pizza oven. She then took our food order and disappeared.

Nothing happened for about 10 minutes. Our drinks had not arrived even though we had all ordered beers (no complicated cocktail alchemy involved). We drank our water and nibbled on the bread (which was quite good, btw), wishing for something stronger with which to wash it down. After the wait, a server arrived with the appetizers at the same moment that the bartender arrived with our beers. Each server elbowed the other in an attempt to get his respective items on our table. It didn't help that there was too much stuff on the table already, like an oversized candle and a foot-high salt-and-pepper shaker. We reared back in fear of being splashed with beer or tomato sauce or both. Once that crazy moment of awkwardness was over, we settled into tasting the food.

Point Judith Calamari - pomodoro and roasted garlic-caper aioli

At first glance, the calamari appeared hopelessly burnt. If you go much beyond a quick deep fry, the calamari can turn to rubberbands, but we were relieved to discover that they were still tender in spite of the extra crispy coating. The dish has both a pomodoro and roasted garlic-caper aioli dipping sauce. I preferred the pomodoro sauce as the aioli was a bit too thick in which to dip the calamari properly.

Veal Meatballs, white bean puree, whipped basil ricotta, tomato sauce

We had tried the veal meatballs at the preview dinner and the recipe had not changed. They were tender and garlicky with a bright tomato sauce and whipped ricotta on top. I could eat an entree portion of these meatballs.

Scampi -Shrimp, rose sauce,‎ grilled fennel and a pinch of hot pepper

Next came the pizzas. The crust has the kind of texture I prefer: crusty and slightly charred on the surface, but thin and pliable like New York style pizza. The shrimp scampi pizza was my favorite of the two since I'm a sucker for shrimp and the fennel brought a nice crunch. Fennel also marries well with tomatoes.

Kennett Square - local wild mushroom, caramelized onions, roasted garlic, garlic-herb-ricotta cream, white truffle oil

The Kennett Square pizza got the Minx's vote. While not ordinarily a fan of grainy ricotta cheese dolloped on pizza, she loved this. The smooth ricotta was nicely seasoned, and the combination of wild mushrooms and just enough white truffle oil brought out an earthiness that balanced nicely with the sweet flavor of the caramelized onions.

Cheese ravioli with olives and capers, served over ravioli topped with regiano frico

For the entrees, we chose the ravioli and the short ribs. The ravioli was tender and the sauce was a zingy concoction of chunky tomatoes, olives, and capers. Overall, quite satisfying.

Chianti Braised Short Ribs - Crispy parmesan risotto cake and sweet potato ribbons

The short ribs were also very good, with an nice wine-tinged flavor. The risotto, while more of a rice dish in a runny sauce than a true risotto, was still a fine accompaniment. I'm not sure it was worth the $27 price tag, however, given that the piece of short rib was more like an appetizer portion. Probably better to stick with the appetizers and pizzas if you're looking for optimum bang for your buck.

I think Scoozi still has some wrinkles to iron out, but there is certainly a commitment to the food. The service was clunky (there was a comedy of errors over a request for more bread that's too long to go into), but it could have been a bad night or some growing pains. I'm sure we will go back again, if only to savor those meatballs and pizza again.

Scoozi
5100 Falls Rd
Baltimore, MD 21210
Radisson Hotel at Cross Keys





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