Spritzing in style as an aperitif

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A few summers ago, on the last afternoon of a somewhat grueling family vacation in Europe with our young children, I crept through a crowded tourist plaza near Florence’s Ponte Vecchio into a smaller, almost abandoned plaza. nearby. It was there that I discovered Le Volpi e l’Uva, a wine bar whose cozy atmosphere belied a revealing wine list and subtly exquisite cuisine. For over two hours, I did what I had wanted to do for weeks: relaxing, casually snacking on course after course as an extremely knowledgeable waitress shared ever more enlightening sips, her real excitement growing as she went. each glass delivered.

A few weeks ago, that comfortable combination of sleepy curiosity and bodily contentment came back to me, but this time in the form of Sardinian vermouth spritz and scallop crudo in a lardo vinaigrette. I wasn’t in Italy this time, but half a block from State Street, sitting in Aperitivo’s parklet on West Haley, where co-owner / sommelier Andrea Girardello tends to drink fascinating drinks while the Co-owner / Chef Brian Dodero creates colorful, delicately delicious dishes.

It was my second time there since their full reopening in April, after a brief six-week start between their opening in October and the December lockdown. I first wrote about Aperitivo in January, when the duo launched a weekly pasta club to transport their unique Italian wine and traditional food pairings to your home, with an easy DIY element. This experience, which continues today (order Sunday, pick up Tuesday), was just a tease. I couldn’t wait to indulge myself in the small space they had occupied in March 2020, which was once Mosto Crudo and the ephemeral champagne room.

Credit: Daniel Dreifuss

It finally happened in early May, when I sat near the back, next to the cramped outdoor kitchen where Dodero cooks without many of the kitchen appliances found in most restaurants. While Girardello has released a series of spritzes and other low-alcohol cocktails – his versions of the bitter Negroni Sbagliato, a sake-based margarita and the coffee-based Siciliano – Dodero has delighted all the senses through his food.

The crescent-shaped crudo dish – I don’t even remember the fish, but that didn’t matter – included pickled mango, fermented peppers, yuzu aioli, charred cucumber, leek ash, lime oil and smoked sea salt. “It’s like a street mango that you can find in Mexico,” Dodero explained.

Next comes a circular blend of bigeye tuna, with sashimi-quality chunks surrounding a center of minced flesh, decorated with capers, basil, roasted tomato aioli, microplaned Marcona almonds and fried taro root. I felt like I needed something more delicate than a fork to dive – a pearl caviar spoon, maybe? – but I persevered, discovering cleverly layered elements that ranged from crunchy and brackish to funky and fresh.

Then we moved on to more savory dishes, namely porchetta bruschetta, served on bread made next door at Oat Bakery. Roasted for 20 hours in a medium of fennel, orange zest, rosemary, Calabrian pepper, herbs and black pepper and served in thin slices with arugula and parmesan, it was a bite of meat and would easily serve as a quick dinner on its own.


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Much like the pasta dish called Nido from Uccello di Marea, a ‘seabird’s nest’ of firm ramen-like noodles that surrounded a pool of butter and bacon sauce, a bright yellow quail egg floating in the middle. . “Saint f @ # *! I wrote in my notes, amazed that it could be so rich without being cloying, thanks to the pea tendrils providing a refreshing green counterpoint. “After a day of eating,” I scribbled in an actual sentence, a rarity in my notebooks, “finding a dish that resonates in so many ways is a treat. ”

The same page describes the dessert that followed as “ridiculous”: a scoop of hazelnut gelato with a chocolate center that was rolled in more hazelnuts and meringue, then topped with espresso – an amphetamine affogato. Frozen treats don’t do well as leftovers, I rationalized until the last sip.

Many of these dishes are no longer on the menu as they change with the seasons, especially the crudo and pasta options. The same goes for the parade of wines that Girardello served me, from pecorino grown in Umbria and Tuscan chardonnay to sangiovese from Montepulciano and dolcetto from Dogliani.

Aperitivo Pasta Club Chef Brian Dodero makes pasta to go. | Credit: Daniel Dreifuss

“I don’t want to have the typical wine list, where you have pinot grigio, sauvignon blanc and chardonnay and pinot noir, like most bars in town,” said Girardello, who works with 10 importers. “We try to get the real experience of Italy – of small producers, mostly organic. I’m just trying to push the boundaries and make it a true Italian experience.

Raised in Milan, Girardello’s first taste of wine came from a great uncle who shared stuff he made from the hills of Liguria. His hospitality career took Girardello to London, New England and Florida before landing at the Biltmore a dozen years ago.

It was there that he met Dodero, a native of Santa Barbara who trained in Florence and cooked professionally in Italy, New York and Providence, Rhode Island, before returning home. Dodero gained relative fame here in 2014 due to his role as Grand Chef at the Pasta Shoppe, one of the first tenants of the Santa Barbara Public Market. Even though his pasta was excellent, the restaurant didn’t last long, so he returned to the Biltmore.

It turns out that the Aperitivo concept is modeled on what I experienced that dreamy afternoon in Florence. “All over Italy you’re going to find places to go and meet up with friends after work, to enjoy a glass of wine, but it always revolves around food,” Dodero said. “You will see a lot of interesting little bites on the bar counter. It’s like a springboard for your evening.

And that’s what my wife and I did on my last visit, eating a quick crudo and drinking custom spritzes before making our dinner reservations elsewhere. We should have stayed all night.

7 W. Haley Street; (805) 869-2937; aperitivosb.com

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