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| - all right, party people, i've crawled out of retirement because i have to put some of these naysayers in place. first off, my wife and i are huge fans of Mozza in LA; both the pizzeria and osteria. so, before our recent trip to vegas, we wanted to pick at least two 'celebrity chef' restaurants to try out for our anniversary weekend. (the other was Gordon Ramsay's "Steak"). we thought another Batali joint was a no brainer, until i read some of the reviews here. i generally ignore the comments left by cheap asses like, "oh, how dare they charge us for coffee!" (see below.) but comments about the flavoring of the dishes i pay attention to. that's why i was shocked at all the comments about how salty the food was. perhaps the restaurant took note and changed things up; perhaps those reviewers have a phobia of flavor. who knows bc our experience was phenomenal and only solidified our fanboy/girl status for the heavyset, croc wearin italian.
service was perfect. our server was enthusiastic, extremely knowledgeable, and attentive, albeit his moustache was a little creepy. i tried the beef cheek ravioli w/ truffle and duck liver. delish. uber rich w/ its velvety meat filling w/ a hint of mineral-y liver goodness. YUM.
my wife had the bolognese. she loved it. i loved it. it was freaking tasty. the flavor was delicate, simple and complex at the same time. the base tomato sauce tasted very close to the ox tail pasta dish at osteria, which was both adore.
i then tried the pork belly. it was served w/ arugula, heirloom tomatoes, and drizzled w/ that famous 20something year old balsamic. i was blown away. the generously sized log-o-meat was fatty, moist, and robust in porky goodness. highly recommended. the hints of that sweet and tangy balsamic, the bitter arugula, and juicy sweet warm tomato slices on the bottom, perfectly balanced out the richness of the belly.
we finished the meal off w/ some gelati and sorbetto. espresso, peach and strawberry. gawddamn! probably the best we've ever had. we were also served an amuse bouche (chickpea bruschetta) at the beginning of the meal and an additional dessert medley at the end, complimentary. the perfect meal!
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