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La Grotta

My friends and I enjoyed a wonderful night out at La Grotta. I wrote about the restaurant a year ago and my verdict stands: elegant, relaxed service that perfectly complements outstanding food. As you can see, our garden table was one of the nicest parts of the evening. We started off with smoked salmon and duck risotto. Risotto is a little tricky to make and La Grotta's is flawless so far as my non-Italian taste buds can tell. The risotto was almost infused with the duck in a remarkably subtle way; the risotto was the perfect balance to the strong taste of duck.
For our main courses, Giselle and I tried the two versions of veal scallopini, mine with lemon butter sauce and hers with cream sauce. Hyesoon and Yu had quail stuffed with pork; Hyesoon gave me a sample and the combination was outstanding. Catherine went with chicken in a caper sauce that truly amazed me. The capers were combined with something else I can't quite identify, perhaps rosemary, to give an almost pine-like flavor. We of course sampled the dessert options, all of which were delicious. Catherine once again chose spectacularly with her chocolate cake. Hyesoon's panna cotta was topped with pistachios, one of those flavors you don't often find outside of Italian food. The result was delicate and exquisite. La Grotta on Urbanspoon
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