by Andrew Chalk
Not to mention a spacious patio when it cools down a little!
At a media event in Uptown today I was blown over at the number of people enjoying themselves at North Italia. This is Monday, I thought! Most restaurants would kill to be this full on a Monday night. However, in its 4+ years the restaurant had built up a loyal clientele with its reliable Italian fare, pizza, and cocktails.
The must do cocktail right now is the Carico D’Amore. It’s a cazadores blanco tequila, rhum barbancourt, a touch of aperol, capari for bitterness and lemon. It’s fresh, almost tart, but fruity. Ideal for these hot summer days. Most interestingly, it was invented by Whitney Crick who is at the Plano location of North Italia, located in Legacy West. I have a business meeting on Thursday up there and shall make a point of swinging by and seeing if she can make me one personally! By the way, this cocktail is only around until September 22nd!
Summer specials are not confined to cocktails. Menu items like these are delicious.
Heirloom Tomato & Burrata – with grilled ciabatta, arugula, shaved red onion, & Calabrian vinaigrette
Cacio e Pepe Pizza – with pecorino crema, mozzarella, & cracked pepper
Squid Ink Mafaldine – with white shrimp, calamari, acqua pazza, mint, fennel pollen, & Calabrian chili
I actually chose the Soup of the Day, tomato. It was unlike any I have had before, being loaded with fried parmesan cheese. It made for attractive flavor combinations.
Strozzapreti: chicken, spinach, roasted mushroom, toasted pine nuts, all in a parmesan cream was a delicious main course with exciting contrast between the hard nut and soft chicken textures.
What better to end with than Italian Butter Cake. Mercifully sized to allow me to still walk after the meal although I did feel that I needed to m ake a hopeless gesture against the calories by walking home rather than slumped in the back of an Uber.
Service was friendly and efficient and the fact the kitchen was slammed meant that I managed to get through a few emails!
Hit North Italia now, or in one of the forthcoming cool evenings if you prefer the spacious patio.
