Anniversary Dinner
Kev and I celebrate 29 years at Bottega Dining Room.
By Jan Walsh
Seems like yesterday… I married the love of my life. Few people ever find what we have. And we cherish it. For our anniversary, tonight we choose a restaurant that we both love, Bottega Dining Room.
The door opens with anniversary greetings. After being seated at our favorite, the window table, our server, Justin, also welcomes us with anniversary wishes, black napkins, and even takes our photo. We start with cocktails, an off the menu, Chocolate Martini at Kev’s request. And I spot a rummy French Dispatch. We toast our 29th as we nibble on Focaccia with Bottega infused olive oil and Marinated Olives: picholine, kalamata, Castelvetrano olives. Tonight, I give all the Castelvetrano to Kev because they are his favorite. And although we buy jars to have at home, they are not the same without Frank Stitt’s marinade.
Looking over tonight’s menu, we begin with Fritto Misto for Kev and Agnolotti for me. And we pair with a lovely bottle of AT Roca Brut Rosat Reserva, Penedès 2021. This fruit forward bubbly boasts notes of apple, strawberry, and raspberry, a chalky acidity, and a vibrant effervescence. Kev’s fritto misto is a crisp, golden mix of pristine red snapper, succulent Gulf of America shrimp, briny oysters, acidic lemon, and puckering capers. As good as it looks and always recommended! My delicate pasta is a masterpiece filled with earthy savoy spinach and tangy goat cheese. A Bottega worthy Pio Tosini Prosciutto provides protein to the plate as do hazelnuts. Pio Tosini is a family business operating in Northern Italy since 1905. The nutty, sweet flavors and buttery texture of their phenom prosciutto is attributed to using less salt and curing for a longer period (20 months) than most prosciutto producers, adding the milky whey from their parmesan cheese to the pigs’ diet, dry sea breezes blowing into the open windows of the curing house, and not deboning until ordered. Highly recommended!
For entrees Kev orders the New York Strip, and I select the Alaskan Halibut. The steak is dry aged by Bear Creek in Tennessee. The tender, juicy steak is cooked to order and crowns a colorful medley of spring veggies, including crisp fingerling potatoes roasted in duck fat. The vibrant veggies add texture and are bursting with freshness, balancing the plate with more than steak and potatoes for my steak and potatoes man. More lean, high-quality protein is found in my halibut. It is generous in portion, firm in texture and mild and sweet in flavor. It floats above a bed of favas, asparagus, and crawfish. If you still dream of the halibut you had on that Alaskan cruise, come here. Order this.
For dessert, Justin expects Kev and I will share as we always do. But not tonight. I explain that this Southern girl shares her blackberries with no one. It is the Cherry Almond Tart for Kev and the Peach and Blackberry Cobbler for me. On a pool of anglaise the tart stars, encircled by “Happy Anniversary.” Tart cherries, sliced almonds blend beautifully with the cherry flavor shining through and the almond adding crunchy texture. Exquisite!
Nothing better than peaches and blackberries… My comforting cobbler arrives piping hot in its own ramekin, which always makes a more flavorful dessert. Vanilla ice cream melts and melds into the fruity mix below, adding creamy goodness to this hot and cold dessert. Oh, my! Warm, soft, tangy blackberries synthesize with juicy, sweet, fragrant peaches. And with a swipe of my spoon the chocolate anniversary wishes are the cherry on top. Happy I did not share… How could I live with such regrets?
From the front of the house, to the bar to the kitchen, Frank and Pardis Stitt's Bottega, you surely know how to make an anniversary special. We have known many of you for most of these 29 years, appreciate and love you guys!
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