Spiga

do yourself a favor

by elizastill

beautiful food, beautiful setting, absolutely love it (when I can get a table)

Spiga - July 17, 2010

by Au Gourmand

Capesante con Purea di Asparagi e Aceto Balsamico

In Italy, many vegetable purees are used as sauces for the meat or fish; yet, asparagus puree as the bed for seared scallops was new to me. The searing of the scallops was on the well-done side, which I actually do not mind at all. However, I was slightly troubled by the bitterness of the asparagus puree.

Once someone told me that the problem with the produce in the United States is that the farmers got paid by weight, not by quality per se. Therefore, the heavier the produce, the higher price it would fetch. And, how do you make them heavy? You grow them big and full of water. Naturally, in the case of asparagus, the result is that per gram of asparagus, there will be more water and less asparagus. While this unfortunate trend of watery, gigantic vegetables and fruits is not always the case, it may be applicable to the asparagus used in this puree.

Ravioli de Carciofi con Ragu di Salsicce di Pollo e Ricotta Stagionata

I cut off a corner of one big raviolo and scooped some of the chicken sausage ragu and the tomato and the shaved ricotta stagionata (a.k.a. ricotta salata): Fresh artichokes, lovingly enclosed in a perfectly al dente ravioli dough, happily shone through to mingle with the chicken sausage ragu in my mouth. The delicacy of the artichoke plus the boldness of the ragu, along with a few accents, hm...it was a beautiful dish.

Trancio di Baccala con Purea di Cipolle e Porri Fritti

I have to be honest: This must be one of the best cods (or the very best cod since I cannot remember a better cod; but I just do not want to give up without a thorough search in the deepest corner of my mind - come on, there must have been one in Portugal). The cod was nestled between pureed sweet onion and fried leeks so that two types of onions played against each other on the cod. It was a happy time: Take a bit of cod with the onion puree, take another bite with the leeks, so on and so forth, until, wait, what happened to my cod?

Sad decline of a great restaurant

by anonymouscs

Very disappointing dinner at what used to be a favorite. Zucchini timbales, which were once bright and fresh, are now blanketed in a thick layer of green-can grated parmesan. A mushroom lasagne came drowned in what I swear was a can of Campbell?s Cream of Mushroom soup. When we asked where the second scallop was in the special soup ?with two grilled scallops?, the waiter told us it may have sank in the soup (it hadn?t). Gone are the days of cocoa gnocchi and ?mushrooms three ways? ? this new owner has soiled Spiga.

• Pros: Who knows? Maybe you'll get lucky and have a glimpse of its former greatness...
• Cons: Not likely.

BAIT AND SWITCH

by ak79

Spiga has a wine list that begins with what would be considered "an expensive range" for wines that would normally be considered table wines. When we asked the waiter about the difference between two wines on their wine list, the waiter said that the two wines were essentially the same. Why then have two identical wines at different prices? He then went on to offer us a more expensive "special" wine. Of course, the special was also more expensive. Speaking quickly, he tried to push this on us. Spiga's wine list isn't just expensive, it's over-priced.

• Pros: Used to be good before new management
• Cons: Entres are very very cheesey

Sad decline of a great restaurant

by anonymouscs

Very disappointing dinner at what used to be a favorite. Zucchini timbales, which were once bright and fresh, are now blanketed in a thick layer of green-can grated parmesan. A mushroom lasagne came drowned in what I swear was a can of Campbell?s Cream of Mushroom soup. When we asked where the second scallop was in the special soup ?with two grilled scallops?, the waiter told us it may have sank in the soup (it hadn?t). Gone are the days of cocoa gnocchi and ?mushrooms three ways? ? this new owner has soiled Spiga.

• Pros: Who knows? Maybe you'll get lucky and have a glimpse of its former greatness...
• Cons: Not likely.