Happy 33

I have had Barolo on my radar for a couple months...
Not the wine, but the glittering northern italian inspired restaurant on Westlake and Virginia. The main object of my sensors has been Barolo's bar menu/happy hour duo. From 3 til 6:30 and 10 till close M-F the entire bar menu is half price. $14 bottles of red or white wine ($3.50 a glass), along with an ample offering of sub $7 dining choices. The bar menu is adorned with savory little italian morsels with a dab of refined exoticism. Warm baby octopus over garbonzo beans in port wine reduction, hanger steak in a Barolo sauce w/tiny potatoes, in-house made rigatoni in a veal/beef ragout, and tuna tartare are all offered in generous portioning.

I started with a glass of the house red (Salice Salentino Candido Riserva). For $3.50/glass this italian blend of Malavisa Nero and Negramaro grapes stood up for some recognition. Light and bright with red berry/cherry and almond notes followed up with some wood and spice. Surprisingly austere for such an inexpensive little table wine.

As an aside, while awaiting my dining compatriots, I indulged myself with some scotch. Not that an 18 yr. old Macallan is SOME scotch...actually it is SOME kinda scotch. Little or no heat, it tastes like you are drinking it straight from the sherry cask. Tempered with flavors of caramelized turbinado, smoke, and cherry pit, it was highly complex and just plain transcendant. The price was also transcendant, or at least somewhere up in the troposphere ($28/shot). Once a year treat...happy birthday to me.

After the dram I was desperately in need of some fortification. Still no friends, so I order the lentil and spelt soup. Solid, though not overly memorable. I loved the spelt. Like a barley, with a snappy little al dente texture it comingled with ribbons of spinach and lentils in a miso-reminicent broth. The soup gets a blue-collar style thumbs up for its utilitarianism.

Finally some partners in chyme arrive to keep me company. We order a trio: The baby octopus, some wild mushroom risotto and calamari. What can I say except that those baby octopi must have had a Michelin for a momma. Not so much rubbery as REALLY FREAKIN rubbery. Granted I expect a little bounce with the mini cephalopods but this was unacceptable. The reduction was very tasty though. Sage, raisinated port, and garlic almost made up for the octokids...almost. Risotto had definite truffle presence. Creamy well seasoned and stocked with nubs of porcini. Straightforward, simple, and well executed. The calamari was the standard, cornmeal dusted and flash fried. After the octopus though, these tender, feather-light rings of squid were a real treat. I must say that any of these apps at regular price would be a monumental dissappointment...half-price = half the expectation. I probably will not go back.