Truffled Summer: Perbacco

I love the summer in New York. The only reason the (oh, so very cold) winters are bearable is because there is the promise of spring and summer to follow. Nothing seems to illustrate the summer better than a walk through the East Village on a pleasant summer Saturday evening. The streets are bustling with people who, in a dramatic about face for New York, have a smile on their faces and don't seem to have a care in the world. Most enticingly, the streets are lined with small, open air restaurants and cafes, from tables on the sidewalk to open bay windows flooding the small spaces with the warm summer air. One of these charming little restaurants, and one of my favourite Italians in the city, is Perbacco.


The first time I heard of Perbacco was when my uncle, AK, included it on his list of reservations that he had asked me to make for one of his trips to the city. My brother, him and I had a wonderful meal that time (and an absolutely fantastic Barolo to go with) and I have been recommending it to friends ever since. I hadn't had a chance to go back there myself though, so wasn't complaining when my friends PB and CL made reservations to go there this past weekend.

Perbacco is all charm. From the wooden tables to the exposed brick walls and the Italian managers, you would be hard pressed to find a more perfect "first-date" spot. In fact, I had recommended it to one of my friends as a place to take his girlfriend's parents and it worked just as well. There are a couple of tables for 2 out on the sidewalk in the summer but the open windows provide more or less the same atmosphere inside. The overall space is small, but the tables are nicely spaced apart, and even a large group of 16 that was present the night we were there didn't make the restaurant feel overcrowded. If anything, the one misstep that night may have been the loud, house music that suddenly started playing midway through our meal. To be honest, the music was fun and catchy, but it just didn't seem to fit with the overall feel of the place.

On to the food. PB and CL had both been at a barbeque that afternoon and, having had their share of meat, were willing to just share a whole bunch of vegetarian food. As one can imagine, this worked out just fine for me, because Perbacco has a menu full of vegetarian options that sound so good that they make you want to try a slew of them. Its hard to see a dish on the menu that translates to Parmesan Creme Brulee and not look forward to that coming out of the kitchen. And honestly, its an absolute treat when it does. A caramelized, crispy crust of balsamic vinegar lies above a creamy custard of parmesan that just melts in your mouth. The sweet and sour of the balsamic cuts the cheese perfectly and makes sure you don't stop till the ramekin has been emptied of all its contents.

Another stand out dish was the peach salad, which came with gorgonzola and a drizzle of balsamic. I'll admit I wasn't thrilled when CL wanted to order a salad, but the freshness of the peaches made it a perfect summer dish and completely worthwhile. We also ordered a server recommended appetizer of what essentially was thin fried flat bread, covered in burrata cheese, arugula and cherry tomatoes, which all in all was a little underwhelming.

The highlight of the evening, though, was the summer truffle menu that Perbacco had going on as a special. To my absolute delight, each dish on the appetizer, main course and dessert menu was vegetarian and we promptly proceeded to order them all. The appetizer was a duo of truffles and eggs (fried, with shavings of truffles and croutons and scrambled, with asparagus shoots, fried shallots and of course, truffles) that was so good, I kept wondering if I could ever eat eggs again if it didn't taste of all that truffle goodness! The main course was almost as good - homemade tagliolini in a cheesy burrata sauce, heaped with truffle shavings that was licked clean way too quickly. PB and CL tried to convince me at this point that the "umami" from eating truffles is basically what you get from eating meat, but I'd like to believe there is nothing as heavenly as the smell of truffles wafting all over your food.

Nothing, however, is perfect and our last couple of dishes were a little disappointing. Although the wheat tagliolini in a black olive, cherry tomato and garlic sauce on a bed of basil pesto sounded fantastic to my vegetarian palate, what came out was all too salty too be enjoyable and the only thing that was left uneaten on my plate. The dessert menu

sounded very appealing (the chocolate hamburger on the table next to us was a study in creativity), but left us wishing there was more to each dish than just the name. The dessert on the truffle menu had the truffles frozen to a crisp, pretty much ruining the entire point of having them on the plate and CL's order of strawberry shortcakehad too much ice cream and not enough sponge. I, however, ended my meal on an excellent note, with a couple of sips of the Vin Santo that PB ordered providing an amazingly rich honey taste that just lingered and lingered.

Perbacco had blown me away the first time I visited and I am so glad I still feel the same way after my second visit. While it is almost always easy to get away with being vegetarian at an Italian restaurant, it is so much more gratifying when the experience is so vastly expanded the way it is at Perbacco. In spite of our extensive selection that night, there is still an eggplant melanzane, mozzarella stuffed rice balls, a selection of bruschette and a parmesan and balsamic risotto that I am looking forward to trying on my next visit. During winter truffle season, perhaps?

Perbacco is in New York's East Village, on 234 East 4th Street. Moderately Expensive. Very Veggie Friendly. Highly Recommended.

www.perbacconyc.com

Photo Credit: Perbacco