Always in Good Hands at Angelino’s

A few days ago I went to lunch with a visiting friend at Angelino’s along the waterfront in Sausalito. Pasquale Ancona, Angelino’s owner was there, and told us to leave ourselves in his hands. A wonderful lunch ensued – fresh squid braised with beans in a spicy tomato sauce, followed by spaghetti simply prepared with some sautéed diced vegetables and topped with grated cured tuna heart. Sadly I did not have my camera with me.

Yesterday I was back at Angelino’s for lunch, and again went with Pasquale’s recommendations from the day’s specials – a classic comfort food meal:

~ Polenta with a braised pork shoulder topping;
~ Lasagna with mozzarella, scamorza affumicata, sausage and meatballs; and, for dessert
~ Budino with a spash of caramel.

Everything was excellent. The lasagna was particularly good with the smoked flavor of the scamorza added just the right touch. Pasquale referred to it as "treccione" - meaning "braided" in Italian - since it braided in the production process. Note to file: when Pasquale is there don't even bother with the menu.

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La Pasqua con Chi Vuoi – Easter Lunch at Angelino’s

Last Sunday I was at Angelino’s for lunch when Pasquale suggested I try a piece of “Pastiera” for dessert. When I asked what that was, he said it was a traditional Neapolitan tort prepared at Easter made in part from wheat berries, ricotta, candied citrus rind and “orange flower water.” I tried a slice and it was fantastic. When Pasquale told me they would be serving the dish on Easter Sunday along with roast goat (capretto) and a few other Easter specialties, I knew where I would be for lunch that day.

Easter Sunday started off overcast and cool this morning, and by the time Nancy and I got to Angelino’s at lunchtime it was raining hard with a cold wind. What happened to Spring?! Alex and Cass braved the Bay crossing on the ferry to join us and they were also waterlogged upon arrival. However, Angelino’s was bustling with a full house and a high energy level – a great spot to be on a chilly day.

Teresa seated us and Giancarlo brought us the special Easter menus. We ordered some Prosecco to start and perused our choices.

Alex and I both ordered the Antipasto Pasqualino and the Capretto, and Cass went with the Pansotti. Of the special Easter dishes, the first one that arrived at the table was the Neapolitan Easter Bread (called “Castiello”).

Castiello is an interesting bread which incorporates cheese and salumi – see this recipe from “The Italian Baker” by Carol Field, as well as this interesting challenge on the Pinch My Salt blog where a group of people have made Castiello based on the recipe in “The Bread Baker's Apprentice.”

The Antipasto Pasqualino was a very good starting dish – simple and light with a good mix of flavors, including the pecorino cheese, sopressata and fresh fava beans which are currently in season.

The Torta Pasqualina that came with the antipasto is a dish made with Swiss chard, ricotta and hard boiled eggs. Pasquale stopped by to chat with us and told us that the dish (see a recipe here) is originally from Liguria. Traditionally it was made with layers of filling alternated with paper-thin sheets of pastry -- 33 layers in representing each year of Christ’s life. Also, twelve eggs were added to represent the apostles. Pasquale’s preparation pared back on those ingredients a bit, but was still very tasty.

The Capretto was excellent - a large serving with a lot of garlic and some bones which made it convenient to to a bit of gnawing.

Cass’ Pansotti was another Ligurian dish - a stuffed pasta. It mean’s “pot-bellied” and Angelino’s plump version certainly fit that description.


The Pastiera at the end of the meal was as good as the one I had last week - enhanced this time by a scoop of gelato.

For our wine with our meal, Giancarlo recommended a bottle of the 2003 Castello di Salle Montepulciano d’Abruzzo from Sallis Castrum in Bolognano in Abruzzo, not far from Pescara and the Adriatic coast.

It was an easy drinking wine with light tannins and a perfect pairing for our lunch.

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Another Great Angelino Pasta – Orecchiette con Salsiccia e Broccolini

In my last post regarding Angelino Restaurant in Sausalito I mentioned my addiction to their Linguine alla Pescatore, a condition that results in no small part from their perfect preparation of the pasta. Happily I have now found a second of their pastas which provides a perfect counterpart – the above-pictured orecchiette with mildly spicy Italian sausage and broccolini. The first dish is a medley of seafood in a tomato sauce with long noodles, while the second presents a pork and vegetable combination over the “little ears” disc-shaped pasta from the region of Puglia.

In Puglia the most traditional dish using orecchiette is probably Orecchiette Baresi – a simple preparation using rapine, a relatively bitter green. Pasquale has chosen to substitute the milder broccolini and to add the coarsely ground pork sausage that they prepare there at Angelino. It is a great combination, enhanced further by the fact that they make their orecchiette by hand at Angelino, and, as with the Linguine alla Pescatore, know how to cook them so they arrive at the table al dente.

Towards the end of my lunch at Angelino today I got into a discussion with Pasquale about grappa. I told him that I had tried grappa a couple of times in the past, but did not really care for it (a common reaction I note that my friend Vanessa has written about in her Italy in SF blog). With Pasquale’s urging I ended up trying Angelino’s “house brand” of grappa from Carpenè Malvolti, one of Italy’s largest prosecco producers.

It was certainly not bad, but was not enough to change my mind about grappa. Then Pasquale had me try a second grappa - the Po' di Poli Moscato Grappa produced by Jacopo Poli from Moscato grape pomace.

According to a wine review I subsequently read:

"The bouquet offers smells of tropical fruits and baking spice. Entry is minerally, pleasantly ripe, viscous in texture; the midpalate point is earthy, floral, stony and off dry. Finishes gracefully, minerally and drier than the midpalate.”

I am not sure I got all of that, but I think I now at least begin to see what the fuss is all about regarding better quality grappa. Yet another area to explore!

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Oh Waiter – There’s a Black Horse in My Soup!!

Angelino Restaurant, looking out on the Bay in the center of Sausalito, has for many years been one of our favorite Italian restaurants. However, we have almost always just gone there just for dinner.

Recently I went there for lunch on a beautiful afternoon with some friends visiting from out of town and was struck with what a great place it is to be during the day when you can really see the view. Since then I have become a regular for a lunch on the weekend.

Remember the 1987 movie “Moonstruck” set in New York and starring Cher and Nicholas Cage? The Castorini family had a favorite Italian restaurant in their Brooklyn neighborhood – Grand Ticino - that they went to frequently, and where they were always warmly greeted and waited on by the solicitous waiter, Bobo.

That feeling of genuine hospitality and welcome from the Ancona family and their staff is what one finds at Angelino. Recently, Angelino was reviewed by Leslie Harbib in the MarinScope, and I thought her review hit the mark. As she noted there, apart from the food, one of the factors that adds immeasurably to the overall experience and authenticity at Angelino is that in addition to Pasquale Ancona, the owner who comes from Napoli, two of the waiters, Danilo and Giancarlo, are also from Italy.

When I go to Angelino for lunch I love to sit at the bar, which is tended by either Sal or Ted, and which commands a nice view of the room and the Bay beyond. In addition, if they have some time, either Pasquale or his wife, Donna, will stop by for a chat.

My favorite dish at Angelino is their Linguine alla Pescatore, which is served with a wonderful spicy tomato and fish sauce including shrimp, scallops, clams, mussels, squid and chunks of fish. The pasta is also cooked perfectly al dente, which adds a great deal to the dish. A glass of the Vermentino from Sardegna is the perfect accompaniment for the dish.


The other day when I was at Angelino for lunch I was a bit hungrier than usual and decided to also have a bowl of their soup of the day, which turned out to be a Tuscan soup made with kale, beans and farro. It was absolutely fantastic – both great flavor and a very interesting texture provided by the slightly chewy farro, a grain I had never had before. I asked Pasquale about the ingredients, which unexpectedly led him to burst out laughing. It turns out I had confused the Italian for Lacinato kale (cavolo nero) with that for a black horse (cavallo nero). Something to watch out for in the future.

When I got home that day I was able to find a recipe online for Farro Soup with Kale. A few days later I used that recipe as a starting point for my own attempt at the dish as follows:

INGREDIENTS (serves 8):

~ 6 ounces whole grain farro (Note: I used a brand called Bartolini from Umbria, which was “semipearled” (i.e. perlato), a term which apparently indicates that the hull has been removed from the grain. I read in one place that if the hull has been removed, there is no need to pre-soak the grain before using it. However, I did soak it overnight..

~ 1/2 pound borlotti beans (Note: Borlotti beans, also known as roman beans or romano beans, are a variety of cranberry bean bred in Italy to have a thicker skin. Borlotti/ cranberry beans originated in Colombia where they were known as cargamanto. The bean is a medium large tan bean, splashed with red/black to magenta streaks. I used a brand of dried beans called Riso Carena from Pavia in Lombardia))

~ 1 can (28 oz.) whole, peeled tomatoes, including the juice (I used La Primavera brand from Napoli imported by AG Ferrari)

~ 1/3 lb pancetta, coarsely minced

~ 2 cloves garlic, minced

~ 1 medium onion, minced

~ 1 carrot, minced

~ 1 8-inch rib of celery, minced

~ 2 bunches (about a pound) of Cavolo Nero kale (also called Lacinato Kale, Tuscan Kale, Black Kale or Dinosaur Kale), stems removed and coarsely shredded

~ 1 qt. chicken stock (I used Pacific Natural Foods brand)

~ Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

~ Olive oil

~ Salt & pepper to taste

PREPARATION:

The night before you are doing the cooking soak the farro and, assuming you are using dried beans, the beans.

Before starting the preparation of the soup, cook the soaked beans until close to being done. I put them in a pot with water to cover by about 2 inches, brought it to a boil, and then simmered the beans for about 2 hours.When the beans are ready, blend about 2/3 of them in a blender. Put the blended beans, the remaining whole beans, the water the beans were cooked in, and the soaked farro (drained), into a soup pot.

Sauté the minced pancetta in a large frying pan over a medium flame. When done, remove to a dish and hold.

Sauté the garlic in the pancetta fat over a low flame (you may need to add a bit of olive oil). When just translucent (but not browned), remove it to the same plate as the pancetta.

Sauté the onion, celery and carrot (i.e. to make a basic soffritto) in 1/3 cup olive oil over a low flame. Once the onions are translucent, stir in the tomatoes (including the juice from the can), add back the pancetta and garlic that was set aside, and simmer for a couple of minutes more. Transfer the onion/ celery/ carrot/ garlic/ pancetta/ tomato mixture to the soup pot, and add the kale and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer for 2 hours, stirring frequently. Should the soup become too thick add water. Check the seasoning towards the end of the cooking time.

Serve with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

REFLECTIONS:

The soup was very good the first time I made it – here it is:

The one major deficiency I found my soup had by comparison to the Angelino version was that the farro in my soup was too soft. The farro in the Angelino soup had a definite chewiness to it which mine lacked. It may be that it should not be soaked as long, or perhaps I should try to use unhulled farro (i.e. not “perlato”).

Also, although it was not bad, the broth in my version had more of a tomato flavor and red color to it than the Angelino version. The next time I plan to omit the juice from the canned tomatoes. Obviously using fresh tomatoes would be best, although this is a winter dish.

I think the soup would also be enhanced by being served with some garlic-rubbed bruschetta (toast, ideally made with ciabatta bread) on the side.

The overall preparation/cooking time (from the time I started the pre-cooking of the beans to the time the soup was served) was about 4 ½ hours. The actual ingredient preparation – primarily the mincing and chopping of ingredients – took about an hour.

I definitely plan to make this again.

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A New Sausalito Spot for Breakfast (and Lunch)

It is always great to have a comfortable place to go for a relaxed breakfast. A couple of months ago, CIBO (“food” in Italian) opened in Sausalito at the corner of Bridgeway and Pine, right next to the McCloud Design Studio.

While I was initially skeptical as to whether Sausalito could support yet another restaurant, after giving CIBO an initial try I was won over. Since then I have been spending a number of weekend mornings there enjoying the great food, atmosphere and people.

Although it is a brand new restaurant, CIBO has deep Sausalito roots. Like many who live in Sausalito, our “go-to” Italian restaurant for many years has been Angelino Restaurant on Bridgeway owned by Pasquale and Donna Ancona. Although Angelino is in the heart of the main Sausalito tourist zone and has its share of customers who are only visiting Sausalito for the day, it has always also prided itself in being a neighborhood place that takes good care of the locals, and we have had many pleasant meals there with our family and friends. Plus, apart from Pasquale who is originally from the Naples area, there have at least a couple of waiters from Italy with whom I can practice my feeble Italian.


Alfredo Ancona, Pasquale and Donna’s son, and his wife, Tara, are the owners of CIBO. Apart from just serving good food, they have also demonstrated in many ways at the restaurant support for the local Sausalito community and local producers. To point out just a few examples:

~ The Sausalito architectural firm of Donald K. Olson designed the restaurant and helped preserve some of brick and other elements from the previous structure which adds a great deal to the restaurant's charm and character.





~ All of the dishes that are used at CIBO come from Heath Ceramics at the north end of Sausalito.

~ Robert Bengtson photographs grace the walls, all reflecting design elements found in or near the restaurant.

Needless to say, any restaurant is really about the cuisine, and happily CIBO gets high marks there. For starters they serve organic coffee from Blue Bottle, a Oakland-based coffee company. I had never tried their coffee before but, now having had it at CIBO, I think I am beginning to understand what the fuss is about.

On the food side, Tara is a pastry chef and there is always an interesting variety of pastries to accompany your morning beverages. CIBO also serves lunch and, while I have not yet had a chance to stop by later in the day, they have a number of tasty-looking panini in their display case every morning, not to mention a variety of preserves, cookies, and assorted Italian yummies.

To round it out, Tara and her staff, including Guillaume, Tasha, Carina, Ojha and Charley, are always cheerful and welcoming, even though they have to get up early to bake the pastries and work hard get ready for those of us who like to arrive at 7:00AM when they open.

And, if you are there at the right time, you may even run into Pasquale and Donna enjoying a cup of morning coffee!

CIBO is well worth a visit.

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Gathering of the Sung and Moyle Clans

Our son, Andrew, and his fiance, Connie, came up from Santa Monica to visit us here in the Bay Area over the Valentine's Day weekend, and brought Connie's parents, Sam and Elaine, and Connie's brother, John, along with them. This was the first chance Nancy and I had to meet the Sung's so we were very excited.

Although the wet weather put a crimp in their plans to do some sightseeing around San Francisco, we all (including Pat, Alex and Cass) met at Angelino Restaurant in Sausalito for dinner last night and had a great time. Still no date set for the wedding but hopefully more information will be forthcoming soon!

Cass, Alex, Pat, John, Mike, Nancy, Andrew, Connie, Elaine and Sam at Angelino

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