Oh woe is me! This was our last night in the Bay Area and we didn't even scratch the surface of our culinary gluttony. Bro got us a gift certificate to Incanto and since they were on the short list of restaurants, I immediately made a reservation for Friday night. Located in the burb part of The City, I first heard about Chef Cosentino when he competed for the "Next Iron Chef" position that Michael Symon eventually won. His dishes looked a little strange at times but entrancing at the same time. What sealed the deal to dine there was his appearance on No Reservations with Tony Bourdain. I previously ignored all strange cuts of meat, especially offals but in the past year or so have been experimenting with various oxtail recipes, tripe and heck, I'd even experiment with sweetbreads if you can find them at the supermarket.
We started with the Veal Sweetbread Terrina, Dates and Pickled Ramps and the Parsnip and Bone Marrow Ravioli with Sangiovese Sauce. I'm sure sure if these sweetbreads were the thynus or the pancreas cut since they were in basically what was a rustic pork based terrine (especially since sweetbreads don't have a lot of flavor on their own - I think of them as organ tofu). The terrine itself was very flavorful - if not a bit large for 2 diners - and the dates added a nice touch of sweetness while the acidity of the pickled ramps helped cut the richness (pickled ramps also go by rakkyo in Japanese cuisine). The mustard also helped cut through the richness of the dish.
The ravioli were very good on their own but to tell the truth, I wouldn't have known that there was bone marrow in the filling. They bascially substituted for butter or any other fat that normally would have been incorporated with the pureed parsnips. None the less, it was very good with the Sangiovese sauce (the acid in Sangiovese also helped to cleanse the palate).
The Mrs then proceeded to the Marinated Grilled Sardines with Grilled Watermelon Radish, Red Onion and Parsley. She dispatched the bones from those 5 sardines with the skill of a neurosurgeon... mind you with a knife and fork sans hashi which is the tool of choice for bone-in fish. A little sweetness, a little sour, a little salty and very fresh sardines. Yum!
I chose the Pork Shoulder with Pumpkin Agrodolce (sweet and sour) and Creamy Polenta. The dish was a flavor melange of sweet, sour, savory, creamy and very good until I hit the wall. About 2/3 through my entree, the large lunch started hitting me like the ghost of Christmas Past... or like the ghost of Steak Tartare Past. I barely finished the entree and could only look at the Mrs' selection of Fresh Ginger Cake , Warm Butterscotch and Vanilla Ice Cream for dessert. I settled for an espresso.
I would like to return to try the Mint Pappardelle and Beef Brasato and the Handkerchief Pasta and Rustic Pork Ragu. Of course, the next time we're in the Bay Area the menu will have changed but I'm sure Chef Cosentino will have more than a few more savory selections on the menu... I'll just have a salad for lunch the next time.
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