The List

Last night I had dinner at Bella Trattoria with my good friend, BokChoyBoy. Bella's is one of my favorite places to eat in San Francisco but BCB doesn't really care for the place - I think it has something to do with the nasty gnocchi he ate the last time he was there. In my opinion, gnocchi is nasty regardless of where you eat it so I convinced BCB to go to Bella's and told him not to order the gnocchi. Luckily I'm visiting from a town that is not known for its good eats so I could play that card and eat at Bella's! :)

We started off sharing a Caesar salad - they make a great caesar there. Crisp romaine lettuce leaves in bite-size pieces with slivers of fresh parmesan cheese and a lemony caesar dressing...I really like that the dressing isn't too creamy or too tart and that it's not drowning the lettuce. Although his name may state otherwise, BCB is not a vegetable person at all but he ate all his salad - practically licked his plate clean. :)

Our next course was a very simple and clean bruschetta with fresh mozzarella. I normally don't care for bruschetta but something about seeing the fresh mozzarella in the description on the menu erased my memory of all my previously bad experiences with bruschetta. I don't like how the grilled bread is usually very hard and cuts the roof of my mouth but Bella's bruschetta was perfectly grilled, the tomatoes were sweet, the basil was fragrant and the balance of olive oil and vinaigrette dressing was perfect. Both BCB and I licked that plate clean!

For my pasta course, I ordered something "light" since I knew we would have a lot to eat. The chicken ravioli was made with fresh pasta and served with a tomato and basil sauce. Of course, I had the waiter grate fresh parmesan cheese over the top. BCB had a sampler plate that consisted of a penne with pink sauce, chicken ravioli with a cream sauce and GNOCCHI with a tomato sauce! First thing BCB did after the dish was placed in front of him was to try the gnocchi. He didn't like it so he made me try it. Of course, I didn't like it - and we both agreed that he should never order gnocchi again - regardless of where he is. Gnocchi is just not made for consumption unless you like soggy dough. Luckily, BCB enjoyed the 2 other pasta dishes on his plate.

Our dessert course consisted of 2 different desserts. Mais bien sur! We ordered the chicken profiteroles and zabaglione with strawberries. We definitely licked both plates clean! Needless to say, I was stuffed after that meal...my jeans are fitting a bit snug today but it was well worth it! And the best part is that Bella's is back on BCB's "list". For those of you who aren't into eating out, The List is each person's list of favorite dining places. Bella's has always been on my list since I first ate there years ago and now it's back on BCB's list.

*edit* *We had CHOCOLATE profiteroles not chicken profiteroles. I guess no one is really paying attention to what they're reading except for BokChoyBoy! --MM *

I can't wait - Mr. Moc arrives tonight and our first meal together will be lunch at Sam's tomorrow before the wedding. They're expecting us and as usual, we won't have to wait for seats at the sushi bar. All I can say is Omakase, please! --MM