Last night was my first trip to Barbuzzo in Philadelphia, PA. I went with a friend who works in the food industry too. We were forty five minutes late for our reservation due to the traffic on 76 which is no big shocker there. The host was very helpful and said it would just another 10 to 15 minutes for a table so we walked back to the restroom from the long car ride. When walking through the restaurant we noticed that their kitchen line was almost like a bar setup in front but you can watch them cook food in front of you. All the food they produce in front of you is served to customers. It was really awesome to watch them working and to see such a fine craft in front of you performed.
(Kitchen )
We waited for our seats at the bar with a round of drinks. I first started with a Sanguinello which is made with ketel orange, blood orange puree, chambord, and lime. The drink was sweet with a slight tartness to it but I love blood oranges. Their drink list is very unique. The drinks are worth trying there because you won’t find it at any other restaurant in this area. Later in the night I enjoyed a glass of sangria. I am a common drinker of sangria when I go out. I feel to produce great sangria the fruit needs to be soaked for a while in the wine for the flavors to be absorbed into it. The fruit used in the sangria was green apple and the apples flesh were completely purple from the red wine. The tartness in the apple was enhanced in the sangria. The sangria they make there is made from Spanish wine.
Whenever I go out with this friend we always try different food items. When we sat down the server told us they recommend sharing the plates with people. We were already planning on doing that. We first started off with the Barbuzzo pig popcorn and the chicken liver and foie gras mousse. I loved the Barbuzzo pig popcorn because it was so crispy. As it sat on the counter in front of us it was still popping sound wise. It was fun to hear it. The horseradish aioli that went with the pig popcorn went perfectly with the pig popcorn. The Barbuzzo pig popcorn was so light and airy. The taste of pig was there. The chicken liver and foie gras was burned on top like crème brulee. It was fun when you took the spoon and broke the top of it. The mousse was very light and tasty and the almonds on top reinforced the flavor of the duck. The crostinis that came with it were a little too crispy and had too many holes in them. It was hard to spread the mousse on them.
(Pig Popcorn & Chicken liver and Foie Gras Mousse)
The next round of food we tried was the roasted marrow bone and the caciocavallo stuffed meatballs. The caciocavallo meatballs are made in their brick oven. The meatballs are huge and are packed with flavor. The meatballs are not smothered in sauce. I personally hate when pasta or meatballs are completely covered and soaking in sauce. The meatballs came with some toasted bread which was good on soaking up the sauce. The meatball was stuffed with cheese which I loved. The cheese was properly melted and oozy. When I cut into the meatball with my fork it just was stringy and you had to wrap the cheese around your fork. The meatballs were moist and not dried out like you would think because they were not covered in sauce. The roasted marrow bone was presented very elegantly. The roasted marrow bone was presented in the bone. The marrow bone just melted in your mouth like pure fat. It was so light and elegant. The marrow bone is truly special there and worth trying.
(Caciocavallo Stuffed Meatballs)
(Roasted Marrow Bone)
The next round of food we tried was the uovo pizza. Before I left I did a research of what to try there. Foobooz Philadelphia did a menu article of what readers recommend to eat. (http://philadelphia.foobooz.com/2012/01/04/2011-%e2%80%93-the-menu/ )The two that were recommended from Barbuzzo was the Uovo pizza and the Salted Caramel Budino. The uovo pizza was presently with a fried truffled farm egg, I love this personally a fried egg because is so pretty and simple at the same time. The secret white sauce they put in it is salty and sweet. That recipe is definitely worth getting if ever possible. I have personally always been afraid to try brussel sprouts. The brussel sprouts on top where a little tart but they added balance to the white sauce sweetness.
(Uovo Pizza)
The desserts we ordered were the la colombe espresso tiramisu and salted caramel budino which was also recommended by Foobooz menu to try too. The tiramisu was presented differently than any other tiramisu I have seen before. It was scooped out in a bowl. It seems that the tiramisu must have been made in a big container and then distributed out per order. The tiramisu was very moist and had a strong expresso taste to it. The food taste I love together is salty and sweet which perfectly describes the salty caramel budino. I was curious to see what a budino was. A budino is the Italian word for pudding. The salty caramel budino is served in a mason jar in an individual serving. The salty caramel budino is served in layers. On the bottom there is a chocolate cookie crust, next the rum pudding topped with the salted caramel. It’s fun when dipping your spoon into the mason jar and it’s fun pulling out each layer onto your spoon. I found a recipe for the Salted Caramel Budino from Barbuzzo and am excited to try making it later in the year.
(Salted Caramel Budion on left & La Colombe Espresso Tiramisu on right)
Barbuzzo is a place to be seen in this month Philadelphia magazine since it was named the number one restaurant in the area of 13th Street to eat out. It is a restaurant not to be messed with. The flavors are bold and rewarding there.
(Inside the Restaurant)
Barbuzzo
110 South 13th Street
Philadelphia, PA
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