Nonna
520 Columbus Avenue
My foodie friend Steve Kaufman recommended Nonna, and since
we were having dinner with Helen and Alfred, an Italian restaurant in the
neighborhood was perfect.. Nonna met the
two main dining requirements for Helen --- reasonably priced and and a menu containing
eggplant parmigiana. The bar at Nonna is
nicely anointed with soft touches of lighting and liquor bottles that were
displayed in a way that allowed the colored contents to glimmer. The restaurant area unfortunately is not a continuation
of the bar and is drab and dreary.
Nonna tries hard in the service area, but there is a
mismatch at what Noona thinks it can deliver and what it winds up serving.
Nonna’s attempt at innovative cuisine turns out to be fussy and does not
work. Ed’s branzino had oranges on top which
robbed the poor fish of its natural taste and turned it into a fruity mess.
Alfred orderd the “Sunday
Feast for $19 “ which turned out to be mostly misses. Alfred generously shared
this “feast,” and we all wound up having tastes. The starting course of arancini, a
mozzarella-stuffed fried rice ball was heavy and lacked texture. Unfortunately, this turned out to be no match
for the fried dessert of zeppole which was difficult to chew. The courses in between
were not much better. A Caesar salad with six large croutons was ordinary in its
presentation. The best thing one could
say about the pasta dish with sausage, beef tips and meatballs was its size,
but this odd meat combination was dry and the tomato sauce was
non-inspirational. And, alas the raison
d’etre for eating at Nonna in the first place---Helen’s eggplant parmigiana. Nonna’s
rendition lacked the traditional layering of eggplant and gooey cheese and did
not make it on to Helen’s top “10” list.
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