The Dining Dish blog is Dara Bunjon's take on anything food, both national and in her hometown of Baltimore. Warning: this food blog can be harmful to your waistline.

Saturday, May 03, 2008

$30 Three Course Chef's Tasting Menu

I would be remiss if I didn’t say that this blogger is feeling the financial pinch being felt by many others but that has not kept me from dining out. Case in point, Sotto Sopra’s 3-Course Chef’s Tasting Menu that is offered every Wednesday evening for $30. Each month the executive chef, Bill Crouse chooses items off their seasonal based menu to highlight. The choices offered are crafted that everyone can dine from vegetarian to carnivore.

The husband, as I will refer to him in this column, and good friend, Patti, joined me last Wednesday for this excursion to Sotto Sopra Restaurant, a restaurant known for their contemporary Italian food. I just love their venue which is housed in a turn-of-the century, Mt. Vernon town house that is home to fabulous artwork, large gilded-framed mirrors and drapes that emphasize the stylish décor. I’ve always found the energy at Sotto Sopra invigorating and this Wednesday evening was no different. There was a party going on in the back section around the bar, all the tables filled as we dined and guests were engaged in lively conversation.

Our waiter, Isaac, brought our grissini and focaccia to the table along with a plate of drizzled extra virgin olive oil topped with Reggiano Parmesan cheese and fresh ground black pepper. We all opted for the Insalata di Rucola for our appetizer and went different paths for the entrees. Everything was delicious, the portions generous considering the low prices and we left not a single morsel on our plates. Service was timely, pleasant, and informative. Below is the menu for our evening with photographs of our choices. Please remember I’m not Ansel Adams and don’t claim to be – hopefully my photographs do justice to the wonderful dishes we enjoyed that evening.

Here is the what we had and you can CLICK HERE for for May and upcoming menus.


Sotto Sopra Restaurant
3-Course Chef's Tasting Menu
Wednesday Nights April’s Menu

(choice of Appetizer)


Zuppa del Giorno
Soup of the Day


Insalata di Rucola
Baby arugula, crispy apple-wood smoked bacon, crumbled goat cheese, dried cherries and stone ground mustard vinaigrette




Cuore di Latuga
Boston lettuce served with Gorgonzola cheese, sliced Granny Smith apples & caramelized walnuts with maple balsamic vinaigrette
(choice of Entree)


Ravioli dell’ Amore
House-made spinach and ricotta stuffed ravioli sautéed in butter and sage served with a pesto cream sauce and sun-dried tomatoes

Pesce di Giorno
Fish of the Day
(we had salmon with fingerling potatoes)

Fettuccine al Mare
House-made fettuccine served with mussels, shrimp and calamari in a light tomato sauce


Piccatine di Vitello
Sautéed veal scaloppini, parsnip puree, roasted asparagus and tarragon butter

(choice of Dessert)

Tiramisu
Ladyfingers dipped in espresso coffee with mascarpone & cocoa

Vanilla Crème Brulee
Custard topped with caramelized sugar

$30 per person

Does not include beverages, tax, or gratuity and other promotions and discounts are not applicable.

Reservations Suggested

For even greater savings you might want to arrive early and enjoy the restaurant’s Aperitivo Hour drink and food specials at the bar from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Also their flier said that on Friday night’s the drink specials are all night long at the bar.

Food for thought: You might want to sign up for Sotto Sopra’s E-Newsletter or subscribe to their blog for updates on special unadvertised events (dinners, cooking classes etc), recipes, and videos. (CLICK HERE)

Have you found any dining bargains? – Let me know.

Dining Dish says get out of the house, beat the inflations woes and enjoy a wonderful 3 course dinner for just $30. I strongly suggest reservations.

Sotto Sopra Restaurant
405 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
410 625 0534

open 7 days a week
Lunch: Monday through Saturdays
Dinner: served daily
Street parking and valet parking at night.
http://www.sottosopra.us/
http://www.sottosoprainc.blogspot.com/


Sotto Sopra on Urbanspoon

2 comments:

www.ifoods.tv said...

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John said...

Dara,

Thank you again for introducing me to Sotto Sopra on Tuesday. The Wednesday night excursion will have to be my second visit.

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