Lunch & Dinner: Piccolo Forno

I’ve had both lunch and dinner at Piccolo Forno. Both were good but one emerged as the winner.

Lunch: Fiorentina – Genoa salami, marinated artichoke, fontina cheese, & pesto on ciabatta bread. Served with a bean salad.

I have a soft spot for a good lunch. Nothing is better than enjoying your mid-day break with a delicious lunch. Well, maybe a cold beer during lunch on vacation. That beats just about everything though.

Lunch will always be my favorite meal because it has potential to be the best of all worlds. You can have breakfast if you want. You can have dinner if you want. You can even have dessert if you want. It’s right in the middle of the day and no one can tell you what you can and can’t have. It’s the rebel of the meal time world. It’s the middle finger to an old person. It just feel right most of the time.

If I can have a sandwich for lunch I probably will. Sandwiches are delicious and don’t try and tell me otherwise. This sandwich was the best salami sandwich I’ve ever had. Not the best sandwich ever but most certainly the best salami sandwich. Ciabatta bread is magical. Its sweetness really balanced out the saltiness of the salami and don’t even get me started on fontina. Delicious. And the bean salad. That was a pleasant surprise. Who knew white beans could taste so fresh and delightful. The salad was actually better than the sandwich.

Dinner: Maccheroni con Melanzaneal Forno – Baked rigatoni with fried eggplant, onions, beechamel and gruyere

Piccolo Forno at dinner is a totally different beast than lunch. The space is tiny and the overflow of people in the tiny entrance can make it an awkward wait. Save everyone including yourself and go across the street to Round Corner Cantina. They have hip drink selections (Tecate & Pimm’s Cup)  and an amazing atmosphere. It will be a great start to the night. Trust me.

Seeing that Piccolo Forno is BYOB, be sure to bring along a bottle of your favorite libation. A red wine is probably the way to go as it would pair well with most of the menu.

I originally was going to order the risotto special. I talked myself out of that and into the Maccheroni. Probably a better choice. It was hearty and full of my favorite food group: cheese. And lots of it. The fried eggplant was lost and I hardly even noticed or remembered it was a part of the dish. The cheese was the star here anyway.

It was a close race because each meal was mid-range on the tasty scale but the winner and champion of my heart was the Fiorentina. The meal and atmosphere were just a step above and way less frantic and rushed. Just the way every meal should be.