Incanto

It may offer a "traditional" menu that showcases simple high-quality ingredients in classic Italian style, but this Noe Valley neighborhood gem takes such a classic old-world approach to wine and food its almost novel. And its not simply the sustainably grown produce, and humanely raised antibiotic and hormone free meats on the menu that reflect the Old World Italian culinary values; its the wine. Dominated by 95% Italian wines (at any given time, the restaurant stores about 3,000 bottles in climate-controlled wine closets), the wine list at Incanto is so comprehensive that your nearly guaranteed to pick something satisfying to suit your budget. And not just popular Tuscan and Piedmont wines either, but some really interesting selections from Italian regions ranging from Sicily to Valle d'Aosta.

Neophyte Oenophiles will also enjoy the option of ordering a featured "flight" of three of four different wines each arriving with a little round label appended to the stem of the glass inscribed with the region and name of your choice. The decor is warm and casually elegant. About a dozen people can sit at the sand-stone colored bar. The small main dining area is quite cozy while the intimate "Dante" room featuring the complete text of The Divine Comedy flanked by busts of Dante and Beatrice, is just about right for a single small private party of 12-20 people. Here, with a mere two weeks notice, a group of friends can enjoy the "Whole Beast " option and dine in style on a whole-roasted pig, lamb, or goat.

A recent meal at Incanto began with the excellent selection of specialty breads including house-made focaccia, parmesan-crusted breadsticks and sesame studded flatbread accompanied by a small ramekin of chopped olives and a gratis liter of house-filtered, house-sparkled water. The Shaved porcini salad with variegated mint, arugala and parmesan featured the ingredients in their simple splendor. It is the kind of simplicity that only works is when the kitchen is truly committed to quality on every level. While Chef Chris Cosentino has the guts to serve offal meats in high-style, he also has the ability to adapt to vegan dietary restrictions with the same remarkable ingenuity. His special order for my vegan companion involving handkerchief pasta with potatoes, porcinis, and fresh mint culled directly from the roof-top garden, was an artful improvisation and perfectly executed.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Braised Free-range Chicken Leg with new crop red potatoes, purslane & pancetta-sage vinaigrette. The savory vinaigrette perfectly suited the mild sour-sweet flavor of the purslane, a plant that the philosopher Thoreau used to enjoy simply boiled alone. Dessert was a simple yet superlative Chocolate Budino, sort of a cross between a syrup and a pudding and served with a perfect dollop of whipped cream and an hulking hazelnut biscotti very well-suited for decadent dipping purposes.



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FOODISM