But you have some errands to do and take a nice leisurely stroll from the Back Bay, so it's more like an early dinner @ 4pm. Either way, great idea.
The early Friday dinner was one of complete spontaneity, which I try never to deny myself. The beauty of this was, I was on my own so I didn't have to compromise on where to go. I got my pick of all the lovely restaurants that the North End had to offer. I decided to hit Piccola Venezia. Many years back we had a bit of a disagreement with a dissapointing dining experience and I thought I would concede it give it a second chance.
When I arrived on the scene around 4, PV was just switching over to their dinner menu. There was 1 large table of high school kiddies that the waiter kindly seated me as way from as possible. Sorry teenagers, you're loud. I got a nice corner table and felt very cozy with Julia Child looking down on me from a photo on the wall. Across the dining room I noticed there was one other party here. This table was much more pleasing. It was a group of little Nonas having coffee and dessert. I imagine they must have had their lunch, too.
The waiter brought me water and asked if I was alone. Proudly, I confirmed. And to drive the independency home, I put in an immediate order of Arancini for an appetizer. Just for me. By the time they came out, the teenagers left and peace was restored. I could then happily eavesdrop on the little nonas, gossiping with a waitress, who clearly knew these woman very well.
The Aranci was a serving of three and very large in size. The filling was made up of rice, beef, provolone and peas. Along side was a red pepper aioli and it was a great compliment. I really liked everything about the Arancini filling, but I do wish they went heavier on the peas because I am a huge fan. And because they were so filling, I only had 1 and took the others home. Note - they do not reheat well, so bring enough people to eat them all.
There was a shift change and the dinner staff started to roll in. Almost every staffer that came in waltzed right over to the table of nonas and said hello and gave hugs and kisses. I wished I was friends with these little ladies. They were clearly very popular.
For dinner I decided to go for the Risotto Primavera. I had a visual of what I thought the dish would look like and it couldn't have been more different. I imagined a small plate with finely diced veggies incorporated into the rice and a pretty garnish of parsley. What I was served was nothing short of a entire veggie garden. Every veggie you could think of was in this dish in large slices. Mushrooms, peppers, onion, broccoli, water chestnuts, peas, tomato, oh my! It looked like a homemade dish from the kitchen of a loving Italian. No pretense, no beating around the bush. Lots of creamy risotto and a lot of fresh roasted veggies. It was wonderful. And also very filling. I didn't even make a dent. This I took home as well and it reheated very nicely.
And the dining solo did not stop there. I treated myself, further, to a cannoli and limoncello. No complaints about either, as you can imagine. I've never met a cannoli I didn't conquer.
It was nice to make amends with PV and put a successful dining experience between us. I was very pleased all around and enjoyed taking myself on a date here. I felt a lot of authenticity and home in there. PV is definitely redeemed in this blogger's tastebuds.
*Please note and commend me on not making one inappropriate and/or immature comment about the Arancini. (See Solstice blog)
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