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<\/a>Before re-opening its doors in early summer, Piacere Mio operated as a coffeehouse. A very cool remodel ensued along with a couple of words tacked onto its original name (Ristorante Italiano) to tell us that the property is now a full-service restaurant.<\/p>\n
Piacere Mio translates to \u201cmy pleasure,\u201d which aptly relays the ownership\u2019s eagerness to feed you. But it\u2019s really our pleasure in the end, starting from the moment complimentary bread is brought to the table with a ramekin of lentils and olive oil.<\/p>\n
Italian designer Mariapaola Miele of Los Angeles executed a relaxing, inspired look that includes a large map of the world done in tapestry and an interior wall using bricks from an old Chicago warehouse. Hanging above the center of the dining room is an abstract arrangement of hanging lights and picture frames.<\/p>\n
Our lunch trio started with baked eggplant wrapped around ricotta and young mozzarella. Resembling lightweight lasagna, and without the carbs, it rivaled all other rollatini-style recipes in that the thin sheets of eggplant were strikingly tender and didn\u2019t carry the extra weight of being initially fried in bread crumbs common to other versions. The rolls were draped in mellow red sauce that revealed discernible measures of fennel seed.<\/p>\n Sliced even thinner was aged, marinated beef, served carpaccio style with arugula and shaved Parmesan. No surprises here, but so damn good that it disappeared within minutes.<\/p>\n The lemon vinaigrette house salad was beautifully simplistic, containing only arugula and olives encircled by large wedges of ruby-red tomatoes, possibly heirlooms. It was crowned with a few wide shavings of Parmesan. In traditional Italian style, the ingredients were dressed lighter than what most American palates might prefer. The tradeoff is that you can actually taste the vegetables.<\/p>\n Arriving with a strong hankering for pasta, we ordered three different types and shared them equally. The menu features a \u201cmake your own\u201d section that allows you to pick the cut and match it to a sauce. With the exception of spaghetti and a gluten-free option, it\u2019s all house-made.<\/p>\n We chose large, flat pappardelle noodles with Bolognese. The tomato sauce is made with red wine, which added a rustic flavor while tenderizing the clumps of ground beef and pork strewn throughout. It was delightfully classic-tasting.<\/p>\n We also paired capellini (angel hair) to pesto sauce that adheres to true Roman standards, meaning that the garlic factor dances softly in the background opposed to the loud performance it tends to give in Americanized versions. Here, you taste the basil first, the pulverized pine nuts second and the Pecorino and Parmesan cheeses third.<\/p>\n My all-time favorite Italian dish is spaghetti Carbonara, a rarity in many restaurants due to the tricky maneuver of adding eggs into the scheme without cooking them into scrambled form.<\/p>\n It\u2019s an established entr\u00e9e on Piacere\u2019s menu and worth every calorie. The eggs are whisked into a fair amount of rendered pancetta to create a rich, invisible sauce thickened further by Pecorino Romano cheese. Unless you\u2019re an Italian farmer cultivating a hilly plot of land all day, chances are high that you won\u2019t be able to eat the whole portion in one sitting.<\/p>\n Needless to say, you\u2019d deprive yourself room for the tiramisu made in high gourmet fashion with dark chocolate and coffee liqueur.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a>