Campiello

Rating:

Here's another absolute in the death-and-taxes vein: It's impossible to have a bad meal at Campiello. The 12-year-old restaurant, part of the D'Amico culinary empire, hums with the precision and style normally associated with a $10,000 Swiss-made watch.

The food is refreshingly honest. This is a restaurant where roasted chicken, grilled steak and braised pork are celebrated with relish and refined to their best possible outcomes. Nothing froufrou here, no Frank Gehry-inspired compositions, no whacked-out ingredient combinations; just tried-and-true cooking that looks easy but in reality is just the opposite. When you're sticking to the basics -- well-seasoned, unembellished meats roasted to succulent juiciness; piping-hot pastas composed with an eye toward maximum deliciousness; gorgeous pizzas -- it's tough to cover your screw-ups. And there are very few screw-ups at Campiello.

Even the kitchen's showiest dish -- a firm, buttery bluenose sea bass steamed in parchment (shown at right) -- materializes at the table with an "aw-shucks" shrug, as if the well-drilled kitchen stifled a self-assured yawn while plating it. Trust me, you'll eat every morsel.

Ditto the melt-in-your-mouth short ribs, glazed in thick balsamic vinegar and served with smoky tomatoes. And a crisp-skinned roast chicken. And the plush, velvety salmon, the fork-tender braised pork shank, the flavorful hanger steak. You get the picture.

Read Full Review »