Restaurant Review- Venticello

I had the pleasure of eating at this delicious little Italian place while we were visiting San Francisco over Christmas. It is located in Nob Hill and the cable car drives right past it.

We packed our own wines with a corking fee of $15 each. This seems pretty high to me, but I'll let you be the judge of that....

First off we ordered 3 appetizers for the four of us... I thought it would be ridiculous amounts of food, but these apps were all pretty small so it turned out to be a pretty good amount of food. Let's take a lot at them, shall we?:

A little bit of each on my plate:

SCAMPI E PANCETTA FRA DIAVOLO
Fire Grilled Prawns wrapped in Pancetta with a Spicy Chili Sauce

The spiced chili sauce was especially delicious..not to mention, let's be honest who doesn't love anything wrapped in pancetta?

CARPACCIO CIPRIANO
Shaved Beef Tenderloin with Caperberries, Wild Arugula, Aged Parma in a White Truffle Vinaigrette

Also really delicious. I especially loved the thick slices of aged parmesan together with the carpaccio. mmmmmm
MELANZANE RIPIENE
Two Grilled Eggplant Rolls with Ricotta and Mascarpone in a Marinara Sauce
Warm cheese, delicious marinara and meaty eggplant made this appetizer absolutely delicious...and something I plan to make at home very soon!

After appetizers we split two salads among the four of us. I thought it was so nice of them to split them up on two plates for us.....and I even got my own radiccio cup!
BARBABIETOLA
Radicchio Cup filled with Roasted Beets, Tomatoes and Arugula in a Tarragon Caper Vinaigrette
I don't eat a lot of beets...but lately I just happened to randomly be eating them..they are little sweet for me for a (what I consider) savory dish like salad...but as far as a beet salad is concerned, this was really delicious.

CESARE TRADIZIONALE
Classic Whole Leaf Cesare with White Anchovies
Pretty standard fanccy caesar...at $10 a little expensive...but still very tasty.

Now onto dinner....here was my dinner:

AGNELLO AI FERRI CON SALSA DI FUNGHI
Rosemary Marinated Grilled Lamb Tenderloins with a Sweet Mushroom Chianti Sauce
Wish I would have paid more attention to the word "sweet" a little more. The lamb was cooked perfectly and the mashed potatoes and veggies were great, but the mushrooms with the sweet sauce on it were way way too sweet for my palate.
SCALLOPINE DI VITELLO
Sautéed Veal Scallopine with a Flamed Sambucca & Basil Cream Sauce with Tiger Prawns

And it's Christmas time so we topped off our delicious dinner with a cappucino and these desserts. (Tip- order the chocolate torte and the strawberry sorbet and take the bites together..amazing!):
TORTA DI CIOCCOLATA
Flourless chocolate torte with a toasted pecan and walnut crust over strawberry puree topped with fresh whipped cream


All in all a delicious dinner in a cozy little Italian Restaurant!!