In a town rich with Italian food, Parma Cucina stands out

Linguini frutti di mare, a consistently available shellfish pasta distinctive at Parma Cucina Italiana

In the larger San Diego place, you could take a look at three different Italian dining places every week for a 12 months and even now not attempt them all. Extra like five a 7 days if you incorporate pizza counters. And that wouldn’t incorporate all the up to date places to eat and steakhouses that feature pasta menus. It is enough to make you surprise how we at any time have time for Taco Tuesday.

In any case, which is my excuse for being late to the party with regard to Parma Cucina Italiana. The charming little Hillcrest restaurant has been chaotic successful around faithful shoppers for the much better component of a decade, and I’m sure all of them have been recommending it to mates the total time. Definitely, I would have have caught on sooner, experienced I not been distracted by the annual onslaught of new Italian places to eat that seem to open up each and every calendar year.

As with so several far more the latest arrivals, native Italians are guiding the menu and atmosphere at Parma Cucina, placing a tone each friendly and reliable to northern Italy. I’m inclined to assume a absence of hype or pretension has some thing to do with the cheerful and steadily increasing group that stuffed its dining area (and parklet seating) on a recent Saturday night. But, per regular, credit ought to be given to the stellar simplicity of the meals.

Practically ten a long time in Hillcrest (which extra just lately involves parklet seating).

We commenced with a salmon carpaccio starter that showcased so considerably fish for $17, I apprehensive it would derail our appetites. Instead, my wife and I the two went on to devour our pasta entrees, and adhere to them up with dessert: just one of the a lot more gratifying illustrations of tiramisu I have tried out. Even the accompanying espresso shot tasted best.

In spite of the type of tried using-and-genuine simplicity we encountered — the menu highlights dishes these types of as lasagna ($24), pesto with shrimp scampi ($23), and gnocchi with 4 cheese sauce ($23) — my principal system range did give me a chance to try one thing for the to start with time. That would be the stuffed pasta shape, fagottini, built to resemble the form of candy wrapper with a solitary twist at the leading (commonly observed with hard candies). Here, the do-it-yourself pasta is filled with a mix of ricotta cheese and truffle, protected in a product sauce that includes much more truffle, as properly as porcini mushrooms ($25). If you come across any dish with a further umami profile, be sure to tell me about it.

A generous part of salmon for a carpaccio appetizer

As a spouse, I was notably appreciative for a dish I didn’t try. My wife’s favourite Italian order is linguini frutti di mare, in other words shellfish pasta. I have spent the far better element of a calendar year using her around to Italian restaurants, in lookup of a very good just one, but it is generally led to disappointment — specially contemplating I get compensated to advocate places to eat.

A little, very well attended Italian restaurant — a single of hundreds in greater San Diego

Lastly, in this article was Parma Cucina, with a on a regular basis available special, which lays shrimp, mussels, and clams with white wine and tomato sauce, around your choice of linguini or risotto. Not only is it one of the restaurant’s additional visually stimulating dishes, it acquired me reward factors for booking a romantic evening out.

Stuffed pasta in the form of candy in a solitary-twist wrapper, stuffed with truffle and ricotta cheese, n a creamy mushroom sauce

That claimed, when I do it again, it will be on Tuesday. That is owing to an ongoing specific that selling prices a a few-study course meal for two at $56. Now that I’m finally acquainted with the enjoyable night out supplied by Parma Cucina Italiana, I may well have to go away Taco Tuesdays to the single folks.