At home in Italy – dinner at Mezze Notte

Guilderland is not my usual stomping grounds, but I really need to get out that way more often.  Last week the allure of Mezze Notte‘s restaurant week menu beckoned like a siren, you know kind of like a male siren, like this:

But, anyway, back to my evening and what I ate. After a brief catch-up at the bar with dogsitter extraordinaire, Addison, we moved to the perfect booth for more conversation and dinner.  Newly svelte Addison availed himself of the regular dinner menu, which gave him the flexibility to make some substitutions to meet his needs, while the 3-course special menu (for $20.13?!?) needed not a single modification to make me happy.

I opened with the rabbit livers appetizer served on a crostini.  This was something new for me and I only wish there had been a rabbit warren’s mound of livers to savor.  Delicious, earthy and rich – fantastic!

My salad course was composed of watermelon, arugula, ricotta salata and crispy prosciutto.  I’ve been loving watermelon this summer and you know how I feel about arugula.  Yes, this made me happy.  Especially when the person who knows my wine palate better than anyone recommended a glass of Chardonnay for me which was lovely.

Seeing that I was carb loading for the next day’s Warrior Dash, I enthusiastically indulged in a tremendously satisfying and seasonal pasta of bucatini with fresh diced tomatoes, basil, garlic oil and Reggiano Parmigiano.  Note: when I say “fresh diced tomatoes,” I mean FRESH.  Connie, who owns Mezze Notte with her husband, Mitch, stopped in on a rare evening off to deliver some gorgeous vegetables from her garden, including a number of bright red tomatoes.  Summer’s best!

We passed on desert having been totally satiated by our meals and the wonderful hospitality we were treated to by all involved.  It was such a treat to have an evening out and the bonus of seeing my dear friends Paul McCullough and Susan Diep made the experience absolutely sublime.  Grazie mille, Mezze Notte.