Rose Filicetti, Neal Savage and I chose Lillian's Italian Kitchen for dinner. We started
our meal with crusty bread – oil and balsamic vinegar. That followed with Insalata Caprese –
Heirloom tomatoes served with burrata
mozzeralla, 14-year old balsamic, fresh basil, oregano and olive oil. (Note: burrata is a fresh Italian cheese made
from mozzeralla and cream. The outer shell is
solid mozzarella, while the inside contains stracciatella and cream, giving it an
unusual, soft texture. It is also defined by some sources as an
outer shell of mozzarella filled with butter or a mixture of butter and sugar.
This agrees with original meaning of the word burrata, literally
"buttered" in Italian It is usually
served fresh and at room temperature.)
Insalada Caprese
We
ordered and shared the Sunday Gravy – their family’s tomato base meat sauce,
simmered slow with beef, pork, Italian sausage and spare ribs. We ordered ours with penne. This one tasted a lot like my Grandma’s
sauce. I don’t know if everyone knows
this or not but every good Italian cook’s sauce has a distinguishing taste.
(All of us Italian descendants in Havre, Montana, once had a huge party where
everyone cooked and brought their family’s sauce. It was neat.
I, of course, brought my grandma’s, Luigina Devita Filicetti. In came this one young lady who had spent a
lot of time with my Grandma when she was young.
As she was tasting all the sauces, I heard her exclaim, “Who brought Luginia’s
sauce?”)
Lil’s Kitchen Special – penne primavera served
with arrabbiata sauce, topped with mozzarella, then baked to order. I was surprised that each of these two dishes
had a very distinctive taste. I liked
both of the dishes...but I really liked this one…and I don’t know if I would
have ever ordered it…but Neal wanted it…I am so happy that we did. (arrabbiata - is a spicy sauce for pasta from garlic, tomatoes and dried red chili peppers cooked in olive oil. Arrabbiata literally means "angry" in Italian. The name of the sauce refers to the spiciness of chili peppers.)
Lillian’s
Italian Restaurant
1148
Soquel Avenue
Santa
Cruz, CA 95062
(831)
425-2288
Hours: Tuesday – Thursday 4:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Friday – Saturday 4:00 p.m. – 10:00
p.m.
Sunday – 4:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Monday – Closed
History:
“Opened on July 4, 2007 by owners
Joe and Charlotte Moreno and heir two sons, Chris and Matt. The long time Santa Cruz residendts dream was
to open a neighborhood place that was an extension of their family kitchen
using Grandma Lillian’s recipes – learned from her parents and the many Italian
influences in her neighborhood in Yonkers, New York where she was born.”
-
From
the business website
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