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Story by Manos Angelakis & Barbara Penny Angelakis
Photography by Manos Angelakis
Fabio Piccolo Fiore
230 East 44th Street
New York, NY 10017
212-922-0581
www.fabiopiccolofiore.com
It was a Wednesday night, a week before Christmas, and it seems as if half of the city was dining at Fabio Piccolo Fiore – translation (Chef) Fabio’s Little Flower – a hot dinning spot on East 44th Street. The restaurants warm earth tones, curved brick wall, and enlarged Renaissance master-painter’s copies adorning the walls, made for a cozy, friendly Italian eatery appropriate for families, business groups and courting couples alike. The restaurant focuses on the fresh fare of Abruzzi and Toscana, in central Italy. We had to wait for approximately twenty minutes before we were shown to our table. To make the wait a bit easier, we had a glass of very nice, slightly off-dry Prosecco, for me, and for Barbara, a cocktail made with fresh berries and Chambord, topped with the Prosecco.
I almost said, “Play it Sam, if she can stand it, so can I” to the live piano player that looked a bit like Dooley Wilson, the piano-playing Sam in “Casablanca”. He was playing “As Time Goes By” when we entered the dinning room. Being sure that I was probably the 1000th person to make this remark, I decided to pass on the comment. But, I digress.
 In the kitchen, Chef Fabio focuses on delivering the recipes that he has been perfecting since his days as a culinary student in Rome. The Bruscetta amuse bouche was classic Tuscany. The Clams alla Tiziano, is an appetizer of clams sautéed with lemon and fresh scallions in white wine. His Misto di Nettuno comes laden with shrimp, octopus, and cuttlefish. The menu says that there should be squid, but I find cuttlefish a much better ingredient for this dish, and obviously, Chef Fabio agrees with my preference. The Cartoccio, is a light and aromatic red snapper cooked with fresh tomatoes, sliced potatoes, capers, olives, and herbs. The piece de resistance was the Pasta alla Chef, a dish that Chef Fabio prepared for us tableside. An entire wheel of hollowed-out Grana Padano is brought on a rolling service table followed by Chef Fabio and his retinue. After introducing himself, Chef Fabio gets to work scraping cheese to the center of the wheel. When satisfied, he is handed a saucepan of portabella mushrooms in liquid, which he dumps, still steaming, into the cheese wheel. While blending the ingredients together, a quantity of handmade Tagliatelle is added to the mix, and the dish is finished with a drizzle of white truffle oil. Still piping hot the pasta is plated, and voilà, you are invited to enjoy this most flavorful, creamy, cheese laden dish. A word of caution, Pasta alla Chef is very rich, albeit delicious, and if you plan on ordering one of the many intriguing entrees offered, you might want to consider sharing the pasta with a companion. For those with hearty appetites, there is a large selection of steak and lamb dishes, such as the Bistecca Fiorentina and the Filleto al Pepe Verde, a tender filet mignon with green peppercorns and brandy.
The wine list had a good selection of wines by the glass, plus nice white bottles for under $50 (except for 3 that were more expensive), and numerous brilliant  Italian reds for under $100. There was a selection of top reds that included very good Brunellos, Montepulcianos and Amarones, from award-winning wineries. Also, a good selection of Italian sparkling wines and Champagnes.
The dessert was typically Piemontese. For me, a fig and mango gelato. For Barbara, a crepe stuffed with strawberries and Nutella – a chocolate and hazelnut paste very popular in Torino – covered with powdered sugar and a dollop of fresh triple-condensed cream. My barometer of a good Italian restaurant, the espresso, was perfectly drawn with lots of crema.
We spent considerable time over dinner, and when we left, the restaurant was still almost full. I guess, in Manhattan, good food trumps any recession fears.
© February 2009 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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