San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
What’s your favorite Italian restaurant?
What’s your favorite Italian restaurant?
Since I fell into the world of food writing, that’s probably been the most common question I have received from readers and new acquaintances.
Sometimes I like to think it’s because people believe, for some reason, that I’m an expert in these things, that perhaps I can recommend a hidden, magical osteria that has improbably flown under the radar of the fooderati.
But that’s not it. I’m pretty sure it’s because of my very Italian name. But the other reason, I think, is that Italian restaurants hold a special place in our Bay Area culture. Like burritos and burgers, Italian food is universal, both in restaurants and homes, and lord knows everyone has an opinion on their favorite Italian place. (Note: This discussion usually leads into the debate over the most overrated Italian restaurant.)
It’s also a fun discussion precisely because it’s an impossible question. Maybe you like A16 because you’ll discover a new wine there (page 8). Maybe you love the Gold Mirror because you value community in a restaurant (page 12). Or maybe you go to Rich Table for the oh-soCalifornian plum lasagna (page 4).
La Ciccia is my favorite Italian restaurant. To me, owners Lorella Degan and Massimiliano Conti have created the perfect restaurant, the absolute idyll of a neighborhood restaurant. It emits love and hospitality — and, of course, the singular island of Sardinia.
SPQR is my favorite Italian restaurant. I feel a connection to it. By chance, I was there on its first night of business, a 20something craving fried Brussels sprouts. As it’s evolved into the realm of fine dining under Matthew Accarrino, I’ve grown up alongside it and it’s now where I celebrate anniversaries.
Baonecci is my favorite Italian restaurant. It’s the only place in San Francisco where I truly feel transported to a different country.
Original Joe’s Westlake is my favorite Italian restaurant. The people in there — old, young, together, alone — make me feel like I’m in the real world, not some alternative timeline where everyone looks the same and must take photos of their meal.
Bertolucci’s in South City is my favorite Italian restaurant. I like that my grandfather, Nat, still laughs when I suggest we go there. (”Too fancy!”)
I could go on. But I hope you get the idea. So, tell me your favorite Italian restaurant. You will probably be correct in your assessment.
Paolo Lucchesi is the food editor of the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: plucchesi@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @lucchesi