Cucciolo Osteria

Durham, N.C.

Three small words on the menu—“the Roman way”—should have been the giveaway, said Greg Cox in the Raleigh, N.C., News & Observer. I instantly fell in love with Cucciolo Osteria when its linguine alla carbonara made good on that promise with perfectly al dente pasta in a sauce created by pecorino romano and a raw egg—no cream!— cooked by the heat of the pasta and tossed with guanciale and just a bit of black pepper. So few American restaurants get the details right that I wasn’t expecting such authenticity at a spartan restaurant located in a converted Durham warehouse, but beneath all that exposed brick “beats a heart full of passion for good food.” Chef Jimmy Kim, a South Korean native who spent much of his youth in Switzerland, has a deft hand with all kinds of pasta, and his porchetta—pork belly stuffed with nuts and herbs and slow-roasted—is bewitching. Yes, Cucciolo, this is love: When I recall your risotto al latte— creamy risotto cooked in milk with rosy petals of prosciutto scattered across the top—“my heart still catches.” 601 W. Main St., (984) 243-8744