Amarena

With the twinkle lights and step-down entrance, Amarena looks like it’s going to be a quaint little restaurant. But the minute I walked inside, I realized it was modern and sophisticated and not the cozy townhouse environment I was expecting.

It was my birthday and I had my husband, best friend, and parents with me. Aka my favorite people. I said I’m paying, and I’m splurging.

They got my attention with the bread basket. Strong start. Then we got some apps: zucchini bloosoms filled with gorgonzola and drizzled with Calabrian chili honey, Jewish artichokes with a lemon aioli, and octopus with warm olives. I also got the meatballs because I knew my main wasn’t coming with a protein.

For entrees, I got the spinach pasta with pesto, peas, asparagus, burrata, and pine nuts. My mom got prosciutto with burrata, my dad got branzino, and I can’t fully remember what Albert and Matt got, but I know they were happy with it. Everything was absolutely delicious and I need to go back to work my way through all the pastas. The only thing I maaaybe wouldn’t order again is the meatballs because they were good, but it wasn’t a standout dish.

Something that did stand out: the capri martini. This cocktail was made with EVOO-infused Verità vodka, basil-infused Dolin dry vermouth, and “caprese” bitters. It was a caprese salad in drink form and trust me when I say that’s a major compliment.