I was in the other night for the first but definitely not the last time. Storefront, small room with few tables, bartender with sleeves, many folks who seemed to be regulars. Great and welcoming vibe. Best Negroni I've had in years with bitterness balancing sweetness. Antipasti of asparagus and cacio e pepe, branzino as a naked fillet, fried chicken, rabbit prepared like porches, and a great deal on a 2007 Tuscan. Everything was delicious, and, I'm guessing, memorable. By far one of the very few great Italian restaurants. This is what comes from focus.
2
Beautifully written review.
2
I had the pleasure of visiting the distinguished restaurant several months ago and dined on Branzino and the Ravioli Burro E Salvia. It was a perfect meal.
6
Food fortified with butter is not simple food. It's cheating. It's something worse when done in Italian cuisine. That's been my experience at I Sodi. Too much of a crutch there. I'm sure they justify it for the "American palate" but that's a canard. Stick to tradition and do it correctly or light your tables with candlesticks stuck in a bottle of Mateus.
7
I agree. Buttering is cheating.
3
I recently visited Ferrara in the province of Emilia Romagna where I enjoyed a regional pasta dish which was stuffed with butternut squash and dressed with sage and butter. Delicious and authentic! I certainly do not believe buttering is cheating.
9
The porchetta-style rabbit shown in the photo that accompanies the article isn't mentioned in the article itself. Why? It looks amazingly delicious. This is like trying to draw the reader's attention to an article about a cruise ship by showing a photo of an oil tanker.
3
Had the same thought.
1
Entering I Sodi, there is a feeling of balance and control, no anxiety here. A void of loud music, everyone seems to have there "inside voice" on, its as if you walked into someones home. Rita worked at Calvin Klein for years, so it makes sense that her restaurant design has clean lines and balance. The design and servers are there as supporting roles to the food, the "main role". There is an honesty, respect and pureness about Rita's food that comes from the heart, that is why it is so good.
7
Artichoke appetizer is perfect right now. Don' t pass up the rabbit either.
2
The food all looks good but you say that the chef is "rigidly Tuscan" and then say she "never strays from Tuscany" and THEN post a picture of steak tartare. I lived in Italy for 8 years and visited Florence and the rest of Tuscany often and while one occasionally but RARELY comes across "carne cruda", it's almost always served as "carpaccio" and NEVER in the traditional French style of "tartare". I love steak tartare but Italy was never a country I was able to enjoy eating that dish in.
3
Not only that: I thought that spaghetti cacio e pepe was quintessentially Roman, NOT Tuscan. Am I wrong here?
3
I was surprised to learn that "New York Strip Steak with Arugula" and "Fried Chicken" were rigidly Tuscan dishes.
4
Hysterical! I don't ever recall seeing "New York Strip" on ANY menu while living in Italy, even when I went to The Hilton in Milan for dinner! In Tuscany where the "bistecca alla Toscana" is a religion unto itself and has nothing to do with a the cut used for the NY Strip, I dare say I'd have been physically assaulted if I ever requested a "New York Strip".
3
I think they need to improve their food presentation.
Improve how? Squiggles of sauce, matignon of vegetables, and sprinkles of herbs that are not endemic to a dish do not add to it; they just make the plate look futzed-with. And it seems anything extraneous would go against Chef Rita's esthetic. This all looks like honest food, presented to focus on honest flavors.
Besides, when the kitchen has to take precious time unnecessarily decorating plates, the food is not served at its peak.
Besides, when the kitchen has to take precious time unnecessarily decorating plates, the food is not served at its peak.
10
I agree with Cynthia. No one said to add "squiggles of sauce, matignon of vegetables, and sprinkles of herbs." Just some more color - in the form of another vegetable. It adds to the enjoyment of food. Can the kitchen spare a carrot? Sweet and bitter greens isn't such a bad idea.
2
You had me at the rabbit wrapped in porchetta-now I'm miserable about my cajun-dusted salmon dinner and looking for a cheap flight to NYC.
2
This restaurant is one of the best in the city. I have been coming here since I was 18, now 25. I've taken countless dates, friends, work colleagues, parents, the works here - never once having a bad experience. Their staff (short to everyone who isn't already warm themselves), the cooks, the simple decor, the intimacy, and last but not least...the food! The restaurant that made me fall in love with Negroni. With cacio e pepe. With chicken under a brick. Rabbit wrapped in pork. This food is simple food. Ingredient driven food. The kind you think about and hope to perfect. Like all things one is passionate about, it is the sort of place one should strive for - deceptively simple. Rita's mastery of technique and her pride in regional cuisine is a discipline I can only hope to reach in my own life. Please - never leave!!!
15
The real question: if I Sodi is finally getting its rave after years of operating as a beloved neighborhood spot, when will it be Prune's turn?
5
There goes a neighborhood treasure.
I Sodi is as close to Tuscany as one can get without flying AlItalia.
Simple, pure food. The best ingredients, used seasonally, cooked with respect, understanding and elegance. Lorenzo Il Magnifico would have enjoyed every dish.
I Sodi is as close to Tuscany as one can get without flying AlItalia.
Simple, pure food. The best ingredients, used seasonally, cooked with respect, understanding and elegance. Lorenzo Il Magnifico would have enjoyed every dish.
4
Very small...and warm and intimate...with wonderful food.
5
As you say, risotto isn't toscano, but neither is cacio e pepe.
8
Neither is lasagna.
2
I didn't realize there are border guards and a fence around Tuscany. I thought Tuscany is a part of Italy. No doubt Tuscan food has influenced food in the rest of Italy and vice-versa -- for centuries. At what point, either in time or place, do you specify what is officially "authentic"?
6
Don't confuse cultural and political border. Finland and Portugal are both part of the European Union, but it doesn't mean that their cuisines are like. Neither is Toscany, Il Veneto or Lazio, for that matter.
4
" In her cooking, her ego disappears into her pride in where she comes from." Great line, and compliments to the chef, Rita Sodi!
17
I agree - that is a wonderful line! And I really wish we could find more chefs out here in the San Francisco Bay Area that felt the same way.
3
Rita Sodi should be an Italian national treasure. Instead, she is a New York one. Their loss. I have loved this restaurant for years and I am delighted it is getting full attention.
PS How was the tagliata, Pete?
PS How was the tagliata, Pete?
3
The writing, eloquent, and tempered by the elegance of simplicity, reflects precisely what I experience at this restaurant.
A beautiful pairing, bravo.
A beautiful pairing, bravo.
15