ETA VTA Favorites - La Trattoria
The art of the chicken parm. In my opinion, it's what separates the average Italian restaurants from the great Italian restaurants.
Our favorite chicken parm resided in Cleveland at Frank & Pauly's. It was perfect: pounded to a nice, flat, tender slab with a super tasty parmesan breadcrumb crust, topped with a nice piece of cheese and their delicious sauce. It was heavenly and a reason in itself to travel to Cleveland.
Since moving away from Ohio, we have ordered chicken parm at nearly every Italian restaurant that we have eaten at, hoping and praying that we can find a West Coast substitute for Frank & Pauly's. There have been a few restaurants that have come close, but most miss the most important aspect of the dish: the pounding of the chicken to that previously mentioned tender slab. It doesn't matter what else you do to the chicken, if you haven't tenderized it, it isn't good.
So the pounding sound coming from the kitchen was music to our ears the first time we ordered chicken parm at Ventura's midtown Italian gem, La Trattoria. It's the closest we have come to Frank & Pauly's and is one of the best down home Italian restaurants that we have come across.
Not only is the chicken parm exactly how we like it, but the lasagna is also delicious. Their sauce is fresh and hearty but not too heavy and doesn't overpower the cheese and pasta like so many lasagnas. The soups and salads that are served with the meals are nice and fresh and the fried mozzarella is outstanding putting the focus on the cheese rather than the breading.
Admittedly, we enjoy these dishes so much, they are the only ones we have ever ordered at La Trattoria, so I can't speak for anything else, but they look equally as delicious when they are delivered to other patrons.
La Trattoria isn't very fancy or comfortable and isn't much to look at, but the simple neighborhood vibe makes up for it by adding a lot of charm to this little hole in the wall. Add that to the great lasagna and the near perfect chicken parm and it's easy to see why La Trattoria is an ETA VTA Favorite and hopefully will become one of yours.
What: La Trattoria Italian Restaurant
Where: 2404 E. Main St, Ventura
How Much: $8-$15 for an entree. Dinner for two with an appetizer and a glass of chianti typically costs around $45.
Our favorite chicken parm resided in Cleveland at Frank & Pauly's. It was perfect: pounded to a nice, flat, tender slab with a super tasty parmesan breadcrumb crust, topped with a nice piece of cheese and their delicious sauce. It was heavenly and a reason in itself to travel to Cleveland.
Since moving away from Ohio, we have ordered chicken parm at nearly every Italian restaurant that we have eaten at, hoping and praying that we can find a West Coast substitute for Frank & Pauly's. There have been a few restaurants that have come close, but most miss the most important aspect of the dish: the pounding of the chicken to that previously mentioned tender slab. It doesn't matter what else you do to the chicken, if you haven't tenderized it, it isn't good.
So the pounding sound coming from the kitchen was music to our ears the first time we ordered chicken parm at Ventura's midtown Italian gem, La Trattoria. It's the closest we have come to Frank & Pauly's and is one of the best down home Italian restaurants that we have come across.
Not only is the chicken parm exactly how we like it, but the lasagna is also delicious. Their sauce is fresh and hearty but not too heavy and doesn't overpower the cheese and pasta like so many lasagnas. The soups and salads that are served with the meals are nice and fresh and the fried mozzarella is outstanding putting the focus on the cheese rather than the breading.
Admittedly, we enjoy these dishes so much, they are the only ones we have ever ordered at La Trattoria, so I can't speak for anything else, but they look equally as delicious when they are delivered to other patrons.
La Trattoria isn't very fancy or comfortable and isn't much to look at, but the simple neighborhood vibe makes up for it by adding a lot of charm to this little hole in the wall. Add that to the great lasagna and the near perfect chicken parm and it's easy to see why La Trattoria is an ETA VTA Favorite and hopefully will become one of yours.
What: La Trattoria Italian Restaurant
Where: 2404 E. Main St, Ventura
How Much: $8-$15 for an entree. Dinner for two with an appetizer and a glass of chianti typically costs around $45.
Labels: ETA VTA Favorites
posted by Brandon @ 3:13 PM
1 Comments:
If you like seafood, I beg you to try out various seafood restaurants and report on them. My husband and I have been dying for a good one. The only decent one is Camarillo is Monica's, which is Mexican seafood. Don't ever be tempted to go to the Crab House. The only place we have tried in Ventura so far was the one at the harbor that is right next to the ice cream parlor (I forget the name.) It was ok, but not great.
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