Le Mani in Pasta, Trastavere

I took the family back to Le Mani in Pasta tonight to see if their experience was the same as mine on the previous night.  We all agreed, the staff and service in Trastavere stand head-and-shoulders above Testaccio.

We started with antipasti - sauteed clams, mussels, and shrimp in a beautiful broth with big chunks of garlic.  This was without a doubt the best appetizer we have had so far in Italy.  However, Bologna is yet to be experienced, so stay tuned!

Next, for the first course, my wife and son split a fettucini with cheese and bacon.  This came in as # 2 on the pasta list for the week.  Felice in Testaccio served the best pasta on this trip so far.  The cheese at Felice is mixed into the hot, steaming pasta right at the table, and it melts and coats the pasta along with a generous amount of ground pepper.  Together, the combination is ottimo!  Felice is also about 1.5-2x more expensive than Le Mani, as one would expect in Testaccio based on our very limited experience with Trastavere.

I had the pasta with seafood, something I love but had given up following BP's dumping of Corexit into the Gulf of Mexico.  Following on the heels of the sauteed shellfish, this was again fantastic.

Next, it was on to the second course.  I skipped mine, saving room for the leftovers from my two carnivore family members, and dolce.

Our son went for the steak, which in Europe is almost always a mis-steak.  It looked great, and was a tough as shoe leather.  He ate less than half, and my cheeks now look like Arnold Schwarzenegger's given the amount of masticating that I had to do.

My wife had the lamb chops.  Nice and flavorful, juicy and tender, but out of four chops, two were nice, one was half gristle, and one half bone.  Still, much better than the steak.

Based on a week's worth of eating, we are of the unanimous opinion that the first course, the pasta course, is the one to go for.  The pasta has been stunning.  The second course, the meat, has been hit or miss.  This is where Felice shines, in that it serves the best first and also a good quality second.

Finally, the dolce!  It was worth the wait, and I'm glad I skipped the secondo.  I picked my usual yardstick to measure Italian restaurants by, the tiramisu.



Our son's expression, for once in his life speechless, says it all.