Coppa – 3/20/2010

I ate dinner at Coppa last night. The dining experience was enjoyable, but the food was forgettable. The service was good. I found the staff to be friendly, welcoming and helpful with the menu. Also the mixed drinks were great. In fact the mixed drinks were the best part of my meal. They were innovative, interesting, and refreshing.

The space is very small. I read the dining room seats 40, but I would have guessed less.

None of the food was bad, but I did not taste anything that I would describe as great or memorable either. I have heard and read nothing but raves about this restaurant, and there is regularly a wait of two hours or more for dinner. I really am not sure what all the fuss is about. I'd be happy to eat at Coppa again, but I would not make a special effort. I would certainly not wait hours in line to eat there.

All that being said I thought the food was a good value. All the food listed below plus 2 mixed drinks cost $60 pre-tip.

Below are my thoughts on the specific dishes I tried.

White Bean Crostini – A white bean puree served on crostini. Perfectly adequate, but a one note dish. Not a lot of complexity. I’ve had white bean purees that come complimentary with the bread that were just as good as (if not better than) this dish. The crispy sage leaf on top was a nice touch.

Fluke Crudo / Grapefruit, cherry pepper, and perilla – This was a light, delicate, refreshing dish that worked well on a warm spring evening. I would have like more seasoning, particularly more cherry pepper.

Farro Salad with cucumber, radishes, and lemon – This dish just did not do very much for me. The main flavor component was cucumber. That should say it all. The flavor was not objectionable. Just boring.

Arrosto di Peppe / Roasted sweet peppers with Turkish spices, feta, and aged balsamic – This dish was enjoyable, but I could picture something just as good coming from the antipasto bar at Whole Foods. I really had to concentrate to find the “Turkish spices”.

Ravioli / Calves Brain ravioli with radicchio, brown butter and garlic puree – This was the most impressive dish of the night, but I’ve had much more memorable pasta in my life. The pasta itself was perfectly cooked. The filling did not bring much flavor to the dish, but it did add nice creamy texture. Most of the flavor came from the brown butter sauce and garlic puree.