Scrumptious Spotlight: Cafe Babbo
When the moon hits your eyes like a big pizza pie…
Good evening fellow foodies!
I hope everyone had a nice weekend. It's sunday night, and I'm in front of my computer with a glass of Merlot (Chateau Ste. Michelle), reminiscing on what was, by far, one of the best (if not, THE best) pizza I've ever sliced and placed in my mouth. Now, obviously I didn't just wake up on Saturday and say I was going to have pizza, lol. I was recommended to try this little restaurant by a dear friend and writer, MichellesScriptures. We frequent the Wynwood area on Saturday nights, as it's a very lively place to be, not only to hang out with friends, but also to admire art through various different vehicles (murals, sidewalk stencils, open galleries, etc). Every time we come out to Wynwood, she always says the same thing: "We need to go to Cafe Babbo, we need to have pizza, you need to try this pizza". She ranted and raved about this place for, what seemed like, weeks. I'm normally hesitant to eat at places recommended to me before reading up on the reviews, but I knew the only way to quiet her wining (lol) was to take a dive into Cafe Babbo's world of pizza perfection. The result of my trust exercise? I should be more trusting!
I can't harp enough on how important quality of ingredients is, letting them speak for themselves, and keeping it simple! The gentlemen at Cafe Babbo know exactly what they're doing. Could it be because they, themselves are of Italian background, or have ingredients brought in straight from Italy, who knows? Whatever the reason, it's working, and working well. Let me first touch base on the dough: the vessel for which all the fresh, authentic ingredients casually sit, awaiting to be enjoyed by your tastebuds. The dough is made fresh everyday, and you can taste it. You can taste the time it took to rise, to set, and if that wasn't enough, the flour is imported from Italy, as well. As a food blogger/writer, prime ingredients in any dish, whether it be Italian, Lebanese, or Cuban, are essential to any recipe you create. I had the Rucolosa, which has prosciutto rucola, arugula, mozzarella, and cherry tomatoes. The prosciutto is brought in from Italy, as well as the flour. Upon contact with my tongue, the meat started to melt. Incredible! The amount of fat was just right, and along with beautiful marbling, it was truly a delight, and in my opinion, the star of the show. The cherry tomatoes were actually a delightful surprise. I'm not much of a fan of hot (whole) tomatoes, unless when making a home made marinara, but they get blended in the sauce, making it hard to tell they were whole at one point. But, these were surprisingly delicious. Dressed simply with a bit of salt and pepper, they were the much needed punch of acid after all the luxuriousness of the prosciutto, and the mozzarella, bubbling away from coming out of the fire pit of flavor, lol. Finally, the peppery arugula added another dimension of, not only flavor, but texture as well. You got the crunch from, both the arugula and the crust, the unctuousness from the mozzarella and the prosciutto, and the kick of acidity from the tomatoes. It cut through the fat nicely, but left enough to feel decadent.
To Antonio and the gentlemen at Cafe Babbo: Thank you for staying true to your craft and keeping the pizza simple, yet flavorful. Upon biting into the Rucolosa for the first time, I found myself licking my fingers at the table, which is considered rude table manners, but that would've been deliciousness lost, and to be honest, I didn't care. I became one with the dish, and felt a little Italian myself. Your dedication to your Italian predecessors is apparent and shows through your food. But, if you're somehow looking for more authenticity, Italy is only 5,200 miles away, I'm sure its just a short drive from here, lol. Once again, thank you for instilling a new craving in me. This is definitely not the last time you'll see me. I'll be coming back for more, hungry for more fresh ingredients, and wonderful atmosphere.
Who knew that bringing in ingredients from the freshest and most authentic places would help to create such a divine, yet simple, dish such as pizza? Well, when you make food with love as the main focus, it shows, just as it did though this simple, yet amazing pizza.
As always, my fellow foodies, I send you nothing but love and delicious noms from me and my glass of Merlot, to you.
Exquisitely yours,
Nicky
I can't harp enough on how important quality of ingredients is, letting them speak for themselves, and keeping it simple! The gentlemen at Cafe Babbo know exactly what they're doing. Could it be because they, themselves are of Italian background, or have ingredients brought in straight from Italy, who knows? Whatever the reason, it's working, and working well. Let me first touch base on the dough: the vessel for which all the fresh, authentic ingredients casually sit, awaiting to be enjoyed by your tastebuds. The dough is made fresh everyday, and you can taste it. You can taste the time it took to rise, to set, and if that wasn't enough, the flour is imported from Italy, as well. As a food blogger/writer, prime ingredients in any dish, whether it be Italian, Lebanese, or Cuban, are essential to any recipe you create. I had the Rucolosa, which has prosciutto rucola, arugula, mozzarella, and cherry tomatoes. The prosciutto is brought in from Italy, as well as the flour. Upon contact with my tongue, the meat started to melt. Incredible! The amount of fat was just right, and along with beautiful marbling, it was truly a delight, and in my opinion, the star of the show. The cherry tomatoes were actually a delightful surprise. I'm not much of a fan of hot (whole) tomatoes, unless when making a home made marinara, but they get blended in the sauce, making it hard to tell they were whole at one point. But, these were surprisingly delicious. Dressed simply with a bit of salt and pepper, they were the much needed punch of acid after all the luxuriousness of the prosciutto, and the mozzarella, bubbling away from coming out of the fire pit of flavor, lol. Finally, the peppery arugula added another dimension of, not only flavor, but texture as well. You got the crunch from, both the arugula and the crust, the unctuousness from the mozzarella and the prosciutto, and the kick of acidity from the tomatoes. It cut through the fat nicely, but left enough to feel decadent. To Antonio and the gentlemen at Cafe Babbo: Thank you for staying true to your craft and keeping the pizza simple, yet flavorful. Upon biting into the Rucolosa for the first time, I found myself licking my fingers at the table, which is considered rude table manners, but that would've been deliciousness lost, and to be honest, I didn't care. I became one with the dish, and felt a little Italian myself. Your dedication to your Italian predecessors is apparent and shows through your food. But, if you're somehow looking for more authenticity, Italy is only 5,200 miles away, I'm sure its just a short drive from here, lol. Once again, thank you for instilling a new craving in me. This is definitely not the last time you'll see me. I'll be coming back for more, hungry for more fresh ingredients, and wonderful atmosphere.
Who knew that bringing in ingredients from the freshest and most authentic places would help to create such a divine, yet simple, dish such as pizza? Well, when you make food with love as the main focus, it shows, just as it did though this simple, yet amazing pizza.
As always, my fellow foodies, I send you nothing but love and delicious noms from me and my glass of Merlot, to you.
Exquisitely yours,
Nicky
No comments:
Post a Comment