First Bite Boulder: Trattoria on Pearl

Last night of First Bite -- and we wished the promotion went on and on

First Bite Boulder 2009 ended a week ago yesterday, but I have a back-up of many intended posts, so I'm finally getting around to writing about it. We patronized FBB restaurants three nights out of seven, and I had commitments in Denver on two of the others. Our third was Trattoria on Pearl, and I want to do it justice, because it is a reliably good restaurant with a warm ambiance and an even warmer welcome from owners Guillermo and Sara Casarrubias.

Three of us settled in at my favorite table, one of the fourtops next to the window looking out at Pearl Street. Coincidentally, the next table over was occupied by John Garlich and Ulla Merz, the husband-and-wife team who own Bookcliff Vineyards and their party. Of course, I had to table-hop, especially after I tried their fantastic Muscat with dessert. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Trattoria on Pearl lines up slices of tasty, toothsome, rustic bread on long plate with a small bowl of herbed olive oil (below). It's easy to demolish every crumb while perusing even the limited FBB menu and trying to decide whether or not to order the paired wine flight with the FBB menu (two of the three of us did).

First Course

Caprese salad (below) alternated slices of organic tomatoes of various colors with generous slices (almost slabs) of house-made mozzarella topped with a Balsamic glaze and a line of basil pesto down the middle. The suggested paired wine was Bookcliff's Riesling, made in Boulder from the winery's own Western Slope vineyard. (I don't know the vintage of this or other wines offered in the flight.)

A smooth and flavorful lobster bisque, described on the menu as "Guillermo's own recipe," was served in the restaurant's distinctive soup plates. The paired wine was listed as French Press Sauvignon Blanc.

Guillermo is also developing a special for a lamb broth. He had some in the kitchen and honored us by bringing out one plate and three spoons for us to sample. Lamb is a spring animal (and it is spring in the Southern Hemisphere, where much lamb does come from), but this deeply flavored broth was winter-hearty and also simple and elegant in its presentation.

Second Course

Chicken breast came atop a rich white wine sauce melding the flavors of rosemary, lemon and capers. Roasted potatoes, braised cherry tomatoes and  bright green broccolini completed this entrée.

The Trattoria on Pearl offered a choice of five entrées for the second course, but as soon as I saw that lasagna was on the menu, I knew that would be my husband's choice. And so it was. The beef and the house-made noodles were layered with both béchamel and marinara sauces, mozzarella, Parmesan cheese and basil. La Ripa Chianti from Tuscany was paired with the lasagna, which BTW was so ample that my husband brought nearly half of it home.

Tilapia Aqua Pazza, an substanial order of Chilean tilapia, also came with broccolini, plus basil mashed potatoes and an herbed cream sauce. La Ripa Chianti was also the paired wine.

Third Course

A chocolate panna cotta island rose above a port-apricot glaze. On top was a crown of whipped cream and a fresh strawberry, with cocao powder sprinkled on the periphery of the plate. Ferreria 10-year Tawny Port was the official paired wine, but Guillermo suggested Bookcliff's Orange Muscat, which was the official paired wine for the tiramisu. Grat suggestion!

Crisp-crusted white chocolate crème brûlée was made with Godiva white chocolate.