Pizzas & Barbaresco @ Andiamo

Tonight after tasting a few wines at Susan’s we decided to stop at Andiamo for pizzas and a bottle of wine. On arrival and being seated at our favorite alcove table, we ordered a litre of San Pellegino and a bottle of 2005 Proddutori di Barbaresco Normale. When the wine and water were brought we ordered our first pizza, a small mushroom pizza.

The pizza was brought and was very enjoyable, portobello mushrooms, pesto, zucchini, mozzarella, and tomatoes. It was very good with the Barbaresco - initially quite tannic with subdued fruit, not nearly as fruit forward as the 2004s we’d had previously; but with time, air, and food it opened and the tannins subsided. We then ordered our second pizza, a small pepperoni.

Then the waitress brought a couple small glasses of a 20-year old Tawny Port from Taylor-Fladgate, from our friend Ben who was peddling ports to the restaurant for National Distributing. We decided to hold that until dessert.

The pepperoni pizza was also quite good, spicy pepperoni, four cheeses, and tomatoes. We also needed a second litre of San Pellegrino. This was also enjoyable with the now open and fruity Barbaresco. When we finished the last pizza, we ordered their cookie plate to have with the Tawny. The port was very nice with the biscotti, ginger-nut cookies, and chocolate-nut cookies. When the port was done, we ordered a couple intense double espressos. A lovely finish to an enjoyable evening.

One of these days you two are going to stay home and eat scrambled eggs or PBnJs for dinner. When that happens the world will tilt off its axis and I’ll go into a kind of virtual anaphylactic shock.

Scrambled eggs are for breakfast. I’ve never been able to eat a PB&J sandwich, ever. So I guess you’re safe, Bob.

Dick, wow… five years ago this February, Steve and I spent part of our honeymoon in Santa Fe. Our first night there, we walked a couple of blocks from our B&B to Andiamo, and we had such a wonderful time there that we returned two more times that week before we left for Taos. I do remember that I enjoyed their pizza, but they had a polenta appetizer that I tried (unsuccessfully) to recreate for months.

Thanks for bringing back a wonderful memory!

Melissa-

We’ve enjoyed Andiamo, as a neighborhood Italian restaurant, since shortly after they opened many years ago. When we only lived here part time, we used to go there every Sunday we were in town. I really used to like their crispy duck leg with garlic mashed potatoes. Now it comes with polenta, which is good, but not like garlic mashers. Since we relocated here full time, we don’t eat there as much, but still enjoy it. Their wine list is fairly priced and there are a number of tasty thing to eat.

Dick, this polenta wasn’t soft polenta on the side-- it was crispy polenta that was made with some sort of cheese (gorgonzola, I think) and rosemary, and it had the most incredible texture. It was crispy, but really light inside. I’ve never had any other polenta that had this texture.

It is a fun place to go, especially with Dick & Carollee (every place you go with D&C is fun, go figure )

I like the lamb pizzas. The duck was great, and of course any chance I get to eat duck is a good day!