La Scala Ristorante
1012 Eastern Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21202
Baltimore, MD 21202
Phone: 410-783-920
Another gem in Little Italy, La Scala does many things
Italian well, including having the only indoor Bocce Ball court in Baltimore.
We had not come for the Bocce; we came for Easter Dinner and were glad we had
after a great evening in a relaxed atmosphere. Our tip to try La Scala came
from Tony the tile master who had just recently finished some incredible
examples of his craft in our newly renovated master bathroom.
The dining rooms are very comfortable with the main room overlooking
the Bocce Ball court. It's a busy, noisy place with an executive chef who is
constantly checking with you to be assured that you are satisfied with the
meal. Our server, Carlos, was an old pro who made our whole night flow well. We
were no sooner seated than a plate of marinated green beans and potatoes with
garlic were put on the table along with a basket of fresh chewy bread. Not sure
quite what to do with the cold green beans and potato wedges we were forced to
eat them - all of them.
The wine list is impressive, long and impressive with
bottles of affordable table wine, wine by the glass and wine for those with
expense accounts. From a list of at least eight Chianti Classico Reservas, I am
very glad I selected the Antinori Peppoli - very full bodied but still fresh
and blah, blah, blah and all those other characteristics of nose and taste. No
leather, cigars or mellon though, thank heavens. This is not a restaurant to go
to when you are in a rush - this is a place where you want to sit back and
comfortably enjoy several courses of great Italian food over conversation. No
one tried to jam us with a $15 bottle of imported sparkling water.
The menu here is long with many veal and pasta dishes as one
might suspect in Little Italy. I have to admit being a bit disappointed at not
finding more of a choice of charcuterie among the appetizers but that was
entirely due to a mistake on my part for not understanding just what to do with
the separate Salumeria menu on our table. I couldn't eat the menu so I just set this
wonderful list of fine cheeses and aged meats aside. It turns out this list is for
ordering from as an antipasti selection - this is an Italian secret that must be taken for granted by those from Sicily.
Instead we just ordered a plate of the
Calamari Fritti for our appetizer, expecting the usual. Wrong! The Calamari at La Scala is among
the best we have ever had, rivaling even that at Ristorante Filomena in
Georgetown wher it is soaked overnight in a buttermilk bath before cooking. The tender squid at la Scala is lightly battered and there isn't a trace of greasiness
to be found. The large portion is accompanied by a bowl of very good marinara
sauce.
Tony the Tile guy had recommended that I get a house specialty,
the grilled Caesar salad. I would order a Caesar salad for my meal if I knew it
to be my last. I probably wouldn't have it grilled but that's just my personal
taste, most folks would love the extra tang that comes from grilling the
lettuce head. Yep, it is enormous - half a head of Romaine that has been
permeated with Caesar dressing crushed croutons and shredded parmesan cheese. I
almost had to eat the entire plate full to decide if I was satisfied with it.
Debbie stuck with the typical Italian fare by ordering the
veal Parmigiana - it was no disappointment as the large, tender veal cutlet was
covered with tomato sauce and melted mozzarella cheese, accompanied with penne
pasta. I went way out of my norm and ordered the Lobster with cognac, butter
and garlic served over some wonderful fresh linguine, they call it the Aragosta
all' Americana. This was probably the first time I had ordered lobster for an
entree in 20 years. I have no regrets but I am already ready for a return trip
to sample some of the other great dishes on the La Scala menu.
We were so full from our meal that we not only didn't order
dessert, I didn't even have room for a sip of grappa. We chose to use the
restaurants $6.00 valet parking and were off in minutes of asking for our car.
Maybe there was free street-side parking just around the corner but this is a
luxury that I've become accustomed to and the courteous prompt door-side
service available throughout Little Italy helps make each visit there a little
more special.
Hats off to the attentive Chef Nino and his staff at this
great Ristorante.
