4 minute read
Nocciola’s Piedmont-Inspired Italian Cuisine
NOCCIOLA
Piedmontese perfection in the land of the “pink moment.”
TBY EMILY DODI
Walking into Nocciola one recent afternoon, one is met by chef and owner Pietro Biondi and restaurant manager Jerry Perez. They offer a friendly greeting before getting down to the business at hand. With just a few hours before the doors open for dinner, they are tasting a new dish that Biondi has prepared to see if it deserves a spot on the menu.
The dish is rigatoni with quail sausage and mixed mushrooms, made with pasta fresca and sausage that Biondi made from scratch. Like all the offerings on the menu, it is inspired by Biondi’s roots in the Piedmont region of his native Italy as well as his experience as a chef at upscale restaurants in London and Los Angeles. Most recently, before moving to Ojai with his wife and children, Biondi was the chef at Piccolo in Venice, California.
“Pietro won’t put anything on the menu unless it is precisely what he wants,” Perez says. Describing Biondi’s approach to food, Perez adds that “Pietro lets the ingredients speak for themselves.” That includes everything from the organic vegetables that Biondi sources from Ojai’s own Rio Gozo Farm to wild boar from Paso Robles. He transforms them into dishes like vegetable lasagna featuring seven different types of greens, and his famous slow-roasted wild boar ragu served over homemade pappardelle. Whatever the dish, Perez says, “Nothing is overdone. Nothing compromises the flavor of the ingredients.”
Peruse the menu and you will find fresh, thoughtfully made dishes that stand apart from the usual Italian fare, including quail ragu, rabbit ragu, lamb sausage and grilled Portuguese octopus, all homemade by Biondi. “We have a lot of dishes you don’t see,” Perez says.
Nocciola’s menu changes seasonally to showcase the freshest ingredients available like black truffes, heirloom tomatoes and eggplant in the summer. Several signature dishes are year-round favorites, however, like Biondi’s famous tagliata, a 12-ounce grassfed New York steak.
“It is guaranteed the best steak in the county,” Perez exclaims. “It’s served with grilled potatoes and Swiss chard with Worchester mustard aioli on the side. It’s really delicious.”
For first-time guests or anyone celebrating a special occasion, Perez recommends the five-course tasting menu. “It’s the chef’s choice, [depending on what Biondi thinks the guests will enjoy most] so every table is different. It’s a wonderful experience.” It features a cold appetizer, hot appetizer, a pasta course, an entrée and assorted desserts. Perez notes that because it’s a two-hour experience, the five-course tasting
menu is offered from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. Any meal can be accompanied by a selection from Nocciola’s extensive wine cellar. “The wine list is one of the best wine lists I’ve ever seen.” As the tasting of the quail sausage and mixed mushrooms over rigatoni concludes, a consensus is reached: perfection. The dish has earned its place on the menu. Biondi returns to the kitchen and Perez gets ready to greet the evening’s lucky diners. “We ensure each guest has the best experience of service and food,” he says. That’s at the heart of Nocciola’s success and the reason why some loyal clientele dine at the restaurant two or three nights a week. To be sure, each night is unforgettable. v SEAFOOD MARE PASTA, with squid-ink infused fettucine, crab and asparagus on a mascarpone curry. Photo courtesy of Nocciola in Ojai
WORLD ON A PLATE
Nocciola 314 El Paseo Road, Ojai 805.640.1648 www.nocciolaojai.com
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