Angelini Osteria: A Restaurant Review
There’s a certain familiarity you’ll find in a classic Italian welcome. Although you’ve never stepped foot in the place before, you feel as if you know everyone; it’s like they’re an endearing distant relative, eager to make your stay very comfortable. When you step into the Angelini Osteria, you are greeted with the classic Italian ambiance and traditional dining. What makes this place special is it’s warmth.
The name “Angelini Osteria” originates from the Italian idea of an “osteria,” which is a place that serves effortlessly delicious, simple dishes alongside wine; at Angelini Osteria, the apparent simplicity is contradicted by the detailed menu Chef Gino Angelini has meticulously crafted. The founder of Angelini Osteria, Angelini has a simple philosophy that is driven by his roots of growing up in Italy amidst authentic and traditional Italian food. His story starts off with his early love for Italian food at the age of 14 in “a small town in the Emilia Romagna region of northern Italy famous for its rich gastronomic tradition.” When he arrived in Los Angeles in 1995, Angelini deepened the local Italian food culture as a chef for Rex Il Ristorante. In October 2001, Los Angeles experienced a shift in Italian food culture with the birth of Angelini Osteria, which defined Angelini’s culinary dexterity and to this day consistently earns him praise as “the best Italian chef in Los Angeles.” Alongside his wife, Elizabeth Angelini, Gino Angelini continues to garner many achievements in the restaurant business–this time on Beverly Boulevard in the heart of Los Angeles.
While dining at Angelini Osteria, you will encounter a few options to fill your heart’s desires. Whether you wish to be transported to an Italian trattoria for a first date, or enjoy a cool breezy night people-watching on the patio, there’s a place for you at Angelini’s. The space is small and low-key, and the service is intimate and tasteful. You’ll find the waiters have Italian accents, and sometimes they’ll sneak Italian into your exchanges, greeting you with “Ciao” and thanking you with “Grazie.” They meticulously explain the dishes with thoughtful detail, serving you and your family with care and authenticity.
Interestingly, the dinner menu begins with seven wood-fired pizzas and then moves to antipasti, Italian for appetizers. I suspect this is to encourage the pizza as a shareable alongside the antipasti, because of how many pastas there are to choose from. After the eleven pastas come the secondi, which are meant to be shared. Angelini Osteria offers many types of protein ranging from scallops and grilled prime rib to whole branzinos and more.
To start, my family and I each had a slice of their margherita pizza, which was the perfect size, ensuring your stomach plenty of room for the remaining dishes. One thing I consistently noticed with each dish was that they tended to be on the smaller size, which is beneficial if you plan on sharing multiple dishes. The pizza had a crispy crust and a simple flavor profile of tomato sauce and cheese. The next thing we were eager to try was the Ahi Tuna Tartar, acclaimed as the restaurant’s most popular appetizer. Served on three pieces of grilled crostini, the fresh tuna was elevated with arugula and pistachios, coming together in harmony. The second appetizer we tried was the OSTERIA Chopped Salad with cannellini beans, cucumber, avocado, pistachio, and parmigiano reggiano, all finely chopped. The most noteworthy ingredient in the salad was the perfectly ripe avocado, which was diced just small enough to get some in each bite.
After deciding on Tagliolini Limone, Spicy Penne alla Vodka, and a Risotto alla Seafood Ragu for our entrées, it was clear which one took the cake the second they arrived at the table. Although you can never go wrong with a good old-fashioned Spicy Penne alla Vodka, the Lemon Tagliolini had us asking for seconds within seconds of tasting it. The simple intricacies of house-made tagliolini, lemon, and cream never fail to satisfy me. In addition, I appreciated the perfect ratio of parmigiano reggiano to black pepper.
The Spicy Penne alla Vodka smelled of tomato cream sauce and spice. The only thing I would have appreciated was freshly grated parmigiano reggiano, but that would have been a quick fix if I had asked. To say the risotto was bad would be an overstatement; however, it was the last pasta dish to be finished.
For the second course, we ordered a medium rare Grilled Swordfish with rapini ripassati (a sauteed cruciferous vegetable, similar to broccolini and kale, twice-cooked) and sun dried tomatoes. The fish itself was very fresh and cooked well; however, it felt like there was a flavor missing from the dish. The sun dried tomatoes and rapini ripassati weren’t my favorite combination, but I have no complaints about the simple dish otherwise.
After going to many different restaurants, especially ones which have extensive dessert menus, I have learned it’s best to leave it up to the waiter. Our server brought out three desserts (one I wouldn’t have ordered myself, which also ended up being my favorite). We enjoyed an apple Tarte alla Milanese, profiteroles, and an Italian bread pudding. The combination of the caramelized apple with the outer tart crust created an elevated yet traditional feel, and was very close to winning first place in my book. The profiteroles were simple, puffed bite-sized pastries sandwiched together with fresh cream in between, chocolate sauce beneath, and a side of vanilla gelato. They were basic and tasty; who doesn’t enjoy pastry and cream? The Italian bread pudding, however, was the perfect dish to end the meal! The consistency of this was exactly what you would want: soaked and perfectly sweetened bread pudding, with the flavor of caramelized butter and sugar. This is the type of dessert I would recommend to anyone because there’s no distinct flavor to dislike.
Overall, I rate this restaurant an 8.5/10 for the atmosphere, a 9/10 for food, and a 10/10 for service. I would recommend this restaurant for an elevated dinner-date or a perfect evening for a small get-together with a few friends craving a little Italian.