REVIEW: Terroni Restaurant (Hollywood, CA)

Mad Professah visited Terroni Restaurant and took the following pictures:
Carpaccio di Manzo (Raw Beef Sirloin Marinated with Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Lemon Juice with Arugola & Shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano, $11.95)

Funghi Assoluti (Baked Oyster Mushrooms with Parmigiano,Balsamic Vinegar, Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, Garlic & Parsley Served on Arugola, $11.95)

Pappardelle alla Iosa
(Homemade Pappardelle with Homemade Spicy Italian Sausage, Button & Oyster Mushrooms, Peas, Garlic & Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, $15.95)
Fettuccine di Tuccino
(Homemade Fettuccine, Tiger Shrimp, Asparagus,Cherry Tomatoes, Mint, Garlic & Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, $15.95)

Torta Calda al Cioccolato
(Warm Flourless Venchi Dark Chocolate Cake
with White Chocolate Ganache, $7.50)

Exterior Window of Terroni, 7605 Beverly Boulevard (at Curson)


Mad Professah and 3 others ate at Terroni one Wednesday evening. With the slightly too-eager encouragement of our server, we ordered two appetizers (the carpaccio di manzo and the funghi assoluti pictured above, in the top row). The carpaccio was delicately tender but a little too infused with lemon juice to be subtle. More successful was the mushroom appetizer, which was warm, hearty and well-matched with arugula. There were no second bites of that one, while Mad Professah finished off the carpaccio (not unhappily).

I ordered the pappardelle alla iosa on the recommendation of one of my dinner-mates who is a Terroni regular. It was absolutely perfect: al dente thick loops of pappardelle pasta infused with slightly spicy sausage accented (in color and in taste) by sweet, supple green peas and counterbalanced by the tang of shredded parmesan cheese. The portion size was not large but after cleaning my plate I was happy that I still had room for dessert. My fellow diners ordered the fettuccine di tuccino (pictured above, declared "very tasty"), a pizza and another pasta dish (no complaints). Although I ordered the torta calda al cioccolato, all four of us were able to get a taste of the rich dark chocolate cake which was coupled with a weakly sweet white chocolate sauce. Overall, the consensus was that the dessert was good, but nothing to write home about.

The ambiance of the restaurant was lively and well-lit, with attentive service. The owner of the restaurant came by our table and unhurriedly chatted with us for 5-10 minutes, generally decrying restaurant reviews (both positive and negative) and making our all-Black table feel comfortable amongst the relatively monochromatic clientele. Terroni does not take reservations and does not allow substitutions or alterations to its menu items.

GRADE: A.