Frasca

For my friend and colleague George, I'll try to keep this posting a bit on the shorter side. Maybe that way I can update it more often!

Peter and I found yet another fantastic restaurant right in our neighborhood this week: Frasca. I've walked by it countless times and had heard great things about it from my friend Libby, so on a cold, rainy night in April I was pretty excited when I walked into this cozy spot. Libby was right: with its flickering votives, large wood-burning oven, and warm wood throughout, this place definitely has a romantic feel. We were seated at a large booth and greeted with a friendly smile.

The first thing our server offered was a paper menu called "The Farmer's Table." Much like a sushi menu in which you check off the rolls you'd like, this featured various bruschetta options as well as meat and cheese selections, sort of like a create-your-own antipasto. You have the option to choose individual items or choose 5 items for $15--what a bargain! We chose 2 types of bruschetta, 2 meats and 1 cheese. Everything was delicious, but the standout was the brie and green apple bruschetta that our waiter highly recommended. The brie was perfectly ripe and super buttery, the perfect complement to the acidity of the green apple, finished with a drizzle of honey and a sprinkling of pepper. Wow. This one I'm going to try to recreate at home.

Though I had every intention of ordering the Tuscan Chicken as my entree, our waiter very kindly let us know that it was BOGO pizza night. 2 pizzas for the price of one? Again, what a bargain! Peter really tried to convince me that we should order both the chicken AND the BOGO pizza so we could take an entire pizza home and keep it for snacking, I eventually won the argument and we settled on just the pizzas.

I ordered the prosciutto pizza and Peter went with shrimp and Italian bacon. Though we were already pleasantly full from our Farmer's Table, our eyes widened when our pizzas were set before us. Mine was piled with large, overlapping slices of prosciutto and topped with a large pile of arugula in the center that had been dressed in a light vinaigrette. It was fantastic. Though prosciutto has a tendency to be too salty, the combination of the peppery greens with the meat (oh, and the mozzarella, of course) was delightful. If I had to offer one criticism, it would be that it was just a bit difficult to eat, as the greens kept sliding off. Peter loved his pizza so much that he very nearly wouldn't trade me a slice of mine for his creamy, cheesy and gooey concoction. We both loved the crispy crust with its smoky, grilled flavor.

The best part of this meal is that our bill came to only $34 total. For this amount of food at this quality, we'll absolutely be back soon.

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The damage: that's right, only $34

Food: 4 1/2 forks - all delicious, and I can't wait to come back and sample more of the menu

Romance: 4 1/2 kisses - flickering candlelight is flattering

Watch out for: seriously, the only thing I can come up with is that my pizza was hard to eat

Frasca Pizzeria and Wine Bar
3358 North Paulina
Chicago, IL 60657
773.248.5222