I love pasta, and I’ll even eat it for dessert, as long as I am at Cafe Bella Roma SPQR, a new Italian place on Robertson Boulevard in Los Angeles.
Chef/owner Roberto Amico has come up with spaghetti freddi, a sweet version of spaghetti with marinara sauce. It’s so fragile that he comes to the table to prepare it himself.
Amico presses vanilla gelato through a potato ricer to make long spaghetti like strands. For marinara, he spoons on raspberry sauce and then sprinkles the sauce with grated white chocolate. That’s the Parmesan. The spaghetti softens at once--forget about al dente--but it’s still delicious.
Amico’s other pastas are all right too. Tagliatelle risorgimento harks back to his first restaurant job at a café in the Piazza Risorgimento in Rome. It’s a mild combination of prosicutto, peas and mushrooms in a red wine and cream sauce tossed with tagliagelle that Amico makes himself.
One night, just after the restaurant opened in June, I had delicious penne portofino, with salmon, shallots and white wine in a light pink sauce. And I loved the subtle taste of the sea in spaghetti ai frutti di mare, with clams, mussels, shrimp and scallops in marinara sauce. Linguine Bella Roma, with shrimp, clams, mussels and porcini mushrooms, was just as good.
One night, Amico cooked for my table twice, first boning a whole branzino (European seabass) which was wonderfully moist and tender, then returning for spaghetti freddi. You can’t eat at the café without meeting him, because he often circulates among the diners.
Most of the tables are outside on a terrace walled off from the sidewalk. Sirens from a nearby fire station scream occasionally, but after they pass, you can return to the illusion that you are in a charming neighborhood café somewhere in Italy.
Café Bella Roma SPQR (these initials appear on the Roman coat of arms), 1513 S. Robertson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90035. (310) 277-7662.Open Tuesday through Sunday for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Closed Monday.
Bernadette, I am so sorry you had this bad experience. It doesn't matter how good the food is. If you are treated rudely, it destroys the whole experience.
Posted by: Barbara | October 06, 2008 at 06:49 PM
I had dinner this past weekend with friends and as always, enjoyed the food. Our biggest complaint was and this happened several times before, the service was extremly poor and borderline rude. One young man was difficult and abrupt and impatient. He became agitated when we questioned him and he showed the same type of service last time we visited. If we go again, I will request a different server.
Posted by: Bernadette | October 06, 2008 at 06:10 PM
Gary, I'm sorry you were disappointed. Thanks for letting us know your experience.
Posted by: Barbara | April 12, 2008 at 06:51 PM
A poor example of a restaurant. Over-cooked and tasteless food with an inexperienced staff. Avoid and be warned.
Posted by: Gary | April 12, 2008 at 10:55 AM
Cafe Bella Roma is a true treasure. The food is prepared with great thought and care, and the hospitality is just as genuine. Thank heavens there are still places such as this in Los Angeles.
Posted by: Barbara | November 25, 2007 at 02:52 PM
i went there last nite and as food lover and italian have to tell you, that was an amazing meal. the spagetti ai frutti di mare were so good i wanted to scream! really.
the pizza is delicious and the suppli OH....!
definitely will be back fro more and more and more... and the price is just right, this place is going to ROCK!
grazie Roberto.
Posted by: Emma Trossarelli | November 24, 2007 at 11:48 AM