Fiamma
Mario Batali better watch out: Fiamma could be the best haute Italian restaurant this side of The Boot, with a facelift in 2007 and now helmed by award-winning chef-partner Fabio Trabocchi—ex of the lavishly praised Maestro in Washington, D.C. Bathed in a soft golden light, the big handsome room offers a timelessly elegant backdrop for Trabocchi's tantalizing layerings of flavors and garnishes. For example, the spicy seafood stew appetizer has fabulous depth and a cloud of polenta foam; sweetbreads come garlanded by delicate salad greens decorated with microscopic batons of porcini. And only a true Italian can deliver pastas as gorgeous as the pumpkin agnolotti set on a winy brasato (braised beef) sauce, or the wickedly indulgent sauce-less lasagna perfumed with Madeira from Trabocchi's own Le Marche region. The tab is just as baroque, but you'll be too blissed out to notice.
Tip: Let star sommelier Ania Zaweija take charge of your wine pairings.
As Featured In...
From Food & Wine, Dec 2008
“Indeed, many of the courses at Trabocchi’s Christmas celebrations are the same dishes he had as a child, including fennel gratin in a Parmigiano-Reggiano cream sauce (fennel grew wild in Marche) and sweet-and-sour cipollini onions glazed with balsamic vinegar....” MORE>>
From Food & Wine, Mar 2008
“Fabio Trabocchi’s menu showcases his exquisitely inventive, elegant Italian dishes—including one of my favorites, tortellini, which he stuffs with cotechino sausage and porcini mushrooms and serves in broth....” MORE>>
From Food & Wine, Jan 2008
“F&W Best New Chef 2002 Fabio Trabocchi replaced Michael White at Fiamma, leaving Washington, DC's Maestro restaurant to partner with restaurateur Stephen Hanson. ...” MORE>>
From the May 2008 Food & Wine Go List
Fabio Trabocchi (an F&W Best New Chef 2002) bravely left his Washington, DC–area Maestro last year to take on the competitive Italian dining scene in Manhattan. Trabocchi has created a loyal following with a menu that puts more traditional dishes, like a classic lasagna from his native Le Marche region, alongside more inventive ones, like a tortellini of slow-cooked pork with wild mushroom cream and black truffles. Fiamma is one of only a few great restaurants wedged in between Soho’s endless boutiques.
We loved: Smoked potato gnocchi with red mullet and prosciutto.
Last updated May 2008 lastArticle = 12/2008 and lastAward =
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