Stella

We had some things to celebrate last night, so we went to Stella for dinner. I think the biggest draw for that place, and their smartest move, is all the snacks they bring out before you even order. We got olives, cured meats, thin little snappy breadsticks, focaccia, bread and a pizza-like thing. My coworkers love to drink in the bar because you get the same assortment of snacks as long as you have a drink in your hand. The place is huge, so there's more likely to be room, too.

After all that we split a fritto misto, which was fine. They have a lot of salads, carpaccios, pizzas. But my entree was really fantastic: rosemary and lamb tortelli with pine nuts and prunes. It's not a very big plate, but it's full, and the dish is so rich that they could really get away with giving you about half. I chose that over calves liver with polenta or porcini pappardelle.

We didn't get to dessert because we were both stuffed. (The lamentable thing about the growing uterus is the crowded belly; I reach this sudden wall where, oops, I'm full, and I can't even fit in a spoonful of gelato. It usually happens at dinner, after I've grazed all day.) It looked like the usual suspects, though: tiramisu, a panna cotta, berries, etc. That's not to say it's not good. (It also reminds me of that lovely buttermilk panna cotta I made once, which would be perfect for the hot weather. Yum.)