Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Trattoria L'Incontro

Trattoria L'Incontro is a giant Italian restaurant off of Ditmars Blvd. in Astoria, which, despite its bulk, maintains its gourmet chops. The atmosphere is light and airy, with high ceilings. Families and groups congregate at many of the tables. Room after room opens up as you walk through the place. Overall the atmosphere is fairly casual and inexpensive. The decor is not particularly inventive.

Food was tasty and an excellent value. The bread basket was a scrumptious beginning, and I especially liked the warm pieces of focaccio that looked and tasted a lot like Indian naan bread. The bread came with a tapenade made from sundried tomatoes. An appetizer of sauteed mushrooms was tender but a little underspiced, but my eggplant parmesan entree was well-cooked, simple, amply loaded with cheese, and satisfying. This is traditional red-sauce cooking, but it is done very well.

Stars: 4/5

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