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Da Paolo Ristorante

Just as winter is setting upon us, I decided to wander on down to Da Paolo Ristorante, at 121 17th Ave. S.E., hoping to find a warm and hearty meal.

Da Paolo is a small and inviting room, coloured in taupe with white accents. Our waiter, the only server working that night, brought us quickly to our table at the front of the room. He did a great job of working the room and making sure everyone’s needs were met throughout our visit.

Immediately upon sitting down I noticed a stain on the tablecloth, smack-dab right there in the middle. I tried not to make too much of it, but it was hard not to notice. When you’re paying $25-plus for your main course alone, I just don’t think this is acceptable. At Denny’s, sure, but in a high-end place, no dice.

I perused the wine menu, featuring spirits from all over the world at a range of prices, with bottles of red wine available from $50 to $395. I went for my preferred beverage, in this case Moretti ($7.95), an Italian beer. As we discussed the options, our waiter brought over some complementary bruschetta that was serviceable. It was a nice gesture, but I might have forgotten all about it had I not jotted it down in my notes.

For starters, I ordered soupli ($12), described as risotto with cheese and ground veal, which is battered and then baked. While I wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting, it sounded good, and my instincts were right. It was my favourite part of the meal. Soupli is deep-fried cheese sticks on steroids. The creaminess of the risotto and parmesan cheese contrasted nicely with the crisp battered exterior. It was melty goodness and exactly what I needed to shake the cold from my bones.

My companions had the carpaccio ($15) and cozze marinara ($15), the latter consisting of mussels, sautéed in a white wine sauce. The carpaccio was thinly sliced and very tender, but the rest of my party and I agreed that the balsamic-based dressing was applied too liberally. The mussels were chewy and weren’t well received, marking the low point in the meal.

For our main courses, I had the vitello funghi ($25) — veal sautéed with creamy wild mushroom sauce. One guest tried the agnello bugaltiera ($35) — a marinated grilled rack of lamb with Italian herbs, garlic, onions, red wine, mint and balsamic reduction. My other dinner mate tried the filleto alla gamberi ($35) — a seasoned six-ounce steak cooked to perfection, served with lemon, extra virgin olive oil and prawns.

The veal on my dish was completely covered in mushrooms and had a side of vegetables including red peppers, zucchini, snow peas, broccoli and asparagus, as well as a small side of pasta and tomato sauce.

The protein was generous in portion, and the sauce was quite garlicky — perhaps too much so for some, although I enjoyed it. The other two meals looked great, and I’m told they were, save for the prawns, which were slightly overdone.

We weren’t going to have any dessert, as we were full from the appetizers and mains, but our waiter insisted on a complementary offering after finding out the carpaccio didn’t go over that well.

The cassatta siciliana, or homemade three-layer ice cream, was brought out, drizzled with chocolate syrup. It was good, but didn’t blow us away.

Perhaps in the summer it would be a nice stroll heading down 17th to the Stampede grounds, but I’ll be honest in saying that at least for the balance of this winter, I’ll be picking another restaurant closer to home for my next meal.

Da Paolo, 121 17th Ave S.E., 403-228-5556.