Roasted garlic is an appetizer in one of my favorite Seattle
restaurants, but here it's par for the course. I was delighted. We
squeezed the soft cloves of garlic onto the springy bread, spread
it around and devoured it.
The menu is vast, complete with pasta dishes, salads, pizzas,
seafood selections and meat choices. The wine list is also
immense, in addition to domestic, local and Italian ales. Espresso
is a given at any good Italian restaurant, as well as a selection
of San Pellegrino sodas.
We began with an appetizer of sauté di funghi, or sautéed
mushrooms. Served in an enormous shallow bowl, a variety of exotic
mushrooms were cooked with garlic and fresh herbs, then finished
with a divine red wine butter sauce. Grilled pieces of buttery
bread were laid out in an X on the platter, then covered at the
center with the soft, flavorful mushrooms. The bread was ideal for
sopping up the outstanding sauce.
My husband's classic Caesar salad was prepared with crisp
hearts of romaine, homemade croutons and Bella Isola's own
dressing of extra virgin olive oil and fresh grated parmesan. Just
right in its simpleness, it made a fitting second course.
My second course was the highlight of the meal (in an evening
filled with outstanding food). A cream of artichoke soup was
brought to the table steaming hot, with soft, salty artichoke
hearts and bits of roasted red pepper swimming in a creamy base.
A trusted foodie friend had advised me to order the penne con
vodka, a dish of the familiar rolled pasta tubes served with
paper-thin prosciutto and tumbled with a tomato, cream and chili
pepper vodka sauce.
It was sublime. The saltiness of the prosciutto balanced
beautifully with the cream's richness, while the vodka gave the
dish bite. Thin slices of garlic sprinkled throughout the dish
added further flavor and interest.
My husband ordered the lombatine di maiale, an enormous serving
of two center-cut pork chops grilled with olive oil, garlic and
fresh sage. The succulent charbroiled pork chops were served with
a light porcini mushroom sauce, alongside a handful of cauliflower
florets drizzled in a tomato sauce that included kalamata olives.
A straightforward swirl of fettuccine rounded out the entrée.
Dessert was a tough choice, as we were too full to do more than
order and split one item between us. We narrowed it down to the
chocolate torte with mint, a rum-based tiramisu or Bailey's
chocolate mousse.
After much debate, we opted for the mousse — and we weren't
disappointed. Served in a wine glass and topped with fresh whipped
cream and chocolate shavings, two generous scoops of dense
chocolate mousse cradled a middle layer of Bailey's Irish cream. A
rolled sugar wafer cookie gracefully garnished the sugary final
course.
Bella Isola also caters to the lunch crowd, offering an array
of salads, including the fisherman's salad with scallops, prawns
and fresh fish grilled and plated atop their Caesar salad. Eight
different paninis can be had, served with parmesan potatoes, salad
or soup. Pizzas, pastas, seafood and meat specialties can also be
had.
A children's menu is available, serving sausage or simple
cheese pizza, "basketti" and meatballs, chicken and
broccoli, and cheesey noodles and parmesan, each for less than $4.
We left the restaurant pleasantly full and already thinking of
our next visit.
The Fine
Print: I dine on my own dime. The opinions herein are mine alone,
not The Bellingham Herald's. Agree? Disagree? Please drop me a
line at StaceeSledge@hotmail.com.
