la viola

on a chilly saturday night in rittenhouse square i was hanging out for a really decent, high quality feed. la viola seemed to fit the bill, so i was happy to wait until a table became available (a much bigger group had a very large wait, so i was rather fortunate).

after the usual starter of fresh, rustic italian bread with olive oil and balsamic, i went for the penne alla caruso - pencil pointpastaand tomato sauce, lightly creamed with peas and pancetta.

this was a tasty dish, even if the hint of vodka was not strong. in fact one observation about thepastamenu is that a majority of the sauces are laced with alcohol. not a bad thing, except for the irony that la viola does not serve alcohol! i was caught short, because this place was byo booze. the food was very good nonetheless.

next time i'll come prepared with some grog, possibly to try the veal. four stars.

when i graduated from penn 5 years ago, i took my family to la viola for some hand-madepastafor my graduation dinner. i have fond memories here and the quality of food is great for the price. speaking of price, this place is cash only so please keep that in mind when you visit. frutti de mare this dish had grilled calamari (steaks not the rings) in lemon juice, garlic, olive oil and tomatoes. i wasn’t too fond of this dish but joe thought it was all right. to be fair, i’m not a huge fan of calamari steaks. tagliatelle al salmone joe ordered the home-made tagliatellepastasauteed with salmon in a pink cognac sauce. i liked his a lot. the salmon offered a nice variety in texture.pastaof the day this was home-made tagliatellepastawith shrimp and fish in a blush tomato creamy sauce. i preferred my dish over joe’s dish because i loved the blush sauce and the shrimp. the dishes here are simple but delicious. i love treating myse

greatpastaand seafood. went with my father and some friends on the way to see the phillies last week. very good food, excellent white mussels.all around great place.

we consider ourselves epicures; fine dining is our passion. la viola is impressive visually as well as to the tastebuds. the meal began with iced tea that queched our thirst and produced a wonderfully pleasant mouthfeel. ceasar salads accompanied by warm fresh bread delighted our mouths. our delightment grew when we are presented with the house special, a spinachpastawith shrimp and salmon, and a penne to die for. this equisit meal was delivered by an affable and accomodating staff and was priced reasonably to boot. bravisimo.