We don’t eat out a lot, not the two of us anyway. With friends, that’s different. Want to go to burger night, happy hour (which seems to be the fancy way to say “early bird special”), try some new place, just get together? We’re there. But even before the pandemic it wasn’t a frequent thing, which may surprise those of you who follow my restaurant posts. And the main reason may sound odd. It is just too much trouble. Huh? You have to decide where to eat, and when, which for the crowd phobic takes actual effort. Then make a reservation. And I guess then put on actual non stretchy pants and leave the house. Exhausting. It helps that I like to cook. When we do come up with some place we want to go, some reason to make the effort, we want to eat something better or different than what I cook at home.

When I saw an article on the latest James Beard Award nominees I scanned through the list for local spots. Ah ha, there’s an idea, let’s try one of them. The one closest to where we live was Andiario in West Chester. It features a pre-set menu and offers wine pairings. Since we have tried a few of those recently it presented an opportunity to test that format at a well-regarded spot close to home. Reservations for the month ahead open at the end of the month prior at a particular date and time. I set a calendar reminder for myself and was sitting at my computer ready to hit refresh when the noon release time arrived and scored a reservation for a Thursday evening a few weeks out.

In Philadelphia Magazine, Jason Sheehan wrote that Anthony Andiario worked for 15 years in Arizona to come back to his home state of Pennsylvania to become an overnight sensation in his own restaurant. In his review he wrote that “watching Tony work was like watching an NBA all-star play a pickup game in a parking lot. To taste his food was to taste the purity of someone cooking without ego, purely for the love of the game.” “Anthony cooks what he loves and sends out every plate like he’s signing his name.” “On its best nights, it’s absolute magic.” Wow, that certainty raises expectations. Some things have changed since the pandemic. Tony and his wife Maria bought a farm and are working toward growing things for the restaurant. They bought nearby French Bakery La Baguette Magique, which now is under construction offering only order ahead curbside takeout. Andiario offers one preset menu, which changes weekly, if not more frequently. It is not posted in advance, but there will always be pasta. You get what he wants to cook, those with dietary restrictions should call the restaurant at least a week ahead of the reservation. That is great for the decision averse, not so good for those with less experimental palates.

The dining room is small with clean lines and an open kitchen. You can clearly see Tony at the center of the action. A server brings the menu, explains how things work and asks about beverages. I am into wine pairings (another way to avoid decisions) but also because this is something I struggle with and enjoy leaving it to the professionals. First up is an amuse bouche, grilled beef tongue. Before I lose you on that, I have not had it either and if they had not told me what it was, I would never have known. Tender morsel, just a touch of grill mark and smoke flavor. They poured a dry Lambrusco; every dinner should start with something sparking said the server. Hard to argue. If, like me, you remember Lambrusco as sweet, and slightly bubbly; more like purple coca cola than wine, this is not that. Dry, smooth with some bubbles, but enough richness to complement pretty much anything, a good start.

The first item on the menu is Scallop Crudo with chili oil, mint, and pea shoots. A crudo is something raw, typically dressed with oil, often with citrus. The scallops were sweet and tender, the chili oil added a hint of heat. The peas shoots added some texture, color, and a subtle sweetness. The mint brightened up the whole dish, not something I would have thought to add, but just delicious. The wine paired with that was an Italian Piedmont white, a 2020 Erbaluce di Caluso “La Torrazza”. The wine has a bit of herbal and citrus, a hint of floral and green apple on the nose and enough minerality to balance the sweet scallops. Lovely pairing.

Next up, pasta- Ricotta cappelletti with black trumpets and green garlic paired with Arneis Roero Elisa 2020 from Paitin. The pasta was fantastic, Andiario is known for pasta, and this did not disappoint. The wine was my favorite of the night, the touch of herbal and mineral really balanced the smooth creamy pasta.

This was followed by Mugolio (a syrup made from young pinecones) glazed squab with sweet potato puree and shallot confit. The Mugolio sauce that coated the squab was delicious, a bit sweet and fruity, a bit smoky. But it was hard to get enough meat off the tiny bird to do it justice. The sweet potato puree was tasty, but my shallots were undercooked. What was supposed to be sweet tender and caramelized was just a bit raw which just did not meld with the other components. The wine pairing was excellent and unexpected following the earlier Italian choices. The pinot noir from Tesselaardsal winery in South Africa was medium bodied with nice red fruit but enough acidity to balance the sauce on the squab. My favorite wine of the night, oh but I already said that, didnt ? Any way, squab; have never had it before and really see no reason to do so again.

Dessert was Pear cake with crème Anglaise paired with De Muller Aureo Dulce Anejo, a sweet Sherry from the Terragona region of Spain. I take back my earlier comments, I think this was my favorite wine pairing of the evening. Really, well maybe. I do not know much about sherry but may need to rethink that. This wine along with the pear cake was fantastic. The dessert by itself was good, the cake neither too rich nor too sweet, leaving room for the crème anglaise to contribute its creaminess. But with the wine, delicious.

There is a lot going with the food here, unusual ingredients, unfamiliar preparations. Lots of details I have forgotten. Something was foraged, several things specially crafted. I do not believe I have heard the phrase “our foragers” in the description of a menu item before. The flavors were excellent, out of the ordinary, masterfully crafted. But there were a few missteps and not everyone would like all the dishes. I wonder if the kitchen is trying too hard to impress and might be better off simplifying a few things. But Anthony Andiario cooks what he wants, and as reservations for a month fill as soon as they are released, it’s working.