Some restaurants spend a lot of time and effort manufacturing a buzz about their place. You know what I mean – keeping a line waiting even while tables are available, vamping the music to jet-hangar levels, crafting the stylishly oblique exterior that is fashionable on the West Side. They may get that buzz for a while, but unless their food and service are top-notch, they haven’t earned it and won’t keep it. The restaurant in the South Bay that currently has the biggest buzz is Buona Sera, the Italian newcomer located on a quiet side street in Riviera Village. I have heard from several readers who called it the best Italian restaurant in a wide radius, which is no small boast given the competition. Having visited the restaurant, I can confirm that the cooking and creativity are top-notch, and while not everything is perfect, it is well worth a visit.
We arrived on a Friday night when the restaurant was bustling, and the hostess looked relieved that we had a reservation. Apparently she had been turning away hopeful diners for a while, and it was a nice change to actually be able to help someone.
Our table was small and close to others, but while the noise level was high it was not intrusive. We had other things to occupy us, such as studying the interesting and varied menu. Just as we had decided what we might order, the waiter came by to describe the specials. There are always three or four of these, but tonight the selection was unusually rich. A shipment of white truffles had just arrived from France, and the chef had created a menu to make use of them. We selected most items from the main menu, but I couldn’t resist trying a starter of white truffles with sautéed button mushrooms, burrata mozzarella cheese, frisee, and truffle oil. This starter was a decadent wonder, the musky fresh truffles modified by fresh but very complex flavors. Some dishes with few ingredients and simple methods are designed to show off the quality of the ingredients, and this was one of them. At $28.00 for a starter it was a luxury, but one that was worth it to taste perfectly fresh truffles in a sympathetic setting.
Our other starters were a carpaccio of smoked swordfish, a tuna timbale, and that old favorite, a caesar salad. The smoked swordfish was presented with halved grapes over a bed of mache lettuce with tangy vinaigrette, a presentation that was both beautiful and practical. The balance of sweet, tart, smoky, and seafood flavors were brilliant, and it was one of the standouts of the meal. We were less enamored of the tuna timbale, which was accompanied by a sharp red bell pepper sauce that wasn’t listed on the menu. The tuna and roasted vegetables were fine by themselves, but quite overwhelmed by the sauce. Our waiter noticed that we weren’t eating it, and once we expressed our opinion it disappeared from both the table and the bill. The caesar was more in balance, with mild garlic and anchovy flavors in harmony with a thin slice of unusually good Parmesan cheese. Once again we noted how this cuisine shows the quality of the ingredients; the high-quality Parmesan made the difference between a merely adequate salad and a really good one.
We meant to accompany our salads with glasses of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from the wine list, but due to an error only the Pinot showed up. The by-the-glass is here is small, an oddity given that the regular wine list has a vast array of excellent bottles. Had we been members of a larger party, or just more bibulous drinkers, we’d have been happy with the list.
Our main courses were lasagna, pappardelle pasta with pheasant and morel mushrooms, and rack of lamb. I had heard a lot about the lasagna from other diners, and the preparation here is certainly different from most in the South Bay. Rather than the tower of stiffly cooked pasta in a red sauce, this was a wide but not high slice of pasta in a basil-based sauce, and the noodles were cooked a bit softer than usual. I happen to prefer the noodles al dente, but I liked the sauce and it was certainly an interesting change from the ordinary. It reminded me of lasagna I’d had in a restaurant specializing in cooking from Genoa, and I asked the waiter if he knew whether this was a regional tradition. He didn’t know, and since the kitchen was slammed with a full load of diners he didn’t get a chance to ask the chef.
The pappardelle were outstanding. The pheasant morsels and pieces of morel mushrooms in rich cream sauce was a marvelous combination, one I wasn’t at all tired of on the last bite of my meal. Freshly grated Parmesan cheese was offered but superfluous, since it was perfect just as it was. The lamb also was an excellent choice, well – roasted and flavored by an aged balsamic vinegar sauce that gave a light fruity overtone to the meat.
We finished with tiramisu, an apple tart, and panna cotta, all made in-house. The tiramisu was good though not great, lacking the bite off espresso and dark chocolate to offset the creamy richness of the cake. The other two desserts were more to our taste, both doing a fine job of contrasting fresh fruit with pastry or cream and getting the balance right. We shared a glass of sparkling Moscato and toasted an evening well spent at a fine table. The bill was $162.00 for four people with four glasses of wine – an extravagance, but one that we felt was well worth it. This is adventurous fine dining at a very high level. Buona Sera is well-named, because it was a really good evening of culinary exploration.
Buona Sera is located at 247 Avenida del Norte in Redondo Beach. Open daily except Mo-Sa for lunch, daily except Sunday for dinner. Street parking only, full bar, handicap access good. Reservations recommended – call 543-2277.
