When my neighbors down the block talk about Italian food, I listen very closely. While neither are professional chefs, he comes from a Philadelphia neighborhood where authenticity is a big deal, and she has traveled very widely and has excellent taste. They enjoy cuisine both rarefied and rustic, and when I want to put an Italian restaurant under the magnifying glass they’re my first choice of companions.
I decided that the recently reopened La Sosta merited their scrutiny, because I had heard strongly polarized reports of the place. La Sosta had always been an anomaly in the South Bay – a quiet, sophisticated place in a town of loud restaurants, serving Venetian dishes when Southern specialties are generally more popular. Their new location just north of Rosecrans on Highland isn’t as secluded as the old one, but when we walked in it was clear that the style hadn’t changed; the lights in the small room were low, with flowers and candles on the tables, and the atmosphere was serene.
The menu had shifted, though it’s still short compared to most around town. A few more modern items are on the menu – there’s even a steak, though it seems out of place next to spaghetti with mullet roe and gnocchi with gorgonzola and arugula. Our companions quizzed the server about several of the dishes and, satisfied with the answers, we ordered starters of sautéed octopus and a fennel and grapefruit salad. An amuse bouche arrived – a sliver of asiago cheese with a dot of honey, and we savored that with bread while studying the wine list. The bottles offered were mostly Italian and mostly pricey – almost nothing was under forty dollars, and at least half the list was over a hundred. Many of the producers and varietals are obscure, and there are no descriptions, so if you are not very knowledgeable about wine you’ll be relying on your server. (And you will be drinking their wine or none, because they don’t allow outside bottles.) On the plus side, the servers offered tastes of some selections, so we ordered a Sicilian Insola knowing that we liked it.
Our starters arrived fairly quickly given that the restaurant was almost full when we arrived, and the fennel and grapefruit salad was as tangy and refreshing as we hoped. The citrus and vegetable was the taste of a summer day, with moderate olive oil and herbs delicately accenting it. There was fennel with the octopus too, showing how that vegetable is sweeter when cooked, and along with the olives and a dash of garlic it made a very flavorful dish. My neighbors purred at the flavor and texture of the octopus, wondering how they had gotten it so soft – one proclaimed it the best he had ever had. Both portions were on the small side, but we had several forkfuls apiece.
For main courses we had selected orate (sea bream), lamb chops, sardine spaghetti, and homemade pappardelle noodles with porcini mushrooms. It’s a measure of the emphasis on the flavors of the ingredients here that they specified that there was no sauce on the mushrooms – there was a tiny dash of green herbs, but the flavor of the fungi was the star. It worked, too – the springy, unmistakably fresh pasta made the difference. The spaghetti was just as good with the salty, slightly musky anchovies, though I might have liked a little onion or other vegetable in the mix for both flavor and texture. I found it good but somehow incomplete, though there were mixed feelings around the table.
The sea bream was simply baked in the oven with herbs and sea salt, the presentation with green beans and a spoonful of salsa quite pretty, but I found it ever so slightly overcooked. My neighbors ate it with gusto, so our tastes evidently differ. There was no such problem with the lamb, which was a perfect medium-rare and served in an intense sauce made from its own juices. Though this was tender and flavorful I was actually more impressed with the side dish of sautéed savoy cabbage – it was a perfect companion to the meat. Given that the four chops with a dab of cabbage ran $44, I might have expected another side dish, perhaps some roasted potatoes or polenta to add balance – it wasn’t a very full meal given the price.
On the plus side that meant that we had room for dessert, and we ordered tiramisu, profiteroles, and a pinenut lemon tart called torta alla nonna. The tart and tiramisu were excellent, but the profiteroles didn’t have the airy lightless we expected. When my neighbor brought this up with the server he immediately offered to remove it from the bill, which we appreciated.
The bill ran $80 per person with two bottles of wine (the second a Chianti that was a bit light but decent). On the way home we discussed whether the experience was worth it; my neighbors said they’d consider returning because this restaurant is so true to the Northern Italian tradition of expert cooking and subtlety. The whole experience had indeed been very Italian, and most dishes so good that it made me wonder about the ones I didn’t get to try. I might return for a special occasion, because the high points are very high indeed.
La Sosta is at 3713 Highland in Manhattan Beach.  Open Tuesday-Sunday 5:30 p.m. – 10 p.m., street parking oir city lot across the street. Beer and wine only, no outside bottles. Menu at lasostaenoteca, phone 310-796-1200.
