semolina

Today I had lunch with Nica at Semolina, a new restaurant on the Corner. It is between Cafe Europa and Baja Bean, where _____ used to be. Neither one of us could figure out what was in the building before, though Nica was pretty sure it was a sandwich shop. Regardless, the space has been redecorated in a style reminiscent of Basil (probably because they are owned by the same people) with blue water glasses and low lighting. The dining area is on the second floor, and our thoughts about the atmosphere sum it up pretty well: "this would be the perfect place for a date!"

Now, for the food. Nica ordered the Quattro Stagioni pizza (in Italian that means four seasons) which had artichoke hearts, portobello mushrooms, prosciutto, red peppers, and of course, mozzarella. I got the Genovese, with pesto sauce, potatoes, and pecorino and mozzarella cheeses. Potatoes may seem like a weird choice for pizza, but it is actually delicious. The slices of potato provide a nice contrast to the cheese and crust, since the slices of potato are put onto the pizza raw before it goes into the oven. The crust of the pizza was really delicious, which is important, because in my opinion, a pizza can be ruined by bad crust regardless of how good the ingredients on top are. We each got the 8 inch version of our pizza, which was enough for lunch plus some leftovers. I also ordered a San Benedetto peach tea with my meal, which brought back memories of Italy (if only they had the European style Fanta, then it would be perfect!) The meal was really tasty, and I would definitely go back there again, maybe for dinner, because there were some appetizers and desserts on the menu that I wanted to try too.

My Genovese pizza. I had to take the picture with my phone since I forgot my camera, but I think it turned out pretty well! I might have to go nibble on my leftovers now...