Finally. Barbuzzo Restaurant Review.

Barbuzzo

110 S. 13th Street

Philadelphia, PA 19107

215-546-9300

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Finally, last night I made my way to Barbuzzo in Philadelphia.  This is a Mediterranean Restaurant that opened this September.  Having read a ton of rave reviews I had pretty high expectations.  Barbuzzo is open for both Lunch and Dinner.  The kitchen is open till midnight and they have good late-night menu deals.  I met my friend Lauren and sister Danielle at Barbuzzo on a Tuesday night.  We didn’t have reservations, so we put our name in and ended up waiting about a little over an hour.  We were all looking forward to eating at Barbuzzo so we were willing to wait.  The restaurant is pretty small and they have tables, bar seating, and a chef’s table.  The restaurant was packed and there were no open seats until around 8:30/9.  Eventually we were seated at a regular table which was exactly what we were hoping for.  We each decided to order our own dishes and shared a pizza.  We all had tastes of each others meals since we all ordered different things.

Lauren & I both ordered glasses of red wine.  I ordered the Nero d’avola which I absolutely loved.

Lauren started with the vegetable board.  The vegetable selection changes almost daily and uses veggies from local farmers.  I cannot remember exactly what was on this plate but I know it included beets, squash, some sort of toasted bread with a pesto (?) spread, and possibly fennel?

I started with the Roasted Heirloom Squash and Parsnip Salad with arugula, shaved grana padano, spiced pumpkin seeds, vin cotto & lemon.  I was really excited about ordering this and I have had a similar one from Audrey Claire’s and then I recreated it at home.  I just love arugula, squash, & parsnips!  and cheese!

Danielle started off with the Burrata from Puglia with red bartlett pear, arugula, arugula, extra virgin olive oil, saba & candied hazelnuts.

We decided to order the basic Margherita Pizza to share…described on the menu as San Marzano tomatoes, house stretched fior di latte, basil & extra virgin olive oil.  It was perfect.

Now, onto our entrees…

Lauren decided on the Pan Seared Gnocchi with Chanterelle mushrooms, Barbuzzo pancetta, caramelized apple, kohlrabi & truffle butter.

Danielle ordered the Grilled Bronzino with parsley-pinenut pesto, oven dried tomatoes, & artichoke Farro.

I ordered the Casarecce with olive oil, wood fired hen of the woods, wild arugula, preserved lemon-walnut pesto & ricotta.

We were so happy with this meal.  But dessert just put it over the top and I don’t think I’ve stopped thinking about it since.  We were all naturally attracted to three different desserts.

Lauren ordered the Blood Orange Tiramisu with fresh whipped cream and almond amaretti crumble.

Danielle ordered the Warm Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding with warm caramel, walnuts, and vanilla gelato.

I decided on the Salted Caramel Budino with dark chocolate crust, vanilla bean caramel, & sea salt.

This dessert was in a miniature mason jar and had different layers.  On the bottom, there were Dark Chocolate Cookie crumbles, followed by a pudding (vanilla bean? butterscotch?), sprinkled with Sea Salt, and then followed by a layer of buttery caramel…all topped with fresh whipped cream.  Seriously, this was amazing.  I actually couldn’t believe how good it was.  I still can’t.  I absolutely loved it.  Everything was right about it…the cookie crumbles, pudding, sea salt, caramel.  I need more of this in my life.  Good thing I found a recipe that I can work from…I’m sure it’s not exact.  I also found out that Barbuzzo actually sells 6 jars for $45.  It sounds expensive but really it works out to $7.50/jar.  I’ll take it.

Please take me back.

Love,

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Tagged as: Barbuzzo, Barbuzzo Restaurant Review, Blood Orange Tiramisu, Burrata from Puglia, Casarecce, Grilled Bronzino, Hen of the woods, Margherita Pizza, Pan Seared Gnocchi, Philadelphia, Roasted Heirloom Squash and Parsnip Salad, Salted Caramel Budino, Vegetable Board, Warm Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding