Rick Nichols visits Clark Gilbert’s Gemelli and hopes the Italian “with a nod to French” BYOB in Narberth puts down some deep roots.

He is a seasoned chef, under his belt stints at the Four Seasons, Tony Clark’s short-lived Square Bar on Rittenhouse Square, Avalon in West Chester, and the elegant, now-departed Taquet in Wayne.

But he is the first to point out that the menu here, his first truly solo venture, is not the wheel reinvented: He offers a proper Caesar salad (add $2 for white anchovies), and the braised-veal-cheek-and-tuna-tartare classic called vitello tonnato. The salmon rests on ratatouille and puttanesca sauce.

Back home, with a bistro [Philadelphia Inquirer]

Craig LaBan doesn’t have much bad to say about his trips to Girasole, the glitzy Italian restaurant just steps from the Avenue of the Arts, except for maybe some gripes about the price. But there is a three-course prix-fixe menu for $35 available every night but Saturday that mutes that complaint.

The most memorable flavors at Girasole, however, had a genuinely more homey touch. Even the complimentary opening nibbles – one night some delicate fritters of mashed potato, another night a creamy, herb-flecked mound of house-made ricotta – taste like someone’s mamma made them.

The pastas, in particular, were splendid. Delicate ribbons of house-made tagliatelle came tossed with shavings of fresh baby artichokes and smoky speck. The bucatini Girasole – essentially an amatriciana – wore the zest of rendered pancetta and a flicker of chile pepper in its fresh tomato sauce. There was an authentic seafood risotto filled with shellfish flavor (though a second try wasn’t quite as creamy and fully cooked as the first). My favorite, though, was Girasole’s twist on passatelli.

Two Bells – Very Good

Girasole [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Girasole [Official Site]

Marc Vetri writes about the inspiration for his forthcoming Amis and shares some details about the trattoria in his Osteria newsletter.

• Amis is aiming for an early 2010 opening
• Inspired by Roman trattorias
• Simple small dishes
• Vetri sous chef Brad Spence will head up the restaurant
• Wine list will be chosen by Jeff Benjamin and Steve Wildy
• About 12 reds and 12 whites
• All wines will be available by glass or bottle
• Fully stocked bar with “creative” beers and “interesting” cocktails.
• Corkage will also be available.

Check out the full letter after the jump.

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Meal Ticket has the latest menu from Peter McAndrews’ Modo Mio.Among the items we’ll be considering the next time we hit up the Girard Avenue BYOB are:

• cannellono — crispy crab-stuffed prosciutto di Parma, asparagus & almonds
• gnoccho — crispy fried potato dumpling stuffed with foie gras and chicken liver, orange-fennel mostarda, shaved gorgonzola
• tortelloni — butternut squash-stuffed large navels, sage butter, amaretti
• anatra “all’apicio”— roasted duck leg, chestnut honey, spices, cunja
• guancia — braised beef cheek, salsa passito, crispy polenta, golden raisin gremolata

The menu turista , which features an antipasto, pasta, secondo and dolce for $33 is still available and one of the best deals in town.

Seasonal menu changes at Modo Mio [Meal Ticket]
Modo Mio [Official Site]

If we had a dollar for every time someone asked us where to get crudo in Philadelphia we’d be penniless. But that doesn’t mean the Mediterranean equivalent of ceviche isn’t worth seeking out. Positano Coast has been on the crudo tip for awhile now and Girasole offers a selection as well.

Among the offerings at Girasole:

• Branzino, Mediterranean sea bass marinated with extra virgin olive oil, meyer lemon and mild mustard
• Ricciola, Spencer Golf Hiramasa Kingfish, marinated with fresh blood orange served with tomato and avocado
• Tonno, Port Lincoln Blue fin tuna, lime zests with drops of aged balsamic reduction.

Girasole is also offering prix fixe options for lunch and dinner. The lunch is available weekdays from noon to 2;30 and dinner is available Sunday through Friday, 5pm to 6:30.

Dinner menu after the jump.

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Avril , a Northern Italian and Southern French BYOB opens tonight in Bala Cynwyd.

The Owners

• The husband and wife team of Christian Gatti and April Lisante
• Gatti has experience at:
  • City Tavern
  • White Dog
  • Audrey Claire
• Lisante was a long-time food writer for the Philadelphia Daily News
• The couple met during a 2003 Daily News photo shoot where Gatti was featured as one of Philadelphia’s “hot, young chefs.”

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Rick Nichols profiles Basil DeLuca of Villa di Roma and what goes into making those handmade meatballs.

The meatball-making is the province of one man and only one, Basil DeLuca, 56, the middle of the three sons of Domenic (”Kaiser”) and Carmela, Villa di Roma’s founders. Basil does not merely oversee the meatballs; he hand-forms each one – up to 400 a week – singularly and painstakingly and possessively at that counter.

They have become beloved meatballs. And while cooking may not have been the life Basil would have chosen if his father had not mandated it, he is proud of these meatballs – made to the precise standards of his tutor, Uncle Sammy – and of the following they now have.

And in late August or early September, you’ll be able to purchase these meatballs from a new storefront down the block.

Meet the ultimate handmade meatball [Philadelphia Inquirer]

Craig LaBan takes on Novita Bistro, an Italian BYOB that thankfully comes with a Morrocan twist.

[I]t is [Chef Hassan] Zanzoul’s increasing willingness to cook the flavors of his native Morocco that has finally given this pleasant bistro its first air of distinction. The garlicky house-made merguez lamb sausage is among my favorites here, grilled to a crispy brown for an appetizer over a coarse hummuslike mash of chickpeas ringed by vibrant red charmoula sauce. It’s also served as an entree over couscous alongside a brochette of big marinated grilled shrimp. The ever-cautious Zanzoul makes these skinless links with less chile heat than I’d like (and he’d like, for that matter), but this also allows the spice box of other aromatics to surge forth in a chorus of cumin, anise, paprika, and allspice that finds an echo in the tangy charmoula, a citrusy brew tinged sunburst red and smoky with paprika and cayenne.

Two Bells – Very Good

Novita Bistro [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Novita Bistro [Official Site]

The often forgotten Gnocchi on Passyunk Avenue between South and Bainbridge has a deal worth remembering.

Two people, 2 salads, 2 entrees, 2 desserts and 2 coffees for $25 total. The deal is offered Monday through Thursday.

David Snyder tries out the new incarnation of Girasole and finds excellent pasta but some price inconsistency.

Restaurants love to trumpet their hand-crafted pasta, but all too often housemade gnocchi are dense and leaden. Girasole’s gnocchi, on the other hand, is the best I’ve eaten in a long time — resting in a thoughtfully humble sauce of crushed plum tomatoes and stracchino cheese, each petite morsel had just enough heft to prove its worth before the bite melted away with the warmth of my palate.

Another pasta that caught my eye was the elusive passatelli. Traditionally, this thick, flourless pasta/dumpling hybrid — seen only in soups, and almost never in restaurants — is made with eggs, Parmigiano-Reggiano and bread crumbs, which give it a uniquely grainy texture. Angela Iovino adds a touch of flour to her version for consistency and serves it in a light sauce with sausage and porcini mushrooms for a wonderfully rare treat.

Mostly Sunny [City Paper]
Girasole [Official Site]