Enthusiastic ‘ciao’ to new brasserie

John Volo

“This is the best salad I’ve ever had,” my wife Karen proclaimed.

She was referring to Stef’s Milano insalati -- an exploding array

of tastes and textures -- at Ciao Brasserie.

This dome of earthy spring mix is coated with a deeply purple

balsamic glaze that clings to the greens as if knowing their

tastiness depends on it. The tart, firm, juicy chunks of Fuji apple

take on a new life when sharing taste buds with the mildly potent

feta cheese crumbles. The strawberries are so vivid, and their juices

so nectarous, you’d think they were planted with your arrival date in

mind.

As if that’s not enough, there are blackberries that squirt when

pierced with a fork, and a smattering of pine nuts to provide a

refreshing dose of crunch and saltiness.

Now before all you manly men dismiss this as some frou-frou girlie

salad, I must admit that I too found this fresh creation to be

fantastic. And it wasn’t just the salad that was fantastic. It was

also the stuffed mushrooms and the pizza and the pasta and the

desserts. Everything was first-rate.

The talented chef who created (and put his name on) the salad that

floored Karen is Stef Serafin -- the chef/owner of Ciao Brasserie.

Open for five months, Ciao had yet to register a blip on my radar

until I got a mailer/coupon touting a hip new place to enjoy

authentic northern Italian cuisine.

I found the inside of Ciao Brasserie very appealing. All the dark

wood -- floor, tables, chairs and bar -- is offset by soothing beige

walls. Pendant lights hang from a ceiling bordered by a curvy brown

overlay. It’s all so simple, yet stylish. The cozy bar was a relaxing

place to sip Peroni and peruse the menu while awaiting a booth.

Ciao starts everybody off with focaccia bread and garlic that’s

been roasted until it spreads easily. We quickly moved on to baked

stuffed mushrooms floating atop a shallow orange pool created by a

lobster brandy cream sauce. The succulent crabmeat stuffing was

showered with tiny granules of Parmigiana that crisped nicely when

baked.

We ordered a small grilled Portobella mushroom stone pie (pizza)

as an appetizer. Mozzarella cheese provided coverage for the

bakery-style crust, but it was the Gorgonzola and asiago cheeses that

provided the flavor. Mushrooms weren’t the only topping; some

deliciously crisp pieces of pancetta (salty Italian bacon) made for

good company.

I love robust Italian red wines, and Ciao’s impressive wine list

offers a half dozen. Two in particular caught my eye -- a 1997

Barbaresco and a 1998 Barolo, both from the Piedmont region. The

price, however, was too robust for my blood ($52 and $67,

respectively). Instead, I settled on a glass of the house Chianti

($5) that suited me fabulously.

While we were savoring our main dishes -- a terrifically cheesy

lasagna, and shrimp scampi over linguine -- Chef Stef was making the

rounds, chatting up each table’s patrons to gauge their satisfaction

(ours was off the charts). In the course of conversation, we found

Stef to be engaging, genuine, and personable. We also found out

Karen’s new favorite salad was something Stef and his girlfriend

discovered while messing around in his home kitchen.

The flourless chocolate cake was a tempting dessert choice, but

failed to sway us from a masterfully prepared, cinnamon-tinged and

berry-topped creme brulee. We also indulged in a prototype bananas

foster-like dessert that Stef was experimenting with the night of our

visit. He’s also developing a double-decker key lime pie.

In the absence of espresso (an Italian restaurant without

espresso?) I was forced to drink coffee with dessert.

On the Thursday we dined, the fried calamari seemed very popular,

as did the herb-crusted filet mignon served with garlic mashed

potatoes. Ciao also serves up a different Italian classic each

weekday (Wednesday is eggplant parmigiana) at lunch and dinner.

Chef Stef said he believes we shouldn’t have to drive down to

Laguna or up to L.A. just to enjoy a great dinner. I concur. And with

Ciao Brasserie now open in Huntington Beach, we don’t have to.

* JOHN VOLO is the Independent restaurant critic. If you have

comments or suggestions, e-mail [email protected].