Restaurant Review: Uccellino
UCCELLINO 10349 Jasper Avenue | corso32group.com/uccellino Instagram: @uccellinoyeg | Twitter: @UCCELLINOyeg Co-Diners: The Husband & The McCords
The hottest restaurant in Edmonton? That's Uccellino. When it comes to the top Italian cuisine experience in the city (or fine dining in general) there is no better. Accolade upon accolade, Edmonton's Connor McDavid (the best hockey player on planet Earth?) even recently named Uccellino as one of his favourite restaurants in town. (He also said that Edmonton has a really good restaurant scene that is super underrated and I couldn't agree more.) With chef and owner Daniel Costa at the helm, Uccellino has landed on Canada's 100 Best Restaurants list three times; #75 in 2017, #59 in 2018, and #95 in 2019. enRoute magazine had them as a Canada's Best New Restaurants 2016 nominee. They were voted as #1 Best Pasta 2018 in VUE Weekly and named as a Favourite Place to Take a Tourist on the Edmonton Food Faves We Crave 2022 list. And of course, most recently, EDify Magazine placed Uccellino as the Best Overall Restaurant 2023. I can think of no other restaurant in this city with a stack of notoriety as high. Uccellino has been on fire since their opening in 2016. I can't believe that it took me as long as it did for me to finally make a reservation (a must) and get myself in their door. It happened on a Saturday evening and the two-storey dining space was filled to capacity. One third of the Corso 32/Bar Bricco/Uccellino trifecta, all three restaurants are located in a sleek row Downtown. Inside, the bar is the focal point of the small space and the paint-by-number mural of the Italian campagna is striking yet subtle (this imagery is carried forth onto the menu). White marble accented by charcoal textiles and a breath of turquoise creates a modern, polished atmosphere. The servers are knowledgeable and friendly, effortlessly whisking us through various cocktails and from course to course. Cocktails. The first order of business. The menu is fairly concise with five options to choose from, each one oozing with confidence and expertise. The favourite at my table quickly became the Zenzero Highball but I had to try the White Negroni ($15.00) because as I've previously stated, a negroni paired with Italian food is an ideal combination in my opinion.
Served in a lowball glass, the beverage looked simple enough. However, this may have been the best negroni that I have ever tasted. Ultra clean in flavour and finish, the drink captured the desired bitterness that compliments Italian food so well and did so with finesse. Right down to the tall slice of cucumber that rounded out the aromatic sensory experience with every sip. Little moments like these - a well-made cocktail - are so special. The food menu is broken into four sections (Antipasti, Primi, Secondi, and Dolce) and I have heard that for the best experience it is advisable to order something from each. There is also a Tasting Menu on offer and at $95 per person it actually sounds quite reasonable. I didn't have the tasting menu on this visit but would certainly love to do so on a future visit. Aiming to be a contemporary trattoria serving seasonal Italian dishes, the menu at Uccellino is traditional in its structure and modern in its execution. First to arrive was the Wagyu Beef Carpaccio ($23.00) with Brio Bakery bread ($3.00) added.
Paper-thin slices of beautifully marbled wagyu decorated the plate with an abstract expressionist use of ingredients on top. Viewed as the most high-end beef experience in the world, the wagyu was buttery smooth. Piled onto a piece of toasty bread, the marrow aioli and crispy fried capers certainly caught my attention and I loved how unctuous and expertly seasoned this dish was. There were hints of salt just where I wanted them and this plate could be described as nothing other than a work of art. Next, our server told us about an Antipasti feature for the night that we immediately ordered; the Burrata Special ($24.00). You had me at burrata.
Fresh, simple, minimal ingredients. This dish might have been the embodiment of Italian cuisine. Ripples of deep pink prosciutto covered the plate like a salty-cured nest with a generous ball of burrata cheese in its center. For a mild cheese burrata certainly feels indulgent. The outer casing is solid, while the inside contains stracciatella and cream, giving it a soft, luxurious texture. This is the kind of dish that you could live off of and you would never be unhappy. I kept hearing rave reviews about the crostini which surprised me in a way. What could they possibly be doing with slices of bread that was so incredible? I had to find out and ordered the House-made Goat Ricotta Crostini ($14.00 for 3). I believe that this is treated as a seasonal item where the ingredients used often change.
Wow. A thick layer of whipped ricotta was spread on top of the bread, creating wells for the delicious rosemary oil to pool into. This was like biting into a velvety cloud of creaminess, yet it was so fresh, simple, and clean. Now I understand. The crostini is an absolute must each and every time. If you're keeping track, we'd eaten meats and cheeses and breads, and honestly, that could have been the whole meal right there and I would've been overjoyed. They'd already showed me enough. But there was more. Our server switched gears and we moved into the Primi part of our meal. "Primi" usually refers to pasta dishes and these are the star at Uccellino with five different types to choose from. I had heard good things about the Spaghetti ($32.00) and decided to start there.
This pasta is very seafood forward and at first I was finding it somewhat one-noted... However, that all changed as I continued to eat and now I can't stop thinking about it. The pieces of shrimp were abundant and the sauce was ultra creamy. There was a beautiful heat that slowly built as I ate. And the use of bottarga (the delicacy of salted, cured fish roe pouch) was a treat. Each bite was so full of flavour and I loved the satisfying crunch of texture from the buttery pangrattato on top. I can see why people like this dish because it kind of gets into your head. The other pasta dish that I had to taste was the Truffle Ricotta Gnudi ($31.00). Gnudi is so hot right now!
If you have ever wanted to eat pillow-clouds this is likely your best chance. Gnudi are gnocchi-like dumplings made with ricotta cheese instead of potato. This creates a very light and fluffy dumpling that are not dense at all. I'm not sure how, but the ones at Uccellino almost seem "stuffed" with the truffle ricotta mixture and it's some kind of magic. Sitting in a bath of velvety, buttery sauce, each bite of gnudi delivers the kind of flavour sensation that will cause you to close your eyes and reflect on the experiences that food can bring. This plate was exquisite. By the time I reached the Secondi phase I was very full. I almost completely forgot that there was still more food coming. Mistakes were made... Very delicious mistakes. The Secondi options are few and precise. The cod sounds wonderful (I would order it next time) and there's a fancy steak. There's also the Pollo Al Mattone ($45.00) which is a pretty special dish.
I wish that I could have been less full and more able to truly appreciate this dish for what it was. I helped myself to a leg piece because dark meat is always my preference. The chicken was incredibly moist and tender on the inside, while the skin on the outside was deliciously crip and well-seasoned. The salmoriglio was verdant and did a great job of bringing some bright acidity to the plate. I was also very excited about the salad that came with this dish because I'm a huge fan of fennel. A roast chicken with a fennel salad is an ideal match and I loved seeing it. Finally, against all odds, we saved some space (but did we though?) for Dolce. It had to be the Chocolate Budino ($16.00).
A budino is an Italian pudding but in this case it is being served more like a cake. The portion size was mercifully reasonable. Worth saving space for, each bite melted in my mouth. Rich and decadent, yet somehow as light as air, this dessert was a wonderful way to finish off an already exceptional meal. It's always nice when a restaurant with a lot of hype deserves it. This is one of those cases. Uccellino is a restaurant for Edmontonians who know what's good. Sharing a meal like this with good company is what life is all about. We are lucky to have Uccellino and I would certainly place them among the best restaurants in the city.
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