Aku Eats Oahu : a closer look : Verbanos, a closer look

Verbanos, a closer look

Aloha!

10/9/08 - Pasta anyone?

As most in-tuned eaters on the island know, many of the Italian restaurants here are, for some reason, owned and run by Chinese or Southeast-Asian chefs. This is a fact I've mentioned briefly before, a fact that may not exactly be the most pleasing news flash around to an Italian grandmother with a high brow looking for a taste of home, a remembrance of the old-country. Of course, the same would apply to a Cambodian grandmother, a Vietnamese grandfather, a Tajik auntie, or a Swahili uncle looking for their own respective culinary ideals. Quite naturally and matter-of-factly speaking, an all-the-bases-covered, culturally-sensitive dining experience will naturally not be represented best when when orchestrated by people who have not grown up inside the actual cultures themselves.

Of course, not that there's anything wrong with whatever race owning whatever restaurant. It may affect you if you absolutely need a totally accurate cultural representation, but if you simply want to enjoy good food and great dining, it doesn't necessarily have to have anything to do with cultural correctness. Good food is good food, no matter where the chef is from. In fact, all of us know many different cultures where we wouldn't know the difference between truly traditional and non-traditional, anyway. One thing I can know quite immediately, however, without any training or background knowledge whatsoever, is if I've enjoyed the meal or not, yes? Most times, that's really all that matters.

Bottom line is, if people like what's served, they'll come; if not, the place will fold. Simple as that. And one place that has certainly not folded, but has, in fact, grown, is Verbano's, a small set of Italian restaurants owned by a Chinese family.

Verbano's has long been one of my favorite Italian restaurants for its affordable prices and decent atmosphere, in combination with, above all - its great food, which we'll get to soon enough. We stopped by the S. King St. location on this day, where it sits next to Bank of Hawaii in that building with the distinctive, grated contraption covering it. You'll need a ticket to enter the lot, but parking is free with validation.

Not sure why I'm showing you these, but there were a bunch of curious-looking trees in the lot, I guess having been recently trimmed by someone trying to turn yardwork into an art. This one was turned into a giant lollipop.

And this one, a giant mushroom. I wonder if they like being turned into something else?

I've seen enough mangled trees. Bonsai is cool, but this looks more like that modern art stuff. Personally, I'm not really big on those strange displays you see at the latest museums these days. I just can't get into them except to amuse myself at how people would actually marvel and pay so much for such abstractions. So un-cultured, ain't I? Of course, I don't think the Filipino gardeners who probably worked on these trees would consider themselves modern artists...

Anywayz, moving indoors because it was, like, totally hot outside, the dining room was an air-conditioned oasis of comfort. At night, the place gets a lot darker, completely changing the personality of the bright atmosphere you see here. I'd say it gets a lot more romantic, is what happens, with those tiny Christmas tree-style lights sparkling like a quaint little outdoor pavilion.

The bar is also reasonably stylish and comfortable, located right at the entrance of the restaurant.

Just after ordering, we were brought one of the tell-tale signs of non-Italian ownership - bread and butter! I guess it's cheaper than olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and crushed black pepper. No worries. The generous portion of bread was hot, fluffy, and free, so I can't complain.

For starters, we went with a simple provolone and basilica, a play on the traditional tomato, basil, and buffalo mozzarella, or mozzarella di bufala compana. That type of cheese actually does come from buffalo milk, and unlike other cheeses, is allowed to sit in hot whey or water for a time during the production process, then kneaded and pulled until the desired consistency is attained. This makes for a very soft, very mellow taste that is best eaten quickly thereafter.

Ours, however, was very different, with a relatively mellow variation of provolone that, despite lacking the sophistication and allure of soft buffalo mozzarella, was a great combination in its own right. The juicy, ripe, and very sweet tomato base, the creamy mellowness of the provolone, and the slightly spicy, though always refreshing touch of basil were all interwoven seamlessly for a great, light starter dish.

Wifey's main dish was a puttanesca over spaghetti pasta. By the way, all pasta dishes come with spaghetti noodles unless specified by the menu or by you. There are choices of angel hair, linguine, penne, or rigatoni that can be subsituted for an additional $1.

The puttanesca was, as most dishes are here, well-flavored and redolent of garlic, a definite plus in my book. Don't worry about anchovies, either, if you happen to be a little uncomfortable with the strong-tasting fish, as there was no fishy taste at all, and mostly just a classic tomato sauce through and through.

Wifey usually gets something red and basic, unlike myself, who prefers creams and multiple flavor layers. Here's a better shot of the pasta noodles from her plate.

My dish was my all-time favorite here at Verbano's, a pollo saltimbocca. This dish comes as a chicken breast topped with eggplant, prosciutto ham, mushrooms, and cheese, all swimming in a white wine/butter pasta. For all you who don't know what to order, I can almost gaurantee you'll like this dish! The pasta part alone would be more than enough to keep me happy, with its absolutely bursting-with-taste cream sauce. And talk about layering of flavors - the tender chicken breast, salty prosciutto, fleshy mushrooms, heavy garlic, and gooey cheese all work together like a symphony orchestra! Magnificent, is all I can say! Betcha thought I'd use bravo or bravissimo? Wouldn't dare...

Like I said, Verbano's is one of my favorite Italian restaurants on the island. Not for it's cultural correctness, but for its dishes first and foremost, and then for prices and atmosphere.

The full line-up of Italian favorites can include braised veal shanks (osso bucco), catch of the day in different sauces, fried calamari, prosciutto w/melon, clams florentine, lasagna, eggplant parmesan, and any of several very tasty chicken dishes, to name a few. Whether it be marinara, puttanesca, carbonara, arrabiata, pomodori, or anything else - you won't be lacking in good options, for sure.

I guess, then, that that's about all I have to say about our time at Verbano's for now. Hope you're all having a great day! The weekend's right around the corner and it's been hot and humid, so go hit the beach or something and enjoy the gorgeous island environment we are so blessed with here!

Thanks for stopping by once more! Till next time!

Aku

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