Terrific Takeout: Sole di Capri Our Coverage Sponsored by Fresh Origins
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Terrifically charming, meet Sole di Capri!
Definitely the best dinner we've had close to City Hall was our first experience at Sole di Capri, which is hidden away at 165 Church Street in its small but sweet location! Opened in 2004 by our new friend Eddy from Ecuador, Sole di Capri is authentically Italian. By someone from Ecuador? Yes. From 1993 to 1999, Eddy moved to Torino, Piedmonte (Italy!) and studied Italian cuisine at the Asti Culinary Institute and ingratiated himself into the Italian culture.
In 1999, he moved to New York and in 2004 he opened Sole di Capri.
"Simplicity is best! Here you can find real authentic Italian cuisine, even though I'm not Italian!" Eddy tells us. He uses herbs and regular ingredients in great measure and you will be so pleased with yourself once you stumble upon this little gem, especially when you see Eddy's true passion for food. It is a great spot if you go shopping at Century 21 and would like a nice sit down casual bite to eat, or a lot of bites. It's also near Ground Zero.
We tried the Ravioli Dei Pecorario: home made fresh ravioli stuffed with sheep and cow's milk cheese aromatized with majoram (aromatic herbs), and served in a delicious plum tomato basil sauce. These are incredibly divine and they will melt in your mouth. We absolutely would order them again. For our salad, we opted for the Artisanal Salad, which is derived from their European mixed greens and decorated with olive oil, lemon, cherry tomatoes halved, cucumbers and the perfect hint of red onion. The menu varies a bit but there are always 3 pastas to choose from, 3 appetizer specials and overall specials 4-5 times a week. Eddy's artisanal philosophy dictates that he makes fresh mozzarella EVERY DAY and that nothing is fried, only baked. In the winter he tells us he makes three to four soups.
Next we tried the Roasted mixed vegetables, and you HAVE to have them. Red Beets, eggplant, carrots, mushrooms and, drumroll please, peas and onions (we never knew how much we liked these two together!) are perfectly marinated in herbs and extra virgin olive oil. You have to love a place that makes you get this excited about vegetables.
We also tried the uber-fragrant and also popular Gamberi Faraglioni: shrimp sauteed with anchovies, capers, zucchini and tomato sauce which was also incredible. And Eddy insisted we try his fresh mozzarella (twist our arm!) - you must try that as well. With fresh basil and olive oil, this mozzarella will be the best part of your day. For an entree, we chose the Fresh Fish of the day which was Branzino the day we visited served with potatoes, and it followed the precedent of everything is delicious here! For desert we enjoyed the flourless lemoncello cake with almonds and blueberry sauce to-die-for, classic tiramisu, and orange gelatin with homemade whipped cream. Their espresso is from Italy...
There are only seven tables, so make sure one of them is yours at this unassuming venue that you'll adore. Also, CBS Sunday Morning, note the sun of Capri is the logo here...
Sole di Capri is Terrific Takeout!
We look forward to seeing what they do next.
