FarmTable Cucina
4.5 out of 5 stars
179 Second Ave. N., St. Petersburg. Appetizers: $4-$25; entrees: $21-$55; desserts: $9; beer, cocktails and wine: $4-$22. 727-523-6297; farmtablecucina.com.
One of the reasons traveling to Europe is on so many bucket lists is the lure of local gastronomy. I’ve never met anyone lucky enough to taste the bounty of the continent who isn’t wowed. Recently, I reported that Bulla Gastrobar was like a culinary visit to Spain. And now, just weeks later, I can confirm that chef-partners Michael Mina and Don Pintabona have finally cracked the code at their FarmTable Kitchen, now FarmTable Cucina in downtown St. Pete. I had a chance to sit down with chef Mina when Ferran Adrià was in town, and he spoke of Locale Market and FarmTable’s niche in Tampa Bay evolving. The secret was to go full family-style Italian cucina — with breathtaking results.
Dining al fresco outside on the large, covered second-floor terrace feels like the real deal because the laser-like focus is on a “fresh, house-made cuisine influenced by seasonal, regionally sourced and carefully curated ingredients.”
My colleague, CL Food Editor Meaghan Habuda, already waxed eloquent about her rapturous visit, reporting on three unmissable dishes, so I bring my tasters with expectations high.
When our server recommends the cauliflower appetizer, I’m not really excited. I mean, it’s just a cruciferous vegetable, not white truffles. But what arrives is a beautiful trio of different florets obviously plated in a large ring mold. The perfect circle is not only colorful, but surprisingly delicious. It turns out that layering impeccably fried cauliflower with finger lime pearls for acidity, sweet golden raisins, nuggets of savory guanciale (gwahn-CHA-lay) pork cheeks and a creamy sea urchin aioli adds up to a terrific mouthful. If every (mostly) veggie dish were this good, parents everywhere could give up nagging.
The Florida burrata is a wonderful example of fresh ingredients simply treated to maximize flavors. A swirl of stunning bright green basil pesto — bursting with assertive freshness — cradles a ball of the creamiest young cheese. It’s seductive in its lushness and sublime when the other flavors combine. Add grace notes of oven-roasted cherry tomatoes, presented on their stems, and you almost don’t need to bother with Locale’s splendid toasted sesame semolina bread.
Roman-style artichoke hearts are tossed in black truffle vinaigrette with roasted garlic, pistachios, and pecorino under a blanket of thinly sliced mortadella, that most delicious fat-studded sausage from Bologna. It’s also a marvelous flavor combo. The whole table is soaring with visions of Italy dancing in our heads.
The entrees are equally impressive. Whole-roasted gulf catch is a yellowtail snapper newly plucked from the water. We rarely see fish served intact, but crispy heads and tails are common in Italy — all the better to emphasize the freshness of the fish before you. The flavors are not complicated, only clean and pure. The skin is crisp, and the meat easily separates from the bone. It’s buried under a salad of thinly sliced fennel and some Uriah’s Urban Farms basil, plus a few halves of ripe, glistening yellow-and-red cherry tomatoes.
Another example of highlighting the best ingredients is a wood-grilled, 16-ounce Kansas City bone-in strip steak from the acclaimed pastures of Niman Ranch. Locale dry ages the richly marbled Angus beef on-site for 35 days to tenderize and develop flavors, and then grills it to perfection. The meat is delicate and as pure as you’re likely to encounter. If there are two hungry beef eaters in your party, don’t miss the prime tomahawk ribeye with a huge bone that’s Flintstones-worthy.
Obviously Italy is synonymous with pasta, and I’ve previously praised Locale’s handmade products. For this visit to the new FarmTable, I decide to focus on potato gnocchi. These beautiful, light pillows float in a lamb ragu with no discernible tomato — and, in fact, it’s more of a scrumptious, buttery broth with pecorino Romano, inch-long pieces of obliquely cut snap peas, and garden-fresh mint perfuming the entire dish. We’ve long embraced the affinity of lamb with mint, and here they dance like Fred & Ginger.
When it’s time for a sweet finish, there’s no tiramisu or cannoli to be found. Instead, butterscotch budino follows the popular trend of layering pudding or custard in a jar. It’s great for restaurants because it can be made ahead and served without fuss. Most are pleasant enough, but lack a “wow” factor in my experience. FarmTable’s is the exception, with moist pumpkin cake, ethereal butterscotch and creamy Valrhona blonde mousse. House-made amaro (herb-infused grape brandy) flavors the accompanying chantilly cream. It’s divine.
We’re sorely tempted by both the almond panna cotta with roasted pears and the hazelnut semifreddo with devil’s food cake when my eyes wander down to the glasses of dessert wine. I have splendid memories of sitting in Tuscany dunking cantucci (mini-biscotti native to the city of Prato) into vin santo, the local dessert wine made from dried grape grapes. I can’t resist.
FarmTable serves a riserva from 1994 that’s just hitting its stride. Instead of cantucci, the restaurant adds a delicious pine nut cookie with marzipan-like filling. While it’s softer, it’s still fabulous to dip. If you’ve never tried this heavenly mashup, you owe it to yourself to make the leap. I’m flooded with joyful images as I share this moment with the table.
Suddenly, the distance between St. Pete and the Tuscan hillside evaporates in my mind. Such is the galvanizing power when memory and great food collide. Save your travel dollars and head to the Sundial shopping center for an authentic taste of Italy.
CL Food Critic Jon Palmer Claridge dines anonymously when reviewing. Check out the explanation of his rating system, or email him at food@creativeloafing.com.
