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Culinary Connection
La Finestra Trattoria Italiana
By Bruce Wildstein
Walking into La Finestra is like meeting an old friend- its friendly, familiar, and has that easy going feeling. Established some 18 years ago, La Finestra has endured because it does what an Italian restaurant is supposed to do: serve good food consistently at reasonable prices. Décor is uncluttered, with large hanging mirrors, pictures of Italy, and handsome dark hard wood tables and chairs which give the restaurant an understated elegance. Fortunately, this is not a loud restaurant- you can have a nice conversation with your dining partners and hear yourself speak. A wine rack in the rear holds a nice selection of California and Italian labels. And they have all bottles of wine half price on Tuesdays.
La Finestra serves classic Italian food. Their antipasti, inslate, zuppe (soup), and entrees cover the bases of Italian favorites cooked in a straight forward style. You come here to eat well, not to try to figure out what's on your plate. After settling in at our table and ordering a couple of drinks, we perused the menu. Salads were our first choice, so the Insalata di Mare and the Chopped Salad were selected while I sipped a nice full bodied Chianti. The Insalata di Mare arrived with baby shrimps, scallops, calamari, olives and diced tomatoes. Fresh and tasty, we were off to a good start. The chopped salad had olives, sliced cold cuts, and provolone with mixed greens in an Italian sauce. It was delightful. Other salad choices include the Caprese with sun dried tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes and olive oil with basil. For antipasti, they have Bruschetta, Calamari, and fried Gnocchi Fritto con Pancetta with onions and peas. Soups feature a few classic choices, their homemade Minestrone, Pasta Fagioli (a vegetable broth with pasta and beans), and the Brodino di Pollo alla Romana, a chicken broth with egg drops, spinach, and parmesan cheese.
Our waiter read us the daily specials, but we decided on two menu favorites: the Scallopine di Vitello Frescobaldi and the Farfalle con Pollo e Broccolo. The Farfalle had bow tie pasta with cooked broccoli, chicken, and parmesan cheese sauce. Adding a little grated Parmesan on top made the dish even better, it was just excellent Italian. My veal dish had good sized portions of breaded veal with asparagus spears and mushrooms covered in melted mozzarella. It also was accompanied by a good sized portion of spaghetti. It too was very good. There are plenty of pasta dishes here, a Fettuccine Alfredo, Rigatoni with four cheeses, Linguini alla Vongole(manila clams in red or white wine sauce), and the Ravioli di Aragosta featuring lobster filled ravioli in a tomato brandy sauce.
La Finestra also has a number of house specialties. Check out the Salmone al Forno, oven roasted salmon with tomatoes, garlic, and basil. There is the Shrimp Mediterranean, sautéed in tomato sauce on angel hair pasta. And if you like lamb chops; try their Costolette al Aromi featuring Australian lamb chops with tomatoes & herbs. For chicken lovers, there is a good selection also. Petto di Pollo al Marsala has thin chicken breast slices in Marsala wine with tomatoes, and mushrooms. The Petto de Pollo Paesana has thin chicken breasts with peppers, caramelized onions, mushrooms, and balsamic vinegar. Or you could try the Petto di Pollo con Spinaci e Funghi which includes spinach and mushrooms with the chicken breasts.
Pizza could be your main meal at La Finestra, and they have a good selection of pies. A classic Margherita with tomato and mozzarella sauce, the Pizza Sarda has eggplant, sun dried tomatoes and goat cheese. And you can ask them to make a special pizza to your liking with your own selection of ingredients.
For dessert, we opted for the Copa Spagnola, a delicious vanilla and cherry gelato with amaretto cherries. It's brought to the table in an icy cold glass, so you can take your time ingesting it. Biscotti, homemade Tiramisu, and an Apple Tart are among the other dessert choices.
There's a lot to like at La Finestra with its great classic Italian cooking. Put it on your list of new places to try out. They also have a rewards card were you earn points each time you dine which can then be applied to a future meal, ask for details. La Finestra is located at 19647 Ventura Blvd in Tarzana, telephone 818-342-2824. Reservations recommended on weekends.