Congratulations to all graduates of 2016 all around!! This is such an exciting year for all of you and your friends and family!! And belated congrats again to my little sister for graduating from UCI! To celebrate her graduation, we went to this place called Cucina Enoteca in Irvine, CA. Not only is this a restaurant, but it is a wine shop!! It’s located specifically in Irvine Spectrum outdoor mall so it’s perfect to dine at and have a little free-spirited walk after! Here, you can bring your own wines or try one of theirs! Many parties or small groups of friends come here to enjoy a light brunch or dinner with a bottle of wine! Get a little loose and happy with some grapes! 😉
torta al ricotta – meyer lemon butter, sea salt, and seasonal fruit – One of their brunch items and my favorite from this brunch! It is basically a “cheese bread” that was baked. We cut the “pie” into slices and spread the butter on top and added some fruit. The crush of this bread is DELICIOUS: hard, crispy, sweet, and sweet.
This place does something unique in that they serve vasi‘s, which are mini mason jars with pane misti. So depending on what you order, it will be in little cute mason jars that you can also take to-go home (with an additional $5).
burrata and roasted garlic – This was my second favorite! The burrata was perfectly flavored and lightly salted with the roasted garlic. The texture was very soft, smooth, and delicate. The garlic made it more “runny” and easier to spread on the bread!
chicken liver pate with brown sugar shallot – Given that I love pate so much, we had to order this! There were sweetened onions on top so we mixed this spread real good! The flavor was very strong and savory!
manzo ‘rib eye’ carpaccio with arugula, lemon, horseradish, crostini, and asiago aioli – Normally don’t you top your bread slices with the raw meat, then arugula, then whatever toppings provided? Well here instead they have the bread in the form of mini, crispy crostini pieces sprinkled on top! Different way to enjoy your carpaccio 🙂
guanciale and green garlic pesto pizza with ricotta, crispy garlic, spring onion and honey – What a truly unique pizza! The entire crust and dough (at the bottom) was sweet from the honey, which contrasted with the savory flavors of the pesto and garlic and cheese! Never ate a sweet pizza before! The sweet flavors hit your tongue first and stay the longest!
eggs benedict caprese with mozzarella di bufala, heirloom tomato, basil, san daniele prosciutto, and sun-dried tomato hollandaise – Another brunch item! Delicious and feels healthy to eat with the overpowering amount of tomatos and arugula!
pappardelle with short rib, cremini mushroom, carrot, and parmigiano – Doesn’t look like much but there was A LOT of short rib in here! Thank you for not skimping on it because I sure love my meats! The short rib was lightly sweet, savory, tender, and soft!
Everyone enjoyed their brunch after my attending my sister’s graduation! And what a perfect place to celebrate given the environment and outdoor patio setting! Again, congratulations little sister! And congrats to everyone else! Happy Grad 2016! Good job guys! <3
