IL PARADISO FOUND.Byline: Larry Lipson Restaurant Critic Those seeking good food in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. will occasionally discover, believe it or not, a worthwhile eating place on a street other than Ventura Boulevard. You could almost call this one an outpost. If you happen to drive far enough west on Saticoy Street, a thoroughfare not particularly known for outstanding culinary inhabitants
The game is based loosely on the concepts from SameGame. , you'll eventually run into a small shopping center in West Hills that, at its westernmost end, has a clean, no-frills, little Italian cafe and grocery called Il Paradiso. Il Paradiso, it turns out, is owned by Camillo Mazzeo, who had a Tarzana spot for a while called La Volpe. Here in West Hills, Mazzeo's place has quickly earned neighborhood recognition for its very good pastas. That's because the kitchen here prepares the majority of its food the old-fashioned way, the way Mazzeo and countless Italians have done for generations around Caserta, just north of Naples. Case in point: If you request a half-order of cheese ravioli with tomato sauce ($3.99), for example, don't expect the everyday, pre-prepared little frozen envelopes served up doused in a canned red sauce red sauce Nutrition Any low-fat, low-calorie tomato-based sauce. Cf White sauce. . Surprise, surprise. Il Paradiso will deliver a plate of fresh, soft, handmade, square ravioli topped with a simple sauce of seeded fresh tomatoes and olive oil. The result is, of course, delightful. Ask for the meat ravioli equivalent at the same price with a bolognese sauce and you'll be equally happy. Yep, Il Paradiso lives up to its heavenly name. Whether it's a noodle-type pasta like linguine with clams ($8.50) or spaghetti pescatore ($8.50) or a stuffed pasta like cannelloni can·nel·lo·ni n. 1. Pasta in large-sized tubes. 2. A dish consisting of such tubes stuffed with meat, vegetables, or cheese and baked in a tomato or cream sauce. [Italian, pl. (also $8.50), you'll be amazed at the top quality of both the pasta and the accompaniments. With the linguine plate, fresh sweet, chewable clams arrive with the firm - but not hard - flat noodles for a delightful rendition of the traditional favorite. Ditto for the ``fisherman's'' pasta with spaghetti (or linguine if you prefer) and plenty of fresh mussels, clams and calamari with garlic and probably a touch of white wine. The cannelloni pasta wrapping is marvelously soft and giving here; call it pliant without being mushy mush·y adj. mush·i·er, mush·i·est 1. Resembling mush in consistency; soft. 2. Informal a. Excessively sentimental. See Synonyms at sentimental. b. , while the stuffing possesses bold, full, obviously meaty characteristics. Similarly, those who are lasagna buffs will find their favorite, casserole-style pasta here ($8.50) as a version worth returning for again and again. But there's more than just pasta to consider at Il Paradiso. The pizzas are not only reasonably priced but also of better quality than many. Try the simplest, the 12-inch margherita (cheese and tomato, $5.99) and add onions for 70 cents more, as we did one night. It provides a fine starter prior to a pasta dish. Sometimes, Il Paradiso has soup. One day the house minestrone by the cup ($3.99) was delivered in a bowl, enough for two to share, and relished by both of us. A true vegetable soup, thankfully not overwhelmed by beans, it offered good, clean, fresh tastes, falling into that welcome zone halfway between hearty and light. Alternative starters include nicely executed bruschetta bruschetta Noun an Italian open sandwich of toasted bread topped with olive oil and tomatoes, olives, etc [Italian] (on the same bread as that served as a complimentary starter, $2.75 a half-order, $4.50 full) and the house special antipasti Antipasti can refer to:
n. pl. pro·sciut·ti or pro·sciut·tos An aged, dry-cured, spiced Italian ham that is usually sliced thin and served without cooking. and caprese-style mozzarella moz·za·rel·la n. A mild white Italian cheese that has a rubbery texture and is often eaten melted, as on pizza. [Italian, diminutive of mozza, a cut, mozzarella, from mozzare, and tomato. The only fault encountered was the overcooking of a thin piece of chicken breast, the primary ingredient of the pollo alla griglia entree plate ($8.50), resulting in dryness. But on two occasions the kitchen sent out a plate of thin-cut pizza bread (focaccia) topped with onion as an on-the-house extra. Definitely a positive. As for sweet endings, try the creamy spumoni spu·mo·ni or spu·mo·ne n. An Italian ice cream having layers of different colors or flavors and often containing fruits and nuts. [Italian, augmentative of spuma, foam, from Latin cake ($3.75), feathery feath·er·y adj. 1. Covered with or consisting of feathers. 2. Resembling or suggestive of a feather, as in form or lightness. feath tiramisu tir·a·mi·su n. A dessert of cake infused with a liquid such as coffee or rum, layered with a rich cheese filling, and topped with grated chocolate. ($3.75), and/or fresh, dried fruit-studded ricotta-stuffed cannoli ($2.50). But remember, no matter how much the sugary stuff influences, Il Paradiso really equates with pasta paradise. IL PARADISO Food: Three stars. Service: Three stars. Value: Three and one half stars Where: 23233 Saticoy St., West Hills. Hours: Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Recommended items: Soup, pizza, bruschetta, house special antipasti, pasta and clams, pasta pescatore, ravioli, cannelloni, meat lasagna, spumoni cake, tiramisu, cannoli. How much: Everything under $10 except large pizzas. No alcohol. No credit cards. Cash only. Reservations: Taken. Call (818) 348-6822. CAPTION(S): 3 photos Photo: (1 -- 3) The standout dishes at Il Paradiso include the house special antipasti, top left, meat lasagna, left, and bruschetta, below. Joel P. Lugavere/Special to the Daily News |
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