First Look: Tutto Carne, Opening Monday, May 15 in Little Italy

“I’m really excited about this,” says Zachary Ladner. “It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

We’re standing in the red-brick corner property in Little Italy that has been home to a handful of restaurants over the years including Salvatore’s, Tutto Giorno, Il Bacio and Nora. Come Monday, May 15, the name above the door will read Tutto Carne. The Italian-themed steakhouse is operated by Ladner and Carl Quagliata, the chef-owners behind Giovanni’s, Smokin’ Q’s BBQ, Paloma and The Village Butcher.

After changing hands last year, the property at the corner of Murray Hill and Edgehill has been completely transformed into a stylish and sophisticated 45-seat bistro. Everything but the four walls has been touched, including the bar, which has been rebuilt as an elegant seven-seat quartz-topped beauty.

Guests will be encouraged to linger thanks to posh and plush velvet-wrapped chairs. New tables, banquettes, light fixtures, artwork and wall colors combine to give this space its best look ever.

“I had a lot to do with the design and implementation of the place and I love reusing things,” Ladner explains. “We’re going for a mix of old and new. The vast majority of our flatware and silverware is all reclaimed and vintage. The intentionality, I think, is what makes it interesting.”

Chef de cuisine Ryan O’Driscoll oversees a steakhouse-style menu that benefits greatly from the owners’ sister establishment, The Village Butcher.

“All of the meats are coming from the butcher shop,” Ladner says. “It gives us a lot more control over the product.”

For example, tables can opt for shareable large-format steaks like a 100-day dry-aged tomahawk ribeye, a 60-day dry-aged “3-finger-thick” bistecca alla Fiorentina and a Chateubriand. Those dishes arrive on real silver platters.

“We want to have this old-school feel,” says the owner.

A selection of other steaks and chops is joined by items like seared halibut with littleneck clams in horseradish broth, pan-seared scallops with bacon, potato and spring pea pesto, and a dry-aged beef burger topped with taleggio, short rib onions, bacon and special sauce.

For pasta fans, Ladner and his team have assembled a roster of classic dishes.

“These are traditional pastas, but they are all executed really well,” he says.

Housemade ravioli is stuffed with ricotta and spring peas, spaghetti carbonara stars guanciale cured at the butcher shop, lobster fra diavolo stars, well, lobster, along with tomatoes, garlic and chilies.

Sides, designed to be shared, include staples like pommes puree, French beans, creamed spinach, roasted mushrooms and a baked potato, but don’t expect the same-old preparation, promises Ladner.

“While they are not complicated, per se, a significant amount of thought has been put into them to make them the best representation of what that item is,” he says.

To begin, there are classic chophouse starters like steak tartare, oysters on the half shell, shrimp cocktail and roasted bone marrow, but also Coquilles St. Jacques and veal sweetbreads. The kitchen is skirting convention with its seafood tower by going with a hot presentation.

In addition to a robust list of wines by the glass and bottle, Tutto Carne will offer a first-class cocktail program.

“What we’re really trying to focus on here is cocktails,” Ladner adds. “We want to have the steakhouse, but we also want to have this very high-end cocktail feel.”

Tutto Carne will be open for dinner Monday through Saturday.

Not only will Tutto Carne be the only steakhouse in Little Italy, it will be the only steakhouse between downtown and the eastern suburbs, the chef points out.

“This is a great neighborhood that has proximity to University Circle, which is my absolute favorite part of the entire Greater Cleveland area,” Ladner says. “And right at the top of the hill is Cleveland Heights, where I live.”
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