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Photo by Doug Trattner
Antica in Beachwood
For the past three years I’ve been dodging tips from friends and readers, who’ve suggested that I travel across town to dine at Antica Italian Kitchen in Avon. When it comes to driving long distances to review Italian restaurants, I’m definitely a “once bitten, twice shy” kind of guy.
But earlier this year, I ran out of excuses. That’s when owner Fadi Daoud opened a second location of his popular Italian restaurant, this one on my side of town. After a recent visit, it’s easy to see what all the fuss is about: Antica rises a few rungs above the typical neighborhood trattoria to deliver a reliable, consistent and satisfying dining experience. All the classics are here, deftly prepared using high-quality ingredients and delivered in a professional manner in an attractive space.
I was at this busy little corner a year ago when I was checking out the owner’s other popular restaurant, Hecks. In 2005, Daoud bought the 50-year-old burger bistro in Ohio City. He later added a location in Avon and, last year, a third in Beachwood. Hecks is situated in the former Moxie property, which comes with the adjoining space long home to Red. That sexy little steakhouse, the owner believed, was an ideal fit for his stylish Italian restaurant, a concept he was eager to expand as well.
The 100-seat bistro was attractive from the start, with its appealing two-room setup featuring a bar and lounge on one side and the main dining room on the other. Like that flexible arrangement, the menu offers countless ways to dine. There are plenty of shareable starters, a half dozen pizzas, loads of salads and vegetable side dishes, a sort of greatest-hits pasta selection, and enough meat and seafood dishes to please everyone at the table.
That ritzy barroom would be the perfect place to meet for after-work martinis, sipped alongside a few appetizers like Kobe beef meatballs ($16) and a platter of arancini ($13). Each of the starters could double as a light meal, with three nearly softball-sized meatballs on the one hand and four crispy cheese-filled fried rice balls on the other. The airy meatballs are topped with a summery marinara, dusted with cheese and served with plenty of fluffy focaccia, while the risotto balls are served atop a faintly spicy aioli.
We were pleasantly surprised by the quality of the pizza, often a middling space-filler at non-pizzeria places. The house-tossed crust was thin, crisp and tender in the middle and well-risen and crackly on the edges. Ours – the Mamma Mia ($19) – comes topped with ground sausage, salami and mozzarella. If ever there was a candidate for a local “food challenge,” it’s Antica’s chicken parmesan pizza. In place of the customary pizza dough is a base made out of shaped, breaded and deep-fried ground chicken. It gets topped with sauce and cheese and baked.
Every pasta we ordered was perfectly cooked, with the short rib ravioli ($26) taking top honors. Made from fresh pasta, the chubby little meat bombs arrive in a light cream sauce studded with caramelized mushrooms. An even lighter lemon-kissed sauce accompanies a sturdy bucatini ($29) tossed with plump shrimp and cherry tomatoes.
Beachwood’s menu largely mirrors the one out west, save for the addition of a few more steaks and chops. There’s a 32-ounce porterhouse, for example, and grilled lamb chops with labne. In the veal piccata ($32), three fork-tender cutlets are capped with a lemon-butter sauce loaded with capers. Like most meat dishes, this one comes with a side of fresh pasta. A butterflied whole branzino ($38) is sweet, mild and perfectly cooked, including the crispy skin below. A buttery cream sauce boosts the natural richness of the fish. Included in the bargain is a large platter of roasted potatoes and crisp-tender broccoli rabe.
Antica on both sides of town offers a level of service that is quickly becoming extinct for mid-level restaurants. Our server was well versed in the cocktail and wine lists, able to offer up suggestions that were well received. Special requests are fielded with grace and we never felt ignored or pestered. An affordable bottle of Montalcino ($39) joins pricier options from the glassy wine cellar.
The owner describes Antica as “fine-casual,” and I can’t argue with the label. From the elevated service and setting to the quality – and cost – of the food, the restaurant is knocking on the door of fine-dining. But like its more affordable sibling next door, this is a place where diners can come fresh off the golf course or pickleball court.
Antica Italian Kitchn
3355 Richmond Rd., Beachwood; 35568 Detroit Rd., Avon
anticaitalian.com
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