Review: Decadence is Matched by Service at Tutto Carne in Little Italy

My theory is that we are now so far removed from traditional fine dining that when we do encounter it, all that care and attention can seem stifling. But in the hands of well-trained pros, like those gliding through the rooms of Tutto Carne in Little Italy, acts like pouring wine, swapping old silver for new, and de-crumbing the table between courses occur discreetly, reflexively.

Fine dining is alive and well at this new Italian-themed steakhouse from Zachary Ladner and Carl Quagliata, the chef-owners behind Giovanni’s, Paloma and Cuoco Bello. I wasn’t around when this squat brick building at the corner of Murray Hill and Cornell was home to a hardware store, but I was alive when the sign out front read Salvatore's, Tutto Giorno, Il Bacio and Nora. In fact, I dined at every single one of those restaurants over the years.

Compared to its present state, those prior establishments might as well have been hardware stores. Completely reimagined, the 45-seat jewel box of a restaurant is clubby, stylish and graceful. Everything but the four walls has been reworked, including the bar, which has been relocated and rebuilt into a seven-seat quartz-topped beauty. Plush velvet-wrapped armchairs cradle diners in first-class comfort.

Straight away, a linen-lined basket of focaccia lands on the table alongside a dish of whipped butter garnished with crispy bits of toasted garlic. It’s just enough food to tide one over until the cocktails arrive. With names like Flux Capacitor ($16), Cat’s Meow ($14) and Girl with the Obstructed Vieux Tattoo ($16), the drinks are gentle riffs on classics. The wine-by-the-glass list is more than generous, with two dozen sparklers, whites and reds.

Ladner joined the current trend of employing mix-and-match tableware, but he doesn’t go overboard into kitsch. The cocktail and wine glasses have the ring of fine crystal, and the vintage plates add welcome pops of color here and there.

Tutto Carne is billed as a steakhouse, but it’s so much more. What Ladner gets right that so many other chophouse cooks get wrong is the rest of the menu. Having worked in the kitchens of Giovanni’s since 2010, the chef has a deep well of culinary wisdom from which to draw. Veal sweetbreads ($18) – an anachronistic treat – marry an exceptionally crisp exterior with a firm but creamy core. The golden brown nuggets are served with tender potatoes and seasonal veggies in a lemony sauce. Coquilles St. Jacques ($24), another dish plucked from the annals, is a decadent starter of scallops bathed in cream, capped with an herbed breading, and broiled in the shell until just cooked through.

Freshly shucked oysters ($20) arrive on a bed of crushed ice with eye droppers filled with mignonette and housemade hot sauce. Steak tartare ($18) has a Cinderella texture that lands between too coarse and too fine and pasty. The rosy-red meat is gilded with an egg yolk and served with a bright, crunchy giardiniera-like relish. Garlic toasts serve as the delivery vehicle.

Diners can order steaks for one the typical way, with cuts like filets, strips and bone-in ribeyes. But guests are encouraged to go big by ordering off the board, in a process not unlike choosing a lobster from the tank. Large-format cuts are offered in various weights and sold by the ounce, with portions appropriate for two, four or more. The meats all hail from sister establishment Village Butcher in Mayfield, where they are hand trimmed and dry aged. Our “3-finger thick” bistecca alla Fiorentina ($185) is a weighty bone-in porterhouse that’s expertly grilled, sliced and presented on the proverbial silver platter. In a defiant act of excess, we tacked on an order of roasted bone marrow ($18). Other “share me” cuts include center-cut filet mignon and tomahawk ribeyes.

One could avoid steak altogether and still dine like a king thanks to appealing pasta and seafood dishes, many with throughlines straight to Giovanni’s. Housemade seasonal raviolis join entrees starring scallops, halibut and a 3-bone pork chop. Lobster fra diavlo ($65) lacks the signature heat but it doesn’t skimp on seafood, which is the least a diner can ask with that pricetag. Chicken Parm ($32), served in a long-handled skillet, features two large, butter-soft pieces of meat that are lightly breaded, crowned with melted provolone and served atop heaps of al dente pasta marinara.

Yes, all this luxury, immoderation and pampering comes at a pretty steep price, but there is a magic key that unlocks big savings: happy hour. On Wednesdays, every appetizer is half price all day and from every seat in the house. There also are deals on wines, cocktails and select entrees.

Tutto Carne
2181 Murray Hill Rd., Cleveland
216-471-8386

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