Matteo's - Los Angeles - TravBuddy

this old hollywood joint in west los angeles -- where frank sinatra used to dine -- has an awesome celebration of the swine: tuesday's pig night. for $22, you get part of a roasted pig with some side dishes that vary -- tonight, it was squash and cabbage (a-la sauerkraut). it also comes with some pretty yummy salsa verde. the roast pig is juicy -- you have to have it with the salsa verde. and there is also a piece of crispy pig skin. yum! (for lechon lovers -- it is basically lechon without the mang tomas sauce.)

the calamari is also not bad - hard to mess this up -- and this has the right crispiness.

i had the nutella chocolate cake with gelato. i thought that it was pretty yummy. the cake is not too sweet and the gelato gives it the appropriate amount of sweetness.

matteo's does not have an extensive wine or cocktail list. so i just opted for their vodka martini. i feel that with old hollywood, a martini was appropos.

overally, a good meal.

PIG NITE AT MATTEO'S - Every Tuesday night Matteo's serves a roast pig with apple mostarda, salsa verde, pan juices and veggies (we got red cabbage & squash) for $22. Sybil and I tried it with a couple of friends and we all enjoyed it immensely. A super good deal for juicy tender pork. The service was also quite lovely - attentive and helpful - and the decor (with red leather (or pleather) booths, dark wood, random paintings of sinatra, clowns, landscapes take you back into "old hollywood" or at least a kitschy memory of old hollywood. Quite enjoyable actually. Our entire meal consisted of:

- cocktails (sybil had a martini - very old school, perfectly chilled and i had a bellini - not the best I had, but refreshing)
- calamari - quite crisp, flavorful and not greasy - all good things
- roast pig plate - juicy tender pieces of pork along red pickled cabbage and roast squash
- dessert - strawberries with vanilla gelato and balsamic vinegar - a lovely balance of tart, sweet and creamy

I really enjoyed the experience as a package - definitely worthwhile but not necessarily the best food I've had - good, but not extraordinary.