FOOD
On one plate then the other ... BW sends two critics to one restaurant.
GELATO CAFE
H
G
LAURIE PEARMAN
er nose pressed to the chilled glass of a gelato case, a elato Cafe takes its name from the rainbow of gelato pretowheaded girl in teal Keds raised up onto her tippy toes sented in a chilled case placed at the center of the strip mall to scan every last fruit-laden, chocolate-drizzled metal tray. restaurant. There, pans of the cold confection are displayed After laboring considerably over her decision, she decided on a like an edible kaleidoscope accented with chocolate drizzles and fruitdark berry concoction. Savoring her prize, the girl meandered back flavored swirls, swooped peaks and whimsical garnishes. to a table full of adults. Astoundingly, for a cafe named after and In addition to frozen dessert, espresso beverages and gelato peddling rich Italian ice cream, martinis, the fast-food-style cafe’s she was the only kid in sight. Italian/Greek menu offers nine pizzas At Gelato Cafe in Meridian, ($6.75), pitas ($5.95), gyros ($4.75) it’s more about the big kids. It’s and submarine sandwiches ($4.75the only ice cream shop with a $6.95) with salami in dry and Genoa full bar I’ve seen outside of Italy. versions, cappicola, roast beef, Black Gelato Cafe takes a dessert that Forest ham, and fresh mozzarella. It already cracks the awesomeness also offers sushi at the Superb Sushi scale, feeds it 3 ounces of booze, counter inside. then watches the scale’s springs To sushi or not to sushi? Superb go flying. Though the place also Sushi’s mother ship is in downtown serves an array of Italian deli Boise, and having eaten there before, food, gyros, fresh sushi, coffee I removed this tempting satellite from and smoothies, the gelato marmy initial assessment. Afterward, I tinis are the joint’s glimmering wished I hadn’t. golden calves—sinful concocI selected a 9-inch garlic chicken tions demanding fawning idolapizza while my husband chose a beef try with each liquor-laden sip. and lamb gyro (with feta, 60 cents Divided into fruity and creamy extra). We hopped aboard the largest varieties, the martini menu urges four-top in the dining room: four stylyou to pop the top button of ishly modern pub chairs upholstered your jeans and get comfortable with lime green micro-suede and an with options like the Dreamoversized pub table topped with lime sicle ($7)—orange juice, vodka, green laminate. triple sec, amaretto and milk The pizza’s thin, stiff crust tasted poured over orange gelato—or like a cross between a cracker and the Extra Chocolate ($7) with a dry tortilla. Pale chicken breast vodka, Bailey’s, vanilla and dark chunks and the whiteness of melted chocolate shaken with chocolate mozzarella and fontina cheeses gelato. The cafe even named a formed a visually bland canvas sparparticularly decadent martini ingly topped with shriveled slices the Wet Dream (with vodka, of baked red onion, flecks of bacon Kahlua, Bailey’s and stracciatella and diced tomato. As I evaluated gelato) after an editor’s pick in the dish before me, I noticed most of GELATO CAFE BW’s 2008 Best of Boise. the other patrons digging into colorful sushi rolls. I 2053 Fairview Ave., Meridian, Strutting up to our tall pistachio green table wished I had chosen to sushi. 208-846-8410 gelatocafeofidaho.net with matching velour chairs on a recent TuesThe gyro was large enough to require both hands Mon.-Tue. 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Wed.-Sat. day evening, a broad-jawed man with wisps to manage it and earned a solid seven on a scale of 9 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. of gray in his dark hair introduced himself as one to 10. My husband only wished it had more Brian Wetzel, head busboy, though we deduced tzatziki sauce on it (50 cents extra). On our way out he was the owner. Wetzel’s joking rapport quickly charmed my din- the door, we ordered a small cup of sweet-tart lemon gelato ($1.95) ing companions. While we ogled the martini menu, Wetzel let fly a and it just about made up for the pizza. truism I’m sure he’s used on plenty of past patrons: “Gelato martiMy next visit to the cafe was for Superb Sushi and gelato martinis. nis are like women’s breasts: one’s too little and three’s too much.” Be warned: Choosing a martini ($7) was tough. Lemon? Orange After an awkward chuckle, we decided to save the groping for Dreamsicle? Bailey’s with cookies and cream liqueur, perhaps? I dessert and ordered a bottle of Salmon Creek chardonnay ($12). suppose one could order according to the weather: light and fruity Though we had made the trek out to the Elm Tree strip mall in on sunny days, rich and creamy on gray ones. A grapefruit gelato Meridian hoping to throw back a few Superb Sushi rolls, we found martini was the right choice for the warmth of the spring day on out that the cafe is sadly sans sushi on Mondays and Tuesdays. my second visit. The Mediterranean pizza ($6.75) arrived first, with charred Be further warned: Each of those suckers contains 3 ounces of bubbles of mozzarella hugging wine-cured kalamata olives and booze, so have the number for a taxi handy just in case. sun-dried tomatoes. The second pizza, the artichoke veggie, was a Sushi was another tough choice. My all-time favorite roll from white and green beauty with pesto, chopped artichoke hearts, three Superb Sushi is the unconventional Dragon’s Eye roll ($6.99). Thin types of cheese and fresh scallions scattered on top. While the salad strips of fresh lemon rind are a classic complement to salmon and ($6.75) provided a nice, not overly dressing-laden crunch, it didn’t whole scallion wrapped simply in rice and nori. Lemon sauce squigstray too much from the classic Caesar theme. The pizzas were also gles atop slices that are not too thick, making them easy to consume winners, not too cheese heavy with thin chewy crusts. Unfortunate- in one lady like bite. I also like the enormous Sumo Roll ($11.99). ly, the pizza’s slightly gourmet, hand-crafted taste was thrown off Made with ahi, unagi, crab and avocado, it is large enough to satisfy by the vessel it arrived on—a thick white paper plate. A quick scan a ravenous student out on lunch break. of the restaurant’s interior showed the same conflicting aesthetic. I selected one Dragon’s Eye roll and then also tried the Insane roll A kitschy toddler-sized ice cream cone statue lingers in one corner, ($8.99). Biting into it, a pandemonium of sensation erupted on my while a grown-up leafy indoor plant occupies the other. Cartoony tongue as fresh jalapeno pepper tangoed across my palate with spicy painted sandwiches float on the front windows, yet the walls are salmon, while dried red chile pepper flakes wrestled with wasabi and adorned with tasteful paintings. As random as the decor and menu Sriracha hot sauce for dominance. Tempura shrimp, sliced avocado seemed, with our dinner polished off and gelato martinis in hand, and lemon sauce tempered the insanity and kept the spicy lunatics everything started to make sense. When I return on a non-Monday from completely taking over the flavor asylum. or Tuesday evening for a Crane Creek roll and a gelato margarita, I Two visits to Gelato Cafe produced more hits than misses. Grapeimagine it will begin to make even more sense. fruit and sushi are my new favorite flavors for spring. —Tara Morgan says, “Domo arigato, Mr. Gelato.”
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| MAY 27 – JUNE 2, 2009 |
BOISEweekly
—Jennifer Hernandez has a cape of red and matching stilettos. WWW.BOISEWEEKLY.COM