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Somebody
told me recently that Palm Beach County is the second most expensive place
to dine out in the whole country (losing out by a hair to New York City),
and I'd basically be OK with that if the food we're shelling out for was
what you could call "good." It's mostly anything but. Luckily,
you don't have to be particularly rich to eat at Sopra-the prices are
roughly equivalent to the going rate (averaging about $23 for the main
courses and $9 for the appetizers), and the food is roughly 50 times better
than what you'll get elsewhere. You and your sweetie can eat for under
a C-note if you watch what you're doing.
You can tell
a lot about a restaurant by what gets plunked down on the table right
from the get-go: Sopra proudly bustles out a great big assortment of homemade
breads and crackers-one as big and round as a serving plate, plus slices
of tomato bread, olive bread, a crunchy cheese wafer, and good old fashioned
white Italian (to dip in the olive oil left over from your mini-antipasto
of olives, parmesan and pepperoni). The leisurely pace gives you time
to check out the décor. It was blustery outside the night we went,
and the filmy curtains that screen off the dining room were wafting romantically,
the candles (everywhere) were flickering, and everything glittered gently,
as if lit from within. I'm not usually big on "open kitchens"
(I'd mostly prefer not to know what goes on in restaurant kitchens) but
the floor-to-ceiling glass wall of Sopra's is as spectacular as a waterfall-and
the kitchen itself is a work of art, including the wood-fired grill that
the chef uses extensively for everything from the breads to the roasted
veggies.
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After
we'd polished off the bread, we had a huge plate of fat mussels cooked
in tomato broth with canellini beans. We also had salt and pepper
scampi: two shrimp the size of lobsters perched on the richest butter-and-sauce-soaked
crostini you'll find anywhere outside your lurid daydreams. These
alone would have made a fine and perfectly delirious light meal. But
we couldn't stop, so we ordered the seafood risotto and the lobster
ravioli.
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Let me say right
here that Sopra doesn't want any part of that contemporary restaurant trend
where your thimble-sized main course arrives floating pathetically in the
middle of a big empty dinner plate, like some marooned shipwrecked sailor.
The place is Italian; you're not going to starve here. In fact, if you don't
make a total pig of yourself, you're probably going to be able to stretch
your entrée into tomorrow's breakfast and lunch (we did, hauling
our loot home in Sopra's classy gold doggie bags). The risotto was cooked
al dente and was loaded with stuff: mussels, clams, squid, scallops, shrimp,
fat cloves of roasted garlic. The lobster ravioli, with its lacy crimped
edges, was delicate and luscious in a spicy light tomato sauce, if maybe
a bit heavy on the roasted garlic. We had a buttery sautéed escarole
with this, which someone had unfortunately dumped way too much salt into
(but it was still so good we ate it until our mouths puckered).
Next time:
oven-roasted flat breads (with broccoli rabe, hot & sweet peppers,
impastata, etc.), a daily fondue, hickory-grilled prime meats cooked half
a dozen ways, homemade pasta (mostly with seafood, but also a bucatini
with a "Sunday gravy" of sausage and meatballs--yum), artful
salads, porcini mushrooms-way too much to list. Service was kindly and
conscientious: Our waiter helped us choose two very nice wines to go with
each course: a Drouhin Pouilly Fuisse ($10.50) and a Ruffino Libaio (an
interesting Tuscan white, $8.50), bringing extra glasses for tasting.
A great many wines are available by the "250" (or small carafe)
at these reasonable prices. Technically a glass and a half, a mini carafe
will comfortably serve two mild drinkers. Or, you can order by the bottle
from a fantastic list of 250 wines (the wine room is available for parties
and tastings, too). A dessert tray was brought around, but we went with
the tiramisu from the kitchen-a dusting of bitter chocolate over creamy
layers that melt in your mouth, give you a head rush, and make you want
to holler. It was divine. Of the dozens of restaurants I've reviewed this
year, Sopra is one of only three I'd go back to-in fact, I'm already planning
my next trip-for anything from a very special occasion to a quick stop
at the street-side tables for a sophisticated snack. As their name implies,
they're way up high. I hope they stay there.
110 E. Atlantic Ave. Delray Beach
561/274-7077
www.soprarestaurant.com
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