This review was published in 2005 in Five Star Reviews online magazine (http://fivestarreviews.com)

Fioretto Trattoria

Tuscany is a lot easier to visit now, thanks to David Giani, owner and Executive Chef of Fioretto Trattoria, the newest addition to Marina del Rey’s culinary scene. Tucked in the most inconspicuous of locations, an unassuming little strip of shops, Fioretto is a true culinary gem, where a modest and welcoming atmosphere serves as a backdrop to a showcase for gastronomic delights fit for the Medici family itself.

Giani’s menu — featuring staples such as pizza (which, by the way, is the best you’ll find in the Southland), zuppa Minestrone and Tiramisu — changes, as is the tradition in Tuscany, with the seasons. Beautiful combinations such as the Zucca salad, a butternut squash salad with goat cheese, arugula and balsamic glaze, and the Crostina alla Fiorentina – Tuscan bread topped with a beautifully rich chicken liver pate and marsala wine sauce – make for heavenly starters. Giani’s other salads (a traditional Mista and a luscious Caesar) and the Prosciutto e Mozzarella (mozzarella cheese liberally covered with fresh prosciutto slices and drizzled with a black olive pesto sauce) are also wonderful choices. But it’s the entrees that are the real expression of Giani’s talents, and though you can see his passion for food in everything that’s placed before you, it’s dishes like the Risotto con il Manzo (shallots and parmesan cheese risotto with Tuscan braised beef so tender you’d think it was blessed by Gesu himself) and the Pollo Farcito (rolled breast of chicken filled with ham and fontina cheese, mushroom sauce, potato gratin and vegetables) that bring out the very best in Giani’s immense talents. His passion smiles at you in all of his creations; it shines in the pasta and breathes in his sauces.

Julia Child once said: “You don’t have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces – just good food from fresh ingredients.” Giani, former Executive Chef at Los Angeles’ Ca’Brea, TuttoMare in Newport Beach and Il Fornaio in Beverly Hills, takes those words to task and we’re rewarded with something undeniable — spectacular Tuscan fare featuring only the freshest in meats, cheeses and vegetables. Save room for one of the restaurant’s decadent desserts — the Budino di pane al Cioccolato (a decadent warm chocolate bread pudding that’s garnished with chocolate sauce, raisins and cinnamon cream) paired with any one of the world-class espresso drinks are fiorettos themselves.

Wonderful touches to Fioretto Trattoria’s atmosphere, aside from the large wooden tables and the gorgeous barista, are Giani’s own mother, Rosetta (but please, call her Mamma) who has a smile for days and doesn’t know much English other than “hello” and “thank you” (but boy, does she mean it) and his waiter, Silverio, who speaks perfect English but is so fluent in Italian that you’ll be asking him to repeat the menu items to you simply because, between he and Mamma, the sounds of the language make the food taste just that much better, if that’s even a possibility.

Fioretto Trattoria is located at 12740 Culver Blvd, in Marina del Rey, CA 90066 and is open Monday through Saturday for lunch and dinner, from 11am until 9pm..