Cucina Urbana: California Inspired Italian

A rustic yet modern Italian eatery in the Bankers Hill district of San Diego, Cucina Urbana is a must-stop amid hand-full's of other Italian joints.  One of our favorite features is the wines; you pay retail (or below retail according to our research) and then a minimal corkage fee.  At these prices it's worth grabbing a few bottles to go!

My favorite item this evening was the Polenta board.  The server brings a wooden pizza board to the table with a piping hot pot of polenta.  After whipping the polenta it is spread and formed on the board and then topped with the "Ragu of the Day".  A unique presentation and a truly delicious addition to the meal.  For antipasti, we tried the stuffed fried squash blossoms with herb ricotta, opal basil pesto, and cured lemon aioli.  This seemed to be the seasonal item of the month as it was one of the most popular items on menus around San Diego and I can see why.  The grilled octopus was done here with pickled beech mushroom, charred green onion, acqua pazza aioli, and black garlic coriander vinaigrette.  It was tender and well seasoned; even a non-octopus eater at the table dove in for seconds!  For insalate, we chose the lemon roasted beet salad with avocado, honey yogurt, basil, candied pistachios, and balsamic.  A unique feature at this restaurant is you can pay a "family style" fee to turn most dishes into a group-sized portion.

For mains, we went for pasta, pizza, and piatti.  The spicy shrimp puttanesca angel hair was simple yet robust with flavor.  The pear & gorgonzola pizza topped with caramelized onion, candied pecans, arugula, and aged balsamic was good enough to be dessert!  The star of the meal was the brick oven roasted whole Branzino.  Moist and delicate, served over saffron couscous with pine nuts, currants, capers, and a caramelized leek vinaigrette.

What is a good Italian meal with an espresso and some tiramisu?  Throw in some cannolis and dessert wines (Inniskillin and Ben Rye) and we had a party.