Wine on Tap

Hello long lost readers! After a delicious meal last night I have decided to bring the blog back! Pictures might be slim and far between because I think restaurants are starting to hate seeing flashes on their food every five seconds, but you'll hopefully be able to get the gist.

Michael White, chef of ultra expensive, chic and fancy restaurants such as Marea, Convivio and Alto recently opened a more casual eatery which he calls a true Osteria in SoHo. An osteria is foreign to most Americans but it's basically "a place that serves simple food and a place where there is wine."

Not only does Osteria Morini serve wine, but it's by the barrel - a new technique that is slowly gaining popularity throughout Manhattan. Two beautifully designed oak barrels with taps on the bottom sit behind the bar for easy access and refills. There are only two choices, red and white and it comes by the glass, carafe or bigger (one and a half bottles) for cheap! Only $36.00! The menu is more creative than basic Italian but has the same feel. We got a meat and cheese platter, meatballs and a seafood salad to start. The meatballs were some of the best I've had in a while, covered in Parmesan cheese and in a light tomato sauce. They weren't gigantic - probably 3 girl bites and 2 guy bites. Seafood salad was lightly dressed with shrimp, scallops, calamari and maybe some others that I didn't notice.

Then three home made pastas emerged - the garganelli, cappeletti (ravioli filled with truffle Parmesan cheese in a light butter sauce) and the pappardelle bolognese. All three were delicious but I agree with my sister that you can pretty much get pasta bolognese anywhere and this one didn't stand out as much as the other pastas did.

Finally we got the short ribs with mashed potatoes. I honestly could only take a bite because I was too busy munching on cheese and meat throughout the courses, but it was soft and seasoned well. To top it all off, we had to get a dessert and it had to have peanut butter and chocolate in it as well. Our menu choices covered almost every section there was, except for the grilled meats per person that we couldn't have fit in our tummies if we tried.

The scene at Osteria Morini is great, casual and rustic. The tables were a little close together but it wasn't too loud and a sighting of Michael White himself was definitely a plus.