Derek and Shannon welcome guests to Bellagio. Click to enlarge.
photo by Janet Wilson
CAN YOU SAY FIVE STARS?!?!!! Bellagio – the newest and finest – for Italian dining in Chattanooga, recently opened at 1269 Market Street and has earned a spot on Chattanooga Dine Out’s 5-Star Restaurants list. You may remember this as the original location of the Southern Star, followed with a brief occupancy by Café Bella.
The Chef and Owner of Bellagio, Derek Henson, has exquisitely captured a “true Italian experience”. What more could you want to make an enjoyable evening? Lovely white linen tablecloths and napkins, candlelight, fresh flowers on every table, soft background music, great service, and, of course, wonderful Italian food – a place with “class and atmosphere”. You are even asked (via the menu) to refrain from cell phone use in the dining room.
This is not going to be your usual “Spaghetti and Lasagna” place – this is going to be “fine” Italian food. The offerings on the menu are impressive and original with beautiful presentation.
For starters, Bellagio is a smoke free establishment, which was a welcome in itself. The menu plan is to change seasonally. You can check out the fall menu on our web site. After being seated, you are served the fresh baked bread selections for the day, which on our day were Country White, Italian Baguette, and Honey Wheat, served with fresh Olive Oil and Rosemary for dipping.
After looking over the menu, we found it very difficult to make our selections since there were so many dishes we wanted to try. The “Soup of the Moment” ($6) on this particular night was Potato Leek. We were very impressed with this soup as it definitely wasn’t your usual “pasty/mushy” variety and was full of potatoes and pieces of leek that you could actually see and taste – and it was topped with strips of bacon.
We also tried the Fritto Misto of Calamari, Grouper, Shrimp and Fall Vegetables with Lemon Aioli ($9). Fritto Misto is Italian for “mixed fried” and is a “selection of small, bite-sized pieces of meat, fish or vegetables, dipped in a batter and deep-fried”. We both would definitely order this again. It was absolutely delicious.
Something I don’t recall seeing at any other restaurant was the preparation of the Parsley on the Fritto Misto platter. Most places just “plop” a piece of Parsley on the plate and call it “presentation” - not so with Chef Derek. The Parsley had a light coat of batter and was also fried, making it crisp – and something you would eat rather than moving it to the side of your plate to be discarded. It should be noted that even though this was a deep fried dish, there was absolutely nothing greasy about it. It is not the heavily battered, greasy taste or look that one would normally associate with deep-fried.
A few of the other items you might find on the First Course menu are Mixed Greens with Ricotta Salata, Toasted Walnuts, Roasted Beets and Zinfandel Vinaigrette ($6), Baked Feta with Marinara Sauce and Grilled Focaccia Bread ($7) and Stone Crab Claws marinated with Lemon, Thyme and Extra-Virgin Olive Oil ($12).
The Second Course was also a dilemma. After much thought I finally decided on the Barbera Braised Veal Shanks with Soft Polenta and Asparagus ($20). Again – something I would order again. The veal was so tender I never used my knife.
Wayne had an even more difficult time. He narrowed it down to three choices and finally told our server, Charity, to have the Chef make a selection for him from those three choices. Wayne was served Papperdelle with Braised Rabbit, Porcini Mushrooms and Rich Broth ($17). The Chef hand-makes all the pastas served at Bellagio – and there definitely is a difference in handmade versus the purchased, dried variety. Wayne was extremely pleased with his meal.
There are several entrees on the menu that include seafood – and you will find this to be fresh seafood. A few of the seafood choices under the Second Course menu would be Spaghetti with Shrimp, Scallops, Mussels, Squid and Spicy Tomato Broth ($17), Fall Vegetable Risotto with Seared Scallops and 20-year old Balsamic Vinegar ($17) or Grilled Salmon with Portobella-Potato Torte and Veal Reduction ($19).
Of course, we really didn’t need dessert – but with the tantalizing tastes we had already been treated to –it made us want to try “just one more”. I ordered the Panna Cotta ($5) and Wayne ordered the Blackberry Sorbet ($5). I hate to use the word “delicious” again – but that’s what would describe both desserts – maybe I could use “delectable”. The Panna Cotta was served with a light caramel sauce, which really tasted like caramel, rather than the thin watery taste I have been served in the past. The sorbet was fantastic!
What else can we say? – Except if you do not treat yourself to Bellagio – you have missed a wonderful experience – and probably the best Italian food in Chattanooga. Bellagio does have a bar with an impressive list of wines and they do serve mixed drinks.
Hours for Bellagio are 6 p.m. until 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. They are closed on Sunday and Monday.
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Inside Bellagio
photo by Janet Wilson