VERO BEACH — One of the things we particularly like about Avanzare, our favorite Tuscan trattoria in Vero’s old downtown, is you never know, until you arrive, just what is going to be featured on any given night.
The only thing you know for sure is that this restaurant continues, night after night, to produce some of the most innovative dishes found in this area.
And enough diners have discovered this that if your reservation is for a late seating, some of the most creative dishes may well be gone.
So it was when we arrived at 8:30 last Friday, and found the evening’s most adventuresome appetizer, calves mente piccata ($10), sold out.
This dish, according to owner Roger Lenzi, consists of fresh veal brains, sautéed with butter, lemon and capers, and served with fire grilled crostini.
I’m not entirely sure I would have ordered this anyway, but I did not hesitate when he suggested trying the crispy kale blossoms ($10) as my appetizer.
These tender flowering buds have a sweet nutty flavor similar to a Brussels Sprout, and Avanzare serves them fried nice and crispy with a squeeze of lemon.
Even my husband – not a big Brussels sprout fan – had to agree these were delicious, though he took a more traditional route and chose for his appetizer the dirty oysters ($13), a half dozen gulf beauties topped with sour cream, shallots and a spot of caviar.
Our companion, meantime, decided to try the white bean and sausage minestrone soup ($7). This creative take on the classic minestrone was both light and flavorful.
We then enjoyed a round of salads – the fire-grilled Caesar, bibb and gorgonzola wedge, separately $7, are each $3.50 add-ons with entrées.
For entrées, I ordered the pan seared local hog snapper ($28), my husband went for the pan seared sea scallops ($24), and our companion opted for the lobster mascarpone ravioli ($24), one of the two raviolis being featured on this evening.
The house-made raviolis, which vary from night to night, have been a distinguishing feature of Avanzare ever since it opened, and the lobster mascarpone version – topped with a tomato tarragon sauce – was no exception.
My husband’s six gorgeous scallops were perfectly seared, and served over a zucchini-barley risotto topped with sautéed snow peas and a warm tomato bacon vinaigrette. A very successful dish.
As for the hog snapper, it was a beautiful piece of fresh fish, cooked perfectly, served over an orzo pasta tossed with sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, lemon and extra virgin olive oil. The pasta imparted a nice Mediterranean flavor to the seared hog snapper.
For dessert, we split an order of limoncello cake. Almost every Italian restaurant now seems to have limoncello cake, but this was one of the better ones.
Dinner for two, with a modest bottle of wine, should run $90 to $100 before tax and tip.
While we did not try any of the meat dishes on this visit, the veal and short ribs entrées that we have enjoyed here in the past have been every bit as interesting and flavorful as the seafood.
For imagination in the kitchen – for creating dishes that on any given night, lead you to say ‘How did they do this?’ – Avanzare continues to offer some of the most interesting meals in Vero. A visit will not go unrewarded.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at [email protected].
The reviewer is a beachside resident who dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.
1. Pan seared sea scallops.
2. Pork rib-eye chop & lentils.
3. Chef Chris Lawrence. PHOTOS BY BENJAMIN HAGER
