While most Vero restaurants, even the very good ones, now offer summer specials in an effort to keep busy in the absence of our snowbirds, few dining values equal the two-courses-for-$20 menu currently being offered Monday through Thursday at Avanzare.
This is not one of those several-course summer menus where a tiny green salad and a parfait count as two of the courses.
The summer menu at our favorite Tuscan trattoria in Vero’s old downtown offers a choice of 10 great appetizers as the first course, followed by one of 14 sumptuous entrées as the second. And by the time you finish both, you’ll likely be too full to care that dessert is not included.
On a recent Tuesday night, we arrived at Avanzare around 7:45 (their special menu, thankfully, does not require being seated at a ridiculously early hour), and our party of three was ushered to a nice booth along the northern wall.
We were hardly seated when our server brought the evening’s amuse bouche – a sundried tomato and goat cheese spread on crostini. That was followed by a basket of warm bread, accompanied by a dish of olive oil mixed with fresh herbs for dipping.
For starters on this visit, I selected the clams casino, my husband opted for the parmesan soufflé over drunken mushrooms, and our companion chose the soup du jour, which was cream of mushroom and truffles.
The soup was delicious, and the use of Applewood smoked bacon in my clams casino was a nice touch. My husband’s light parmesan soufflé was served over mushrooms that had been braised in balsamic vinegar and beer. They may have had a slight buzz on, but were certainly not drunk!
Then for an entrée, I ordered the roasted peppers and sausage, my husband went for the fish of the day, which on this evening was swordfish, and our companion picked a longtime favorite, the short rib lasagna (the latter two both had a $2 up charge).
The short rib lasagna, an off-menu special when we first encountered it some years ago, never disappoints. The wine-braised short rib, layered with pasta and parmesan cream, is finished off with a bone au jus from the pan. Luscious.
My entrée was one of the best I have had here – Italian sausage hand-stuffed with parsley provolone, served with roasted peppers and plum tomatoes, all atop sinfully good crispy garlic potatoes.
My husband was equally enthused about the swordfish – a beautiful piece of fish, grilled perfectly, topped with a roasted tomato and pepper sauce, and accompanied by grilled asparagus and new potatoes.
Avanzare is finishing its first year in its new location, which long housed the 14th Avenue Steakhouse. What a change the spacious new restaurant –with its large windows looking out on the brightly lit Theatre Plaza marquis – is from the dark, somewhat cramped quarters Avanzare previously occupied.
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. And for at least a few weeks longer, at a spectacular price.
I welcome your comments, and encourage you to send feedback to me at [email protected].
The reviewer dines anonymously at restaurants at the expense of Vero Beach 32963.
