Amici Ristorante...An Italian Delight in Carytown!

For Valentine's Day, the b/f took me out for a lovely dinner at Amici Ristorante, a Carytown restaurant that specializes in Northern Italian cuisine.  I have walked or driven past this establishment dozens of times over the past (nearly) 3 years of living in the Fan, and despite the fact that it has been on my "Jules' Richmond Restaurants To Try" list for almost as long as I've lived here, it was one of those special occasion places that I just hadn't made it to yet.  So, on Thursday evening when Michael told me where we were going for dinner, I was pretty ecstatic to finally try it out!

When we arrived, we were greeted by several of the friendly staff.  Once they confirmed our reservation, we were led upstairs (we didn't even realize the restaurant had a 2nd level!), and were given our choice between the only two vacant 2-person tables.  One of them just so happened to be in the back corner, so we snatched that one up, as it offered a bit more privacy.  Since I rate restaurants based on ambiance as well as quality of food, I immediately appreciated the pleasantly romantic atmosphere of the Amici dining room.  Pale yellow walls adorned with eye-pleasing framed prints and attractive decor, dimmed lighting, white tablecloths, and a relatively low noise level conducive to intimate conversation collectively set the mood for a romantic dining experience.

The only thing that I felt was missing was a candle on each table...I mean the ambient lighting was nice in itself, but dinner by candlelight on Valentine's Day just seems appropriate.  I've been to far less classy joints that at least have a votive candle on the table.  Totally being knit-picky though.  Oh, and the other minor thing that struck me as a bit odd was the music...the playlist/radio station played an interesting mix of tunes that ranged from current country music to 90's alternative rock, the latter of which is one of my favorite genres, but it just felt a bit out of place in this particular environment.  Seems to me like some Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin standards would be a much better complement to the overall vibe of the place, but maybe that's just me being cliche.  Haha.

Okay, moving on to the most important factor when it comes to rating a restaurant: the FOOD!  We started by perusing the wine list and decided on a Riesling for me (sweetest white I could find on the menu haha) and a red that I don't remember for him (but I'm sure it was the driest red on the menu...our tastes in wine are on complete opposite sides of the spectrum lol).  We both found our respective glasses of wine to be very enjoyable, so that got our meal off to a great start.  Anyway, on to the dinner menu...In my typical indecisive fashion, I waffled back and forth between several menu items and changed my mind at least 3 times before finally settling on the "spaghettini al nero con trota affumicata."  Translation: homemade black ink spaghettini with smoked trout, arugula, and cream sauce.  I was intrigued by the uniqueness of this dish, which is part of the reason I decided to order it...I'm always a fan of trying new, unique things!  However, I don't think I had ever eaten trout before ordering this dish, so I was a bit nervous about how "fishy" or salty it might taste.  Imagine my excitement when this delightful dish was placed in front of me...

Black ink spaghettini w/ trout, arugula, & cream sauce...just wow!

The first bite removed any skepticism I might have had about whether I ordered the right thing or not....omg...this was so incredibly delish!  I savored every bite, but as much as I wanted to devour the whole thing, it was too much to finish in one sitting (plus, I needed to save room for my homemade cheesecake that we were having for dessert ;), so I enjoyed the leftovers for lunch on Friday.  Michael sampled my pasta dish and agreed that it was fantastic.  He ordered the ribeye, which came with potatoes and asparagus...I obviously didn't sample his entree, but he said that it was awesome, and his clean plate supported that statement. :)

So, Amici Ristorante earns high marks from me for an overall wonderful Valentine's Day dining experience.  It's definitely worthy of a spot on my list of fave special occasion dining spots, which means I will most certainly be back!  The next time you find yourself looking for a quality date night spot in RVA, you should definitely give Amici a try! :)

And since this post is about my Valentine's Day dinner, I can't help but share a pic of the beautiful bright pink roses (my fave flower) that the b/f surprised me with. :)