Zucca Mountain View
Zucca is a two-location restaurant that doesn’t brand itself as “Italian”. In fact, one of the locations, the one in Palo Alto, says it’s a “European Restaurant”. I had read plenty of good things about them, but I was a bit skeptical about the originality of their Italian food.
My friend and I met at the Mountain View location, on Castro Street for lunch in a wonderful sunny day. We decided to sit outside, and to our surprise the place was not impossibly busy. At noon, we were the first table seated outside and the third table at the restaurant. Being used to the Palo Alto/ San Francisco wait times, this was a pleasant surprise!
The first thing that jumped to me on the menu was the rustic bread tomato soup. In Italy, this traditional Tuscan dish is called Pappa col Pomodoro, and it is one of the most delicious treats- and comfort food- available! It is soup made with tomatoes and stale bread, cooked together with garlic and basil and finished with extra virgin olive oil. I hold this dish to the highest standards since my grandma, from Tuscany, used to make it for me as a child! Zucca’s version was fresh and light, and quite delicious!! In addition, Zucca’s menu is one of the very few places where I have seen this delicious dish listed. Hurray for the chef!
As a main course, my friend and I shared an order of Fritto Misto, which in Italy is always served as an entree’ instead of an appetizer, and a pizza. The fried calamari were accompanied by shrimps and squids, just like they would come out in Italy. It was served with a very interesting side of “zucchini spaghetti”, long strips of zucchini steamed and served as if they were a pasta side, and a sauce that neither my friend nor I tasted, in the interest of the truly Italian tradition of eating your fried food only with squeezed lemon! The fried seafood was crispy and tasty, not overly oily, and very pleasant! The pizza was okay, but after two great dishes we were not disappointed by a “normal” pizza!
In all, Zucca is a great lunch destination: its table set outside really take advantage of the best California weather, and the chef really knows how to serve an original meal!
Zucca Ristorante
186 Castro St.
Mountain View, CA 94041
t: (650) 864-9940
Filed under: Pizzerie, Restaurants, South Bay
