The Perfect Neighborhood Trattoria...wish it were in my hood.

A few weeks ago we celebrated our friend Jeff's birthday. Instead of cocktails in the village, Jeff decided on laser tag in Long Island City followed by brunch in Astoria.

If you don't live in Astoria I'm sure you've never heard of Vesta. If you do live in Astoria, you've probably still never heard of Vesta. Located on the corner of 30th Avenue, Vesta Trattoria and Wine Bar is as unassuming as the neighborhood it's in.

Walking into Vesta you are met with an environment that is both friendly and sophisticated. The front is filled with high wooden tables and casual window seating. A bar lines the middle of one side of the restaurant, featuring some of Vesta's many Italian wines. Dark woods and neutral colors fill the space and nostalgic photos and prints hang on the walls.

Vesta's entire wine list is Italian and is written on a long chalk board hanging high on one of the walls. They serve wines by the bottle, glass and shot...very smart. They also offer a "Classics" list. Sold only by the bottle, this is a select list of high quality "Classic Italian Varietals" offered at reduced prices.

We arrived for brunch, with only half our party, and were immediately shown to our table. There was no "we cannot seat an incomplete party" attitude, which was good as there is very little space to stand and wait, especially during Saturday brunch. The host/bartender/server asked us for a drink order while we waited for the rest of our party and promptly brought us water.

We ordered coffee, teas and hot chocolate. They have a wide array of organic teas and bring them to your table for selection. My coffee was a wonderful freshly brewed Italian roast, served in an old fashioned Italian coffee cup. The hot chocolate was like a molten chocolate delight...creamy, steaming and rich.

Vesta's cooking philosophy is "inspired by Italy, the local green market and a compliment to a menu without boundaries". Their Executive Chef, Michelle Vido, reflects this philosophy by using local vendors, organic ingredients and Italian influences in her menus. The brunch menu consists of Breakfast favorites, Italian inspired egg dishes, Pizzas, Pastas & Salads.

We decided to begin with one of the most interesting sounding items on the menu, "The Hangover Pizza". A fusion of classic breakfast items and traditional thin crust pizza, the dish combines pancetta, potatoes, fried eggs and tomato sauce. Clearly this was either going to be a huge hit, or major miss.

The first bite said it all. The spiciness of the tomato sauce and pancetta off-set the rich creaminess of the egg yolk and cheese. The savory flavors of the sausage and potatoes worked beautifully with the thin crispness of the crust. Nothing was overpowering, everything worked in harmony. Vesta's had set the bar very high.

For my main course, a friend and I shared two dishes, the "L'Italiano", poached eggs on grilled Italian bread with hot sopresatta & ricotta cheese and "A Warm Bankie" fried eggs with creamy polenta, asparagus, wild mushrooms & truffle oil.

"A Warm Bankie" is aptly named. It is a comfort dish, although like many things at Vesta, it is also very sophisticated. Creamy, warm and deliciously truffled, the polenta is the star of the dish. The other ingredients are used to compliment the polenta with texture and taste. The mushrooms and asparagus, are well seasoned and firm and the eggs are crisp on the edges with a gooey center.

The "L'Italiano" uses some interesting ingredients for an egg dish, such as ricotta and sopressata. Creamy, spicy, crunchy, there are a lot of elements that should work well together. When I tasted the dish however, the flavors were lost. In addition to salt, the dish needed a sauce to bring out the flavors and tie the dish together.

Other highlights of the meal included the Brioche Burger and Linguini. Buttery and thick, the freshly baked brioche bun held the juices of the pink plump burger. Topped with aged white cheddar, grilled onion and thick sliced tomato and served with thin, golden fries, this burger eats more like a well seasoned chopped steak. It also requires more than one napkin so do not attempt to eat this gracefully.

The "Linguini with seasoned bread crumbs, pepperoncini, garlic & olive oil" is another joy in taste and texture. The taste/texture combo between the bread crumbs and pepperoncini is savory and salty, crispy and chewy, enough to go bite for bite until the very end. Plus the olive oil adds a lovely fragrant overtone that gives the dish an authentic feel.

As we were celebrating a birthday, our attentive server/bartender/host presented the guest of honor with Vesta's signature "Baby Jesus" Cake. This simple yet serious cake is served warm, with fresh whipped cream and a light caramel sauce. It is moist with delicate pieces of dried dates for texture. It tastes sinful yet wholesome at the same time. And, although we all said we could not eat another bite, the dessert was gone in less than five minutes.

I'm a Manhattanite and have always believed that the best restaurants are in Manhattan. However, take away my Manhattan bias and Vesta is better than half of the trendy places in the East or West Village for a third of the price with none of the attitude. So I guess the only question is "Can they call me a cab at the end of the meal?"

VESTA
Trattoria & Wine Bar
21-20 30th Avenue
Astoria, NY 11102
718-545-5550
www.vestavino.com