TentaziOni

59 Rue du Palais Gallien

33000 Bordeaux, France

Tel. +33 5 56 52 62 12

BY ANTONIO GALLONI | JULY 26, 2019

The Food:

Perthus green asparagus, raw cuttlefish, almond crust and "vintage" caviar from Maison Sturia (Asperges vertes du Perthus, seiches crues, croute d’amandes et caviar «vintage» de la Maison Sturia)

Sicilian red Gambas roasted in the oven, beans, guanciale and consommé (Gambas rouge Sicilienne rôties au four, févettes, guanciale et consommé de tête)

Homemade Martelli spaghetti "Memories of my Sardinia" (Spaghetti artisanale Martelli «Souvenirs de ma Sardaigne»)

Small one-sided mullet, fresh peas and tangy butter with fish eggs (Rouget petit bateau cuit à l’unilatérale, petits pois frais et beurre acidulé aux œufs de poisons)

Roasted French milk-fed lamb roasted with marjoram, purple artichokes, taggiasca olives and smoked eel lacquered with honey (Agneau de lait français rôti à la marjolaine, artichauts violets, olives taggiasche et anguille fumée laquée au miel)

Iceberg lettuce, lemon, coffee, pine nuts (Laitue Iceberg, citron, café, pignons de pin)

Strawberries, wild strawberries and pistachios (Fraises, fraises des bois et pistaches)

The Wines:

I was really looking forward to this dinner at TentaziOni, as my last meal here was truly spectacular. After two packed weeks of tasting through several hundred 2018 Bordeaux en primeur samples, this dinner was a rare moment to simply relax and enjoy delicious food, superb wine and spirited conversation.

Perthus green asparagus, raw cuttlefish, almond crust and "vintage" caviar from Maison Sturia

TentaziOni, located on Rue du Palais Gallien, holds just 5-6 tables and is easy to miss. The simple, spartan décor, with wood table tops, is immediately welcoming. Giovanni Pireddu, a native of Sardinia, and his wife, Johanna offer inventive cuisine that melds together influences from their native Sardinia with French ingredients and an approach to technique that exalts the purity of the raw materials without ever being dominant. The result is dazzling, utterly delicious food that hits so many high notes. My impression is that Pireddu and his team are working at an even higher level than they were when I last ate here about a year and a half ago.

Sicilian red Gambas roasted in the oven, beans, guanciale and consommé

We chose the “Au fil du printemps” tasting menu, which was priced at a ridiculously low 69€ per person. Everything was absolutely delicious. I loved the green asparagus, raw cuttlefish and caviar first course, which was light and refreshing. The Sicilian red Gambas roasted in the oven with beans, guanciale and consommé was richer, but equally tasty. Red mullet is one of my very favorite fish because of its intense, but not overpowering, flavor and texture. At TentaziOni it was expertly cooked and very tasty. The spaghetti was excellent, but I prefer it a bit more al dente. You can’t please everyone. I also adored the lamb main course, a perfect early spring dish and a real delight to savor with our wines. For my taste, the iceberg lettuce dessert was a bit out there, although it was undeniably well executed. I much preferred the strawberry, wild strawberry and pistachio dessert, which had that requisite bit of freshness that is so ideal at the end of a meal.

Homemade Martelli spaghetti "Memories of my Sardinia"

Guests will find a terrific list at TentaziOni full of small-production wines, many of which have reached cult-ish status. But here they are, all at what should be their real restaurant prices, with very fair markups. Kudos to Giovanni and Johann Pireddu for building a list that gives the guest the opportunity to taste some of the very best wines being made in Italy today without spending a fortune. Vintages tend to be recent, but frankly, at these prices, who cares?

Roasted French milk-fed lamb roasted with marjoram, purple artichokes, taggiasca olives and smoked eel lacquered with honey

We start with the 2012 Barolo from Bartolo Mascarello, which is everything I expect. Perfumed, gracious and utterly sublime, the 2012 is all nuance. It is a real treat to taste and drink after two weeks of tasting embryonic six-month-old Bordeaux. It is also absolutely gorgeous with some of the lighter first courses on the menu. I can see the bewildered faces of my guests, all them native or adopted Bordeaux locals. “How can a wine be so light and yet deliver so much depth and persistence?” That, in a nutshell is what Nebbiolo is all about. Brovia’s 2013 Barolo Rocche takes things to another level. It has what Italians call spessore, a sense of textural dimension, that is unreal. All the classic Rocche signatures are amped up in a dramatic, statuesque Barolo that opens up effortlessly over several hours. Sweet floral and spice overtones add brightness, but the 2013 is one of the most potent, virile Rocches Brovia has ever made. It is also stunningly beautiful and moving. What a wine!

I have an early flight the next morning, so I call it a night right after dessert, but not before sticking my head into the kitchen, where I once again marvel that Pireddu and his team are able to make such gorgeous food in what are tiny, cramped quarters. Readers spending time in Bordeaux should make point of stopping by TentaziOni, but please call ahead, as reservations are very hard to come by.

Strawberries, wild strawberries and pistachios