Benvenuto Caffe'

Michael and Kate at EZTV reccomended Benvenuto Caffe', 8512 Santa Monica Blvd West Hollywood CA 90069, 310-659-8635, www.benvenuto-caffe.com, to us at one of our jam sessions a couple of weeks ago. Two eves ago, I was out with a fellow arts administrator and she said she wanted to eat some Italian food, so naturally I took advantage of this opportunity to try Benvenuto. We started in Downtown LA. This was the night of extreme winds so getting to W Hollywood was at a snails pace down Sunset, blah, blah, blah...

As I mentioned, I am trying to lower my carb in take, so this was the first pasta meal I've had in several months. Michael and Kate love food. Michael "Masucci" is Italian American and a New Yorker through and through in all of the best ways possible. If Michael says this is one of the best places for Italian food in LA, I am the first to believe him.

Just look at the pix here. This is the real stuff. I was raised on Japanese food. Whenever we made pasta, we cooked it to the consistency of ramen or udon. It wasn't until recently that I've come to appreciate al dente. Al dente is not just a style, it's an art. This place has it down. Oh my god! The pasta is so good, i'm getting hungry just thinking about it. We ordered the Lobster Ravioli and the Farfala Gorgonzola with Chicken. I can't wait to go back and try something else off the menu.



OK, there's another reason I wanted to go to this place. This building is formerly the recording studio and offices of the Doors. There's memorabilia displayed and hints of its former self all over the place. For the Rock history buffs, it's a must. For pasta lovers, follow where Masucci points.