Homemade Pasta at AIDA

I told you we were going to go back to AIDA to try the pasta.

Last time we were there, our delightful bartender Kate raved about it - I mean raved.  She said it was the best she'd ever had, and that it had spoiled all other Italian noodlage for her.  Those im-pastas simply weren't good enough to compare to AIDA's homemade perfection.

My new American Indian name is "Dances with Coyotes"

The Sous Chef and I went in the other night with a clear mission.  After ordering a glass of my new favorite wine (the Dancing Coyote Gewürztraminer) for myself and a beer for the Sous Chef, we set to work examining the pasta selections.

It wasn't a huge selection, but that didn't bother us.  We've found that we are much more likely to enjoy the food at a place with a limited menu as opposed to one that is so large it could act as a doorstop.  In our experience, a short menu typically translates to:

"We only do a few things, but we do them really well."

Looking over the choices, they've got all the pasta bases covered: classic spaghetti, scampi, eggplant Parmesan, ravioli, fra diavolo.  The only "typical" pasta dishes we noticed were missing were carbonara and Alfredo.

And then we saw the bottom of the list: Andouille Sausage, Shrimp, and Smoked Gouda Stuffed Ravioli and Lobster, Shrimp and Crab with Cherry Tomatoes and Spinach Tarragon Cream Sauce.

Oh, Lord.

If I see tarragon listed as an ingredient, I'm a goner.  I ordered that dish, and the Sous Chef, who never met a Gouda he didn't like, got the sausage ravioli.

Lobster, Shrimp, and Crab Pasta

Once again, AIDA blew us away.  Their pasta was truly magnificent.  Substantial and hearty, unlike the wimpy boxed pastas or even some other restaurant's homemade pastas that I've tried.  As I later described to restaurant owner Joe Barbera, when you usually eat pasta, the noodles serve merely as the vehicle to transport the "good stuff" - the toppings, sauces, etc.  But AIDA's pasta was the good stuff.  I could've eaten it with just a little olive oil and salt and pepper.

AIDA dressed up it's "good stuff" with equally delicious complements.  My shrimp, crab, and lobster were all perfectly cooked - buttery and scrumptious.  The Sous Chef once again entered into Smoky Heaven with every bite of his ravioli.  I'm personally not a big fan of smoky flavor, so I didn't really care for it.  But the Sous Chef liked it so much that I don't think he said more than two words to me while we ate.  I didn't mind, though; I was happy to occupy my senses with the tarragon-scented dream in front of me.

When Joe told us that the sauce was "just tarragon and cream", I didn't want to believe him; it was just too flavorful to be that simple.  I'm inclined to trust him, however, because similar to what I've experienced with short menus, I've found that short ingredient lists tend to yield amazing results.

With this second visit, AIDA cemented itself in our minds as a place we'd want to bring out-of-town guests to show off what Columbia can really do.  Before the bartender had given us our bill, the Sous Chef and I were going down our mental list of friends to try to think of people who would fully appreciate the experience of coming here.

Oh, and before you ask, I got the chocolate bread pudding for dessert again.  Because I like the taste of perfection.

Eat well.

P.S.  This month, AIDA is celebrating it's ten-year anniversary.  All month long, they've got giveaways, special events, and the like.  Stop by and join the festivities!  If you're lucky, you might even receive one of these beauties - a sealed envelope containing an unknown prize.  Bring it back (unopened) during July or August, and you are an automatic winner!  The bartender was describing some of the prizes to us - free glasses of wine, etc. - it sounds like a great promo.  Plus, it gives us another excuse to go to AIDA.

P.P.S  I'm hoping our prize is free chocolate bread pudding for life.