Tag: zeppole

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Brunch: Via’s Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

The back patio at Via is a fantastic location for a nice Sunday brunch on a nice day. Am awning keeps the sun out of your face while still enjoying the outdoors, and if it gets chilly, there are heat lamps above to warm you up a bit.

The brunch menu had a nice mix of breakfast, lunch and dinner items, providing lots of options for everyone.

Being brunch, a refreshing cocktail was in order. I had the Easy Like Sunday Morning with small batch bourbon, peach liqueur, house made sour mix and fresh lemon. This was light and refreshing, like a bourbon mimosa. Maybe a little sweet for evening, but perfect for brunch.

I started with an order of the House made Zeppole, small Italian donuts fried to order and tossed with cinnamon sugar. This came as an order of seven, munchkin sized, warm donut balls coated with cinnamon sugar. These were light and tasty, not too heavy, and delicious. An order is perfect for two, but too much for one person as an appetizer.

For my “entree” I had the Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Lavender butter, served with local maple syrup. This came as two medium to large pancakes with fresh cut strawberries, a little powdered sugar and a small tureen of a light maple syrup. The pancakes were lemony, but not overpowering and the ricotta in the batter gave them wonderful texture and made them much more filling than expected making the portion size actually on the large side. The balance of the lavender butter, lemon, strawberry and pancake itself was perfect. The maple syrup was light, not too sweet or sticky, and a perfect complement to the pancakes making an overall wonderful dish.

When I have something so sweet for breakfast/brunch, I usually like to end the meal with toast or english muffin so I also had the Tuscan Toast with whipped butter. This came as three fairly large pieces of Italian bread and more than enough butter. The butter was whipped perfectly and the Italian bread couldn’t have been toasted any better.

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Brunch at Via: Pasta Carbonara

Pasta Carbonara from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

Pasta Carbonara from Via on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, MA

While many diners might frequent Via Italian Table on Worcester’s Shrewsbury Street for a hearty dinner, it would be a mistake to forego the diverse Sunday brunch experience. Via boasts a wide array of breakfast-to-lunch options with unique finds such as lemon ricotta pancakes and porchetta eggs benedict.

My meal began with piping-hot-out-of-the-fryer zeppole: small Italian donut holes made in-house and dusted plentifully with sugar and cinnamon. Mildly sweet and doughy on the inside, these proved quite a naughty and irresistible way to start the day — everyone at the table was licking their fingers. My main course was a dense pasta carbonara with crisp English peas and house-cured pancetta slices. The spaghetti was cooked al dente and garnished with pea shoots which helped cut the heaviness of the garlic cream sauce.

The highlight of the meal, however, was when my generous neighbor offered me a slice of her smoked salmon plate. This is the dish that will bring me back for more! Rustic toast rounds accompanied by a generous selection of smoky lox, capers, sliced red onion, a lemon wedge, fresh dill, and a mustard crema. The flavor of the smoked salmon was unparalleled – really, the best I’ve had — and the mustard crema in lieu of traditional cream cheese was a welcome surprise. Given the impeccable service and beautiful ambiance dining al fresco amidst a plethora of hanging flower baskets, I will have to return to Via….next time, however, the smoked salmon plate is mine all mine.