Napoli 2 makes no secret of its family tree. The offspring of Clayton’s Café Napoli isn’t a clone, but clearly shows its bloodlines in style, menu, service in the dining room and skill in the kitchen. Located in Town and Country Crossing (not Town and Country Commons), a new shopping center at Clayton and Woods Mill Roads, it certainly trumps its parent in terms of easy parking. Three dining rooms divide the interior so that there’s an aura of intimacy despite seating capacity of more than 120. And there’s always a Pietoso on hand, usually the next generation. On our visit, it was son Kye, who reported his father had just left for Clayton. Despite the carpeting and acoustic tiles, this is a noisy restaurant on busy nights. Granite tabletops, left bare to show their gleaming surface, look good but add to the problem. Still, we’ve finally decided we prefer the happy roar of people having a good time to the sepulchral feel of the sort of place where one feels compelled to whisper lest folks stare. However, when Napoli 2 is not packed, sound drops to a reasonable level.
Happily, the Pietosos have carried their wonderful cioppino to West County. For lovers of fishy things, it’s a marvelous soup-stew, rich and tomato-y, loaded with all sortsof piscatorial pleasure without being heavy. The deep-fried rice balls called arancini (shown below) are filled at the whim of the kitchen, with things like mozzarella and sausage. The result is pleasantly chewy, with a flavor in this case reminiscent of pizza. Eggplant parmigiana is double-layered, a generous serving with enough cheese and lots of eggplant.
We also divided an order of linguini puttanesca for a first course, and can enthusiastically recommend it. The pasta was al dente, and the sauce, slightly less peppery than perfectly traditional, was delightful, tomato studded with mushrooms and capers, and the juices from clams and mussels, both served in their shells, enriching everything. It’s another splendid example of confirmation for our belief that the pastas of St. Louis’ fine-dining Italian restaurants are underappreciated treasures.
Fans of liver and onions have long known that Napoli in Clayton puts out a tasty version, and it’s found here as well. A large slice of calf’s liver is gently cooked and smothered in caramelized onions seasoned with balsamic vinegar, differing in look from liver a la Veneziana, which calls for the meat to be in strips. It’s as good as ever, although the plate looks a little bare. Some spinach sauteed with garlic and olive oil came alongside after a disparaging comment about the same standard, year-round vegetables that joined every entree, and it was a superior substitution. A very delicate rendition of veal saltimbocca, layers of thin slices of veal with prosciutto and cheese, showed off meat that was light and not overcooked, and a good balance of flavors. The server didn’t bat an eye at a request for the side dish of pasta to be topped with garlic and olive oil rather than the proffered tomato or cream sauces.
Lovers of full-flavored food will thrill at a strip steak grilled as ordered, topped with gorgonzola cheese and a generous drizzle of balsamic vinegar; the salt y, sweet, sour and savory tastes all played tag with one another. It was accompanied by chunks of roasted potato and some carrots and green beans. And speaking of steak, there’s a calamari steak on the menu, a large slice that’s been cooked quickly to remain tender, and topped with some greens dressed with a lemony vinaigrette. The heat melts the greens just a little, and the mixture of textures is great, the tart vinaigrette punctuating things nicely. But the calamari itself, exotic as it sounds, is quite bland, needing that acidity to step things up.
The wine list, with some splendid Italian varietals, also has a good by-the-glass selection and values in the near-$40 range. For example, a Gavi Pio Cesare from Piedmont ($33) was just right with the first courses, the Cortese grape that its its prime ingredient adding a mineral crispness that was a fine complement to the cioppino and worked well with the eggplant Parmesan. It was not enough to handle the pasta, but if four people are dining, it’s impossible to find a single wine to match all the dishes. With main courses, a 2005 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon from Chateau St. Jean ($45) was splendid with the liver and steak, not quite a as good with the calamari.
Dessert options included Grand Marnier bread pudding and a key lime tart. The individual tart was a delicious blend of the classic flavors, creamy-tart filling and the gentle texture of the well-browned graham cracker crust. Alas, the fluffy, melt-in-the-mouth texture of the bread pudding was not only its primary asset, but practically its only one. There were no discernible notes of orange from Grand Marnier, just the raspberry drizzle that zig-zagged across the cube of pudding.
Good service across the board, despite the fact that the joint was jumping. Napoli 2 will be a major dining asset to West County.
Napoli 2
1054 Town and Country Crossing , Town and Country
636-256-9998
Credit cards: Yes
Dinner nightly
Smoking: No
Entrees: $18-$26
Wheelchair access: Good
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Three friends and I had dinner at Cafe Napoli in Town and Country this evening. The drinks were watered down. The bread was served with MARGARINE, and when we questioned the waiter about it, he said they had butter in the kitchen and he would get us butter! I cannot imagine a restaurant that charges these prices giving the customers margarine. The food was lukewarm, rather than hot. We also found a VERY large mistake in our bill. We will never again eat in this restaurant.