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I finally settled on La Campania for our anniversary dinner. It’s a nice, romantic space, done in warm yellow and wood tones. We were seating in a cozy alcove next to the wine cellar space.

I started with the arancini; it was crispy and gooey in all the right places, but for $11, it seems one should get more than 2 rice balls. R did much better in his appetizer selection. He had sautéed oyster mushrooms with arugula and balsamic. It was served in a crispy fontina cheese basket. The mushrooms were meaty, crispy and chewy all at the same time. Absolutely delish.

For entrees, I had a salt encrusted Bronzino. It was a weird dish. The fish itself was good, very moist and flavorful, but it came on a rectangular plate, with the fish on the bottom half. On the top part of the plate, in a row, was: a mound of salt and fennel seeds, a wedge of lemon, a mircogreen and pear salad and a whole head of roasted garlic. It was baffling, as I didn’t think the roasted garlic really went with the fish. The seasoning mound was also weird; I’m used to having the kitchen season my food. My dinner shouldn’t have to come with an instruction manual. R’s duck breast was on the tough side, which is unfortunate as the mushroom and cherry sauce had great flavor.

Dessert was ultimately the reason why I chose La Campania; R is a sucker for desserts you have to pre-order. He seems to think they are extra special, and orders whatever it is without fail. La Campania has not one, but two desserts that must be pre-ordered; a chocolate soufflé and a strawberry rhubarb crisp. We, of course, went with the chocolate. It was a fine dessert, but I can’t help but think that my chocolate cake recipe is better.

La Campania seems to have a large wine selection, and has won many awards in that department. Unfortunately, neither R nor I are wine drinkers, so that aspect of the restaurant was lost on us.

504 Main Street

Waltham, MA 02452

Phone: 781.894.4280

http://www.lacampania.com/