Barbuzzo

Finally, after months of anticipation and strolling casually down 13th street thinking "oh God, when are we just going to suck it up and get there???" - we made the reservation.

It was crowded on a Tuesday night at 7pm! No folks waiting, but no table stayed open more than a minute. We found our way to a narrow table deep in the dark space, and slid into the church pew seat, preparing to be blown away.

Still feeling aftereffects of too much good beer the previous night, we skipped drinks but won't do so ever again - the beer/wine/cocktail list is extensive and tempting.

Now no one said the word, but there was no mistaking it from the menu - this here is a tapas place. Which makes it a little pricey, however the value is in the quality of the food, and the portions aren't as stingy as some true small-plate shacks.

First up - pig popcorn and sheep's milk ricotta. Ricotta was sweet, plenty on the plate but so tempting that we'd have gladly eaten another! Pig popcorn was visually appealing, not so much for taste- just okay, not enough horseradish aioli on the plate. Kind of like eating foam peanuts with a little spice and salt.

Second round -  Parcherri pasta (pork ragu), and stuffed meatballs. Though the sauces were the exact same color in the low light, their tastes were completely different. The meatballs were swimming, bright tomato sauce where the parcherri swam in a smoky, porky sauce.

Side note: Dishes are served as quickly as they exit the nearby open kitchen. So not too much gets in the way of what's about to hit your table, which is great when you're seated for a reservation you've waited for all day. Or month.

And that's all it took, so we moved on to dessert. The decision wasn't easy, as all the options sounded worthy. We settled on the Marcie Blaine chocolate sampler, and the salted caramel budino. Four bonbons of superb character made up the sampler - downright awesome but literally $2 apiece. Then the caramel, which occupies a separate category, it was unique, stellar and simple. Salt and caramel, on top of cream cheesy gooey (is that mascarpone?) goodness, sitting on buttery graham cracker crust. This is up there with the 'snickers' from Adsum, which is really a lofty category indeed.

A phenomenal new icon of the 13th street corridor of culinary catechism, which doesn't have to be expensive (we intend to go back for dinner at the bar and drinks) or inaccessible (with reservations). We will return, we now believe the hype and will take some more of this kool aid!