Photo by Photos by Justin ShawThe Commercial Appeal, Photos by Justin ShawThe Commercial Appeal
Seasonal fish such as this sea bass is served with saffron pasta pearls, calamari and tomato sugo.
Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen received an unprecedented boost for a new Memphis restaurant when Food Network chose it to be featured in an upcoming show about first-time restaurateurs.
Whether through the preopening hoopla or quickly spread word-of-mouth, the restaurant on Brookhaven Circle was full at 7:30 on a recent Monday night.
A salad with farm greens, buffalo mozzarella, balsamic reduction, shallot vinaigrette and tomato confit is one of seven appetizers.
Photo by Photos by Justin ShawThe Commercial Appeal
Seasonal fish such as this sea bass is served with saffron pasta pearls, calamari and tomato sugo.
Being in a converted house lends a warm and inviting touch to Andrew Michael. It's cozy and comfortable.
The braised pork shank is cooked for hours and served simply, atop white beans and broccoli rabe.
A Monday, just a month after opening -- and in a recession.
Let's get right to why, starting with the dish I plan to eat several more times before it rotates off the menu: The gnocchi.
These delicate potato dumplings are hand-formed in the kitchen -- a pasta machine is only used to cut the long noodles -- and treated with the same care when plated.
The tiny pillows are served with caramelized fennel, roasted corn, resting in a puddle of the lightest cream sauce, peeking from under a generous sprinkle of tarragon bread crumbs.
The tarragon and the fennel enhance the anise notes in each other, creating a layer of subtle sweetness in the dish. Some kernels of corn are roasted crisp while
others remain soft, and the hearty bread crumbs maintain their bite. The sweet and savory flavors, the lush cream and voluptuous gnocchi, the toasty crunch -- really, it's a dish of extraordinary balance. And the half portion is $8.
Maw Maw's ravioli is an utterly different but equally delicious example of the owners', Andrew Ticer and Michael Hudman, commitment to old-fashioned kitchen practices. "We seriously make everything we serve right here," Ticer said.
The ravioli are served under a meat gravy that'll make you miss your Italian grandmother, if you had one, or at least make you love Ticer's and Hudman's.
The two have known each other since elementary school and one thing they noted, even as kids, was that the meat gravy tasted the same at both of their houses, thanks to their nonnas.
It's a slow-cooked sauce of tomatoes and aromatics rich with beef, pork and chicken. And demand is high: They're cooking about 1,400 ravioli a week to meet it.
As a lover of chicken livers, I heartily recommend the truffled chicken liver appetizer. Minced chicken livers are gently sauteed, mixed with pureed black truffles, garlic, shallots and served with crostini.
"It's one of my favorite dishes," Ticer said. "I learned how to make it in Italy from this old Italian guy who didn't speak English. I just had to watch him."
The braised pork shank is a dish sure to grab the attention of fellow diners. It's a massive piece of meat, cooked for six hours and fork tender, served with white beans and broccoli rabe. You'll either make an excellent pot of soup or a good dog very happy with your leftovers; I can't imagine even the heartiest eaters finishing this.
Desserts include an excellent espresso panna cotta served with homemade buttery shortbread cookies (it's said, by the way, that the first panna cotta, literally "cooked cream," was a coffee version).
If cannoli is your thing, Andrew Michael is your place. The tiny shells are made by hand daily, piped full of a light cheese filling flavored with limoncello and served with a raspberry sauce. Note that the raspberry sauce also comes with the panna cotta, although it doesn't say so on the menu. Ask for it to be left off if you're among the few (like me) who don't like raspberries.
The menu, which will change seasonally, contains 20 items. There are seven appetizers, three pastas available in half and full portions, six entrees and four desserts. There's a respectable wine list featuring mostly smaller labels that will grow in time, Ticer said.
-- Jennifer Biggs: 529-5223
Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen
Address: 712 W. Brookhaven Circle
Telephone: (901) 347-3569
Hours: Open for dinner at 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday
Price: $$$
No smoking
Handicapped access: Yes
Alcoholic beverages: Full bar
Don't miss: The potato gnocchi, Maw Maw's ravioli, the truffled chicken liver
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