Mountain Views News          Saturday, April 12, 2014

Mountain Views-News Saturday, April 12, 2014 
9FOOD & DRINK Mountain Views-News Saturday, April 12, 2014 
9FOOD & DRINK 
VILLA SORRISO

 Ensconced on the outskirts of Old Town Pasadena, a magnificent experiment is being 
orchestrated. Conducted with equal parts theater and fine dining, Villa Sorriso is successfully 
doing what so many others have experienced as drinking a cup of hemlock. For here is a 
restaurant provocatively practicing the art of elegant cuisine, while doubling as a dance club 

TABLE FOR TWO by Peter Dills 
thechefknows@yahoo.com 
among the caverns of the night. It’s like being 

a teenage star that time wishes to force from 

the stage. If you close your eyes, you might 

summon the memory of a restaurant that used 

to be on the corner of Pasadena and Colorado 
which also professed to be a kingdom filled with the charms of food and dance, Clearwater 
Café, but as so many others of that type, they danced their way into the darkness of the night. 

 Jack Wong burst on the Pasadena restaurant scene with the Wok N’ Roll Sushi, on the 
north side of Colorado. It was instantly trendy, exciting, risk-taking and rewarding, exposing 
the palate, eyes and mind to an aesthetic and culinary adventure. That same formula has 
added some muscle and donned an Italian sign, Villa Sorriso. Just as the crowds that come 
here, I too have fallen under the night spell as their club emerges as a butterfly in the secret 
heart of the night as it bristles with an attractive energy that is sure to force a discovery of the 
newest dance step. 

 The pre-dance 
scene is a menu 
brimming with 
Italian classics, 
but creatively 
executed with a 
unique California 
twist. Chef Raul 
Mercado’s menu 
showcases a field 
of land and ocean 
dishes: pizza, 
pasta, steaks, fish, and a vast expression of salads. The prices for lunch seemed very reasonable, 
all in the ($12 to $15) range. Our friendly server, Kelsea, greeted us with homemade bread 
and cecca, which is a tomato, basil, garlic and olive oil mixture. I began my meal with the 
appetizer Crab Cakes ($9), leading me to sense that I was in great hands. . The crab cakes 
were not big enough for an entrée, but perfect for nibbling and chatting. As I raised the 
menu again, I overheard the couple next to me discussing their drive from Newport for the 
Cioppino. I was tempted to try it, but my stomach had other ideas, leading me to summon 
the Spicy Shrimp Linguini ($15). Enough shrimp to start a small sea. My partner for this 
lunch was torn between a salad or a full Fish Salmon Lunch. Kelsea, quickly made this a 
win, win, suggesting we get both. “You can make salad with the grilled Salmon,” she genially 
offered. Out of the mouths of babes comes the greatest wisdom. The plate leveled on our 
table with three nice portions of salmon and minutes later a disappearing act occurred as 
both our dishes were forked clean. In any restaurant business you often hear the expression 
location, location, location. But I say, food, food, food and - unbelievably - dance!! My 
compliments to Chef Raul, well crafted!!! Let’s hope that this is one dance that never ends. 


Villa Sorriso, 168 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, (626) 793-2233 


STRAWBERRIES 
ROMANOFF 
The berries should chill for some time, so prepare the berries 2 to 4 hours before serving. 

INGREDIENTS: 

•3 to 4 cups strawberries
•1/4 cup sugar
•1 cup heavy cream 
•1 cup good quality vanilla ice cream 
•3 to 4 tablespoons Cointreau, or orange juice 
DIRECTIONS: 

Wash and hull strawberries; halve large berries. Sprinkle with the sugar and chill thoroughly 
in refrigerator. Just before serving, beat cream until stiff. Beat ice cream until 
fluffy; fold ice cream into whipped cream. Add Cointreau, blending until smooth. Arrange 
strawberries in serving dishes and spoon cream mixture over them. Or, save a few berries 
for garnish and combine cream mixture with remaining berries. Serve with a garnish of 
strawberry slices and mint, if desired.

 Strawberries Romanoff serves 6. 

SAVOR THE FLAVOR! 

ALL ABOUT BEANS, A MIRACLE FOOD 

Beans contain a wider variety of nutrients than most foods. They provide complete proteins, a rarity 
in plants. In fact, 1/4 cup of beans, peas or lentils contains an equivalent amount of protein as one 
ounce of meat, or about 15 grams per cup. However, beans provide these healthy proteins with non 
of the animal fat of meat. 


Beans are high in good carbs. Complex carbohydrates can help curb hunger and boost energy levels, 
resulting in weight loss. 
Beans have the unique ability to release energy 
into the blood stream over a sustained period 
of time. This gives them a low glycemic index, 
making them an excellent food source for 
diabetics, as well as protection against obesity. 


Beans are loaded with soluble fiber, proven to 
help lower cholesterol levels. Fiber is a critical 
nutrient especially as people age. In a 2001 study, 
people who ate beans four times a week instead 
of once, showed a 22 per cent reduction in heart 
disease. 


Beans contain antioxidants that reduce the 
risk of some cancers, particularly colorectal, 
according to studies. Of the top 20 antioxidants 
on the USDA’s list of antioxidant food sources, 
beans come in at spots 1,3,4 and 7 with small 
red beans, red kidney, pinto and black beans. 
Antioxidants protect against damage by free 
radicals and keep us looking younger. 


Beans offer calcium, potassium, vitamin B6, 
magnesium, folate, and alpha-linolenic acid-
nutrients that work together to promote overall 
health. Beans have a unique compound that has 
been shown to keep normal cells from becoming 
cancerous and to slow their growth. 



Beans are a relatively inexpensive way to include protein in your diet. Savor the Flavor has carried 
award-winning mixes from Frontier Soups from our opening day. Stop in and discover what our 
customers have been enjoying for years.
Excerpt from Frontier Soups. 


Savor the Flavor LLC, 11 Kersting Ct., 626 355-5153, wwwsavortheflavor.net