Serving the Binghamton community since May 1946, my photographer, Kai, and I met up this past Friday to experience Little Venice’s lunch menu for Restaurant Week.
After being greeted and seated by our host, we were warmly greeted by our waiter, Veronica, and handed a basket of succulent bread with butter and a carafe of water. What stuck out to me immediately was the ambiance, with walls completely filled with 19th-century paintings of western Europe and the music playing in the background — a promising start to our dining experience — as I felt immersed in Italy. After placing our orders, we waited eagerly for our first course to come out.
Our dining experience began with an Italian “sushi” for myself and a Manhattan clam chowder soup for Kai — the restaurant’s soup of the day. The blend of meats in the “sushi” in combination with the arugula, baby tomatoes and light drizzle of balsamic glaze, filled my entire mouth with an explosion of flavors. The meats, especially the prosciutto, tasted fresh with strong flavors hitting me all at once. Kai, on the other hand, while not the biggest fan of tomatoes, raved about the tangy, savory flavor of the hot soup, saying, “Any lover of tomatoes would love this.”
After chugging some water to cleanse our palettes, we were presented with our main courses. I opted for the rigatoni with house-made vodka sauce, while Kai selected the chicken cutlet parmigiana — free of tomato sauce. The presentation of the rigatoni was simple yet appealing, with the sauce over the pasta, topped with fresh green herbs. The taste was just as excellent as it looked, as the house-made vodka sauce was creamy, cheesy and tangy in every bite. The hint of herbs added to the fresh taste of the pasta. Kai mentioned the flavorful breading and firmness of the chicken, reminding him of his Japanese roots and one of his favorite Japanese dishes: chicken katsu. The cutlet itself was crunchy and firm, while the cheese added extra flavor and made it even more crispy. As for the noodles, they were soft and well seasoned, like any spaghetti should be. It’s safe to say that we thoroughly enjoyed our main courses.
To end things off with an ultimate bang for dessert, I opted to have a cannoli while Kai received the house-made chocolate mousse. As someone who has never had a cannoli before, I was blown away by how delicious it was. The crunchiness of the pastry in combination with the rich, sweet cream filling on top of a bed of whipped cream was amplified by the sweetness of the chocolate chips, making for an exceptional end to my dining experience. As a result, I had to share the love with Kai, giving him my other cannoli, which he also loved and devoured. In addition, with his chocolate mousse, he was provided a plentiful serving and talked about the perfect sweetness of the chocolate that was never too overwhelming — ending our lunch on a high note.
As a whole, Kai and I were lucky enough to be able to experience a piece of Italy at Little Venice for lunch this past Friday, and we implore you to give it a try as well! We’re confident that you’ll love it.