Recently, I ate at Robert DeNiro's restaurant to...eat at Robert DeNiro's restaurant.
The mid-century modern design at Ago didn't veer too far into Palm Springs territory. Avoiding splashy colors, they used a New York Bistro color line, with dark greys, mahogany and navy. The result was airy yet crisp. But it's my dish that I need to talk about. Never had I seen so many truffle shavings on one plate. Not even in the Piedmont region of Italy during truffle season. When there, servers taunted me with visions of just-picked local truffles, only to find tiny black specks on my pizza slice. As with most dishes with less-than-desirable amounts of truffle, you get that heavenly aroma, but can't find the taste. Then there's Ago, with generous potions to made up for all that "Look at the stupid American in Italy" brouhaha.
While many return from celeb-owned restaurants with bragging rights related to star sightings, it was all overshadowed by the great food. And in my case, it was overshadowed by fungus.
