Three Bells for Il Pittore
Chris Painter finally has a stage to call his own and Craig LaBan likes what he sees at Il Pittore.
The octopus was both tender and delicately crisped over arugula puree and the zesty pickle of baby peppers. The meaty orata fillet with minced olives and fregola sarda was like tasting the Mediterranean. The rosemary-scented lamb shank came over mashed potatoes tweaked with subtle hazelnut warmth. But the other braised meats were the real showstoppers: amazingly tender veal cheeks over earthy buckwheat polenta topped with marrow butter and blood-orange marmalade; and a slow-cooked suckling pig and Tuscan kale and pear mostarda, the meat practically melting beneath its cracker-crisp skin and eliciting an actual “wow.”
Three Bells – Excellent
Il Pittore [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Il Pittore [Official Site]
