Dining Reviews


1. Grade hillsides. 



2. Build lots of houses.



3. Build shopping centers.



4. Find somebody to start a really nifty Italian restaurant in each of those shopping centers. 



We’ve always known that good Italian chow has a civilizing influence anywhere it pops up, which should make South County one of the more genteel and sophisticated places in SoCal, not to mention one of the most gastronomically blessed. 


So once again, this North County resident is willing to put his jealousy on the backburner momentarily to praise yet another South County gem of a trattoria – Piccolino Ristorante and Pizzeria in Mission Viejo. 



This snug little storefront restaurant is only about 6 months old and tucked in a shopping center just off the 241 Toll Road. It has glass-topped tables and a cozy, enclosed patio in the front, and a tidy little kitchen in the rear (which you walk through in order to get to the restroom – a fun detour). Paintings of bucolic scenes add to the uncluttered, welcoming feel. 



The menu, medium-sized and accessible, combines familiar dishes, such as Chicken Marsala and Saltimbocca, with various homey pastas and little surprises, such as pumpkin-filled tortelloni, quails filled with sausage and polenta, and pork loin medallions with green peppercorns in a mustard reduction. These dishes will bring you back many times just to experiment.


The wine list is intriguingly varied. It has some fine California vintages, but half of the single-page list is devoted to Italian whites, from a tangy and refreshing Orvieto (which is what we ordered), to reds. Prices range into the hundreds of dollars.


I began with a salad that was as architecturally beautiful as it was tasty: the Carpaccio di Pera. Mixed greens are piled atop thinly sliced pears, with gorgonzola and pine nuts in a lemon vinaigrette. If you favor tart flavors, this one is for you: The bitter greens, combined with the vinaigrette, the tang of the gorgonzola and the crunch of the pine nuts is not a symphony, perhaps, but a lovely string quartet. 



My friend ordered from the nightly special menu and was presented with a lovely cut of grilled salmon with capers and lemon – minimal, but beautifully grilled to give the fish a wonderfully crunchy exterior. This dish is testimony to the enduring appeal of simple, but assertive flavors. 



I had the Cannelloni di Pollo, and let’s underline the pollo part. It’s minced chicken breast stuffed in a pair of cannelloni shells with mozzarella and creamy pesto sauce. Again: simple, but memorable. The pesto was on the mild side; a good amount of the cheese browned under the broiler, which gave it an even more delightful punch; and the finely minced chicken was unusually abundant, filling the entire length of each crepe. 



This was not the case with the cannolis I had for dessert. The cream-and-chocolate-chip filling was piped into either end of each cannoli, which was perfectly fine – this cream was unusually rich, and more of it would have been overkill. My friend ordered the chocolate soufflé, which is not so much a soufflé as a chocolate-syrup-filled timbale. It was, nonetheless, warm, rich and satisfying.



So, North County residents, don’t let the South County folks have all the fun. Besides (and I thought I’d never say this, but God bless the toll road) it’s only a 30-minute drive from downtown Fullerton.


28731 Los Alisos Blvd. No. 3 
Mission Viejo, 949.380.7261 
piccolinomv.com