June wine dinner at Carino's

Based on last month's disaster I should not have gone this month. However the food seemed to be pretty full proof so I took a chance

Antipasto Platter An assortment of grilled eggplant and zucchini, roasted Roma tomatoes, shaved prosciutto ham and Kalamata olives drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and served family style Paired with Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc. While the eggplant could have use a tad more oil and some salt the rest of it was great especially the tomatoes.
Roasted Tilapia "In A Bag" Steam-baked parchment style with oven-dried tomatoes, fresh vegetables, basil pesto and roasted rosemary potatoes Paired with Clos du Bois Chardonnay

Opened up it revealed perfect cooked fish on a bed of potatoes and asparagus topped with tomatoes, herbs and lemon slices. Made a nice presentation.

Pasta Amatriciana Crispy applewood smoked bacon, caramelized onion, San Marzano tomatoes with spaghetti pasta and grated Pecorino Romano cheese Paired with Blackstone Merlot

As you can see I found this dish quite tasty despite the al dente pasta. I am a barbarian and like my pasta cooked through. The sauce however could make shoe leather tasty.

Lemon Tiramisu A summer twist on our classic handmade dessert - citrus infused mascarpone mousse layered with soaked ladyfinger cookies Paired with Hogue Late Harvest Riesling
And it was. A sprite taste to finish off the meal. All the wine pairings were good.

I generally go to these dinners alone as my eating group does not particularly like wine dinners. At the last three I attended I was approached by someone asking me to join them. While I generally eat alone and do not mind it, the conviviality of the wine dinner seems to embolden people. I have never rejected( I am not yet that much of a curmudgeon) the approach and have always had a lovely time. This group being mostly younger had superior phones so they got someone to take our picture and then it got sent to my e-mail. I have always had trouble with names so they will have to forgive me if I do not name them except the birthday girl Monica (on the right hand side of the picture).