There’s a new wave of “old-school” Italian restaurants popping up in cities across the country, as evidenced by the creativity and success of eateries like Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence winner Lost Letter in Richmond, Va. The restaurant’s team previously garnered praise for Longoven, their first fine-dining restaurant, which earned a Restaurant Award before closing in 2022. In 2023, the team opened Lost Letter in the same space, where the lights have been lowered and the cooking has slowed down—just a touch—as the restaurant focuses on the heritage and casual elegance of Italian cooking.
At the beginning, the focus was on dishes from northwest Italy, but owners Patrick and Megan Phelan have since expanded their inspirations while looking to traditional homestyle dishes and also to contemporary Italian fine dining in the United States.
[article-img-container][src=2024-11/restaurant-spotlight-lost-letter-server-111324_1600.jpg] [caption=Wine director Grayum Vickers (right) has curated a global list of more than 500 wines.] [credit= (Courtesy of Longoven)] [alt= Wine director Grayum Vickers showing a wine bottle to a table at Lost Letter in Richmond, Va.][end: article-img-container]
Chef Patrick Phelan’s seasonal menu follows the classic structure of Italian dining: There’s salumi as well as spuntini options such as bruschetta with chicken liver and Madeira cream or fried Castelvetrano olives. The antipasti selections are ample, with bites like acciughe al verde (anchovies plated with Jimmy Nardello peppers and drizzled in salsa verde), bagna cauda with fennel and radish, a tonnato made with Roseda Farm dry-aged beef, and polpo alla griglia served with white beans and ’nduja.
As for the primi piatti, guests can expect a rotation of fresh pasta classics, including pappardelle with lamb ragu (made with lamb from Pure Bred, a collaboration between Elysian Fields Farm and chef Thomas Keller) stewed with Niçoise olives and red wine, or agnolotti filled with butterkin squash (a hybrid of butternut squash and pumpkin), ricotta and black truffle. Still hungry? Indulge in secondi like the pork shank braised with cipollini onions or the roasted halibut served with black rice and fennel sausage.
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While Italy is the throughline of the dining menu, the wine program—led by wine director and general manager Grayum Vickers—pulls from across the globe and boasts nearly 600 labels. Wines from the major regions of Italy are well-stocked, of course (like Tuscany and Piedmont), but diversity is a clear goal: There’s bubbly from Alto Adige, Sicilian Chardonnay and Grillo, Basilicata Aglianico and more. Those looking for regional leaders can find selections from wineries like Mastroberardino in Campania, ArPePe in Lombardy and Argiano in Tuscany.
France is also well-represented in the cellar—with standout selections of Champagne and Burgundy—as is California, with bottlings from Corison, Heitz and Mount Veeder Winery, to name just a few. Orange wine also plays a role, with versions from Spain, Germany and Lebanon.
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