{"id":66587,"date":"2024-08-13T00:01:52","date_gmt":"2024-08-13T06:01:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=66587"},"modified":"2026-04-03T11:19:01","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T17:19:01","slug":"il-localetto-rossi-italian-cuisine-albuquerque-new-mexico","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=66587","title":{"rendered":"Il Localetto Rossi Italian Cuisine – Albuquerque, New Mexico"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Localetto Rossi Italian Cuisine On Buena Vista<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Academy Award-nominated actor Stanley Tucci and I share a selfsame perspective on eating well:\u00a0 \u201cTo me, eating well is not just about what tastes good but about the connections that are made through the food itself. I am hardly saying anything new by stating that our links to what we eat have practically disappeared beneath sheets of plastic wrap. But what are also disappearing are the wonderful, vital human connections we\u2019re able to make when we buy something we love to eat from someone who loves to sell it, who bought it from someone who loves to grow, catch, or raise it. Whether we know it or not, great comfort is found in these relationships, and they are very much a part of what solidifies a community<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his highly acclaimed CNN series “Searching For Italy<\/a><\/strong>,” viewers rarely (if ever) saw Tucci dining by himself.\u00a0 Tucci understands that sharing a meal is an intimate experience, and those who sit beside us at the table can feel this intimacy: Bonds with loved ones become stronger, and strangers feel like strangers no more.\u00a0 Coming together and sharing a meal is the most communal and binding thing in almost every place in the world.\u00a0 Professor Ayelet Fishbach published a study<\/a><\/strong> in the Journal of Consumer Psychology that recently showed colleagues who ate similar foods together experienced higher rates of trust and closeness than those who ate alone. \u201c<\/p>\n

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Big Flavors are Delivered to Localetto Rossi’s Small Dining Room<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Linda Johansen and I were work colleagues at the University of New Mexico (UNM) before she became my boss.\u00a0 We bonded and became friends over many a meal–good and bad.\u00a0 Linda and I share a passion for great food.\u00a0 She may, in fact,\u00a0 be even more passionate about gastronomy than this self-glossed gastronome. As a certified Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS) judge, she’s had the privilege of judging at the American Royal World Series of Barbecue, the largest barbecue contest in the world. She\u2019s also used her discernment of culinary excellence as judge at other national and local events (including the world\u2019s largest matanza in Belen).<\/p>\n

When Linda’s sister Nancy recently visited from Connecticut, Linda invited us to break bruschetta for lunch.\u00a0 We mulled over our options.\u00a0 Like me, Linda will often eschew “the usual suspects<\/em>” in favor of “the shiny new object<\/em>.”\u00a0 It surprised me, however, that she would want to visit Il Localetto Rosatti, an Italian eatery feeding Albuquerque for only about a month.\u00a0 It’s not that Linda doesn’t like Italian food.\u00a0 She does.\u00a0 Linda, Nancy and (to a lesser extent) I cut our teeth with Italian food in the Northeast states.\u00a0 I still content that the best Italian food in the country can be found only in such states as Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

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Bread Basket With Calabrian Chili Oil<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Like Mikey from the old Life Cereal commercials<\/a><\/strong>, Albuquerque Yelpers don’t like anything, but Il Localetto Rossi (The Little Red Place) has a five-star rating<\/a><\/strong> over 22 reviews.\u00a0 That’s not a lot of Yelp reviews, but it’s quite a start (though you can bet some contrarian is going to downgrade it just because…).\u00a0 Il Localetto Rossi is located on Buena Vista across Central Avenue from UNM.\u00a0 It’s housed in the familiar one story building that was home to Thai House<\/a><\/strong> for 33 years before the venerable eatery relocated to Carlisle.<\/p>\n

Il Localetto Rossi has the pedigree to succeed in a Duke City Italian restaurant market that continues to improve.\u00a0 That pedigree is three local guys who like their anonymity because it’s about the food – not about them. You’ve gotta love the antithesis of the ego-driven celebrity chef personality. When the Cabrona Virus shut down the world, the triumvirate launched Urbano Pasta Kitchen<\/a><\/strong>, one of the city’s very first “ghost kitchens.”\u00a0 Urbano specialized in fresh made food, made from scratch to order. As a Virtual Kitchen, the chef’s created a menu of Italian food with New Mexico influences. They made their own pasta, sauces and mozzarella.<\/p>\n

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Mushroom Bruschetta<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While the concept of a ghost kitchen showed promise, the reliance on delivery services meant food may not be warm or fresh by the time it got to its intended destination.\u00a0 Urbano shuttered its doors not long after Anthony Fauci decided it was safe for Americans to interact with one another again.\u00a0 It made sense for the three chefs to launch a brick-and-mortar restaurant.\u00a0 Il Localetto Rossi opened its doors in March, 2024.\u00a0 No vestiges of the Thai House remain.\u00a0 The one room dining room is painted red with seating along the walls.<\/p>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Our foursome started our meal with a bread basket<\/em><\/strong> (lightly toasted baguette served with Calabrian chili oil).\u00a0\u00a0 Calabrian chili peppers come from the Calabria region of Southern Italy.\u00a0 Though a number of chili peppers are now grown throughout Europe, specific growing conditions–optimum heat and sunlight, fecund soil, light rain–in the Calabrian region help distinguish Calabrian chile peppers from their counterparts elsewhere. \u00a0 Calabrian peppers are spicy and smoky with\u00a0 just enough heat to be discernible.\u00a0 Linda, Nancy and I had no problems with the heat though it was a bit much for my Kim.<\/p>\n

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Pasta Bolo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0A second bread-based starter not to be missed is the mushroom bruscetta<\/em><\/strong> (Italian herbs, wild mushrooms, tomatoes, caramelized onions, Boursin cheese).\u00a0 It’s second only to the incomparable bruscetta at Joe’s Pasta House<\/a><\/strong> in Rio Rancho though better exemplifying the versatility of bread as a canvas.\u00a0 Interesting was the choice of Boursin, a French cheese with a soft, creamy texture.\u00a0 It’s a good choice because it spreads easily and melts well.\u00a0 The wild mushrooms and caramelized onions provide plenty of umami deliciousness.<\/p>\n

Enjoying two appetizers gave us an opportunity to study the menu at length.\u00a0 It’s a unique menu featuring some items not available at other Duke City Italian restaurants.\u00a0 The menu is broken down into four distinct sections: Appetizers (four items), Salads and Soups (five items), Pasta (seven items) and Main Courses (eight items).\u00a0 Within the Main Courses section, you’ll find such surprises as a New York strip, pork chops and grilled salmon.\u00a0\u00a0 Sides include mashed potatoes, broccolini, meatballs, sauteed shrimp and more.<\/p>\n

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Gnocchi Cacio E Pepe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Pasta Bolo, where have you been all my life?\u00a0 Google “Pasta Bolo<\/em>” and the results returned will likely be for “Pasta Bolognese<\/em>,” a dish with which I’m intimately familiar though there are many variations.\u00a0 Il Locatello’s Pasta Bolo<\/em><\/strong> combines pork and beef in a red wine rag\u00fa alla Bolognese over rigatoni pasta and Parmesan cheese.\u00a0 Interestingly the Bolognese is only one of three sauces which give this dish an interesting twist.\u00a0 It’s also made with marinara and Alfredo sauces.\u00a0 This is a rich, luxurious, absolutely mouth-watering sauce combination that clings to the rigatoni (my favorite pasta) seductively.\u00a0 With any type of Bolognese, a pasta with a hole is best so you can maximize the capture of that sauce.\u00a0 Already this is one of my favorite Italian dishes in Albuquerque. \u00a013 August 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Our friend John Martin, a bona fide volcano-eater “adulterated” his Pasta Bolo dish with Calabrian chili oil and chili flakes. \u00a0His penchant for piquancy is prodigious. \u00a0He just can’t get enough heat for his asbestos-lined mouth.<\/p>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0In recent years, few Italian dishes have made such inroads into America’s culinary landscape as cacio e pepe, a a traditional Roman pasta dish with only four ingredients: spaghetti, black pepper, Pecorino and Parmesan.\u00a0 Cacio e Pepe which translates from Italian to \u201ccheese and pepper\u201d is widely considered one of Rome’s most significant culinary creations (along with pasta carbonara).\u00a0 Most restaurants serve cacio e pepe with a spaghetti-like pasta.\u00a0 Il Locatello’s serves a unique gnocchi cacio e pepe<\/em><\/strong> (pan-seared homemade potato dumplings, black pepper, Parmesan, Pecorino cheese and truffle oil).\u00a0 Texturally, it’s quite unlike the mushy mashed potato-like dumplings typically called gnocchi.\u00a0 The truffle oil and pepper combination give this dish a bit of assertiveness and punch.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

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Chicken Saltimboca<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0When it comes to naming dishes, Italians have no equal.\u00a0 Bizarrely named Italian dishes<\/a><\/strong> are replete with sexual innuendo, insults and even homicidal instincts.\u00a0 More innocuous is the term “saltimbocca”<\/em><\/strong> which\u00a0 literally means to \u201cjump in the mouth<\/em><\/span>\u201d (hmm, that could<\/em> be construed as sexual innuendo).\u00a0 This is likely in reference to the flavor that hits your palate on first bite.\u00a0 Saltimbocca dishes can be made with veal, pork, beef and chicken.\u00a0 A classic Italian dish originating from Rome, Saltimbocca is traditionally made with thin cutlets wrapped or topped with prosciutto, and a whole sage leaf often pressed or pinned on top with a toothpick.<\/p>\n

Chicken saltimbocca <\/em><\/strong> (lightly breaded chicken breast, prosciutto, sage, capers, marinated tomatoes, feta, Dijon lemon butter) was Nancy’s entree of choice. It’s a beautiful dish with three thin chicken cutlets on top of creamy, buttery mashed potatoes.\u00a0 The combination of flavors in concordant competition for the rapt attention of your taste buds is a wonderful thing to experience.\u00a0\u00a0 Capers are an unsung, underappreciated ingredient.\u00a0 \u00a0 Pair capers with Dijon lemon butter and you’ve got a flavor profile that combines a lemony, briny tang with salty, savory and acidic notes.\u00a0 These flavors work exceptionally well on chicken cutlets.<\/p>\n

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Lasagna<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Even when enjoying lunch Linda showed the forward-thinking that has made her the doyenne of Information Technology at UNM.\u00a0 She not only ordered a\u00a0 lunch entree (chicken carbonara), she ordered Il Localetto’s lasagna<\/em><\/strong> (housemade meat and Alfredo sauce with roasted marinara, herb ricotta and Mozzarella cheese).\u00a0 While the notion of ordering dinner was brilliant, her kind-heartedness may have been dinner’s outdoing.\u00a0 She decided we should all sample the lasagna.\u00a0 My Kim will tell you my “sample size” can be rather generous.\u00a0 Sorry, Linda.\u00a0 Not sorry, however, about trying that lasagna.\u00a0 It’s a good one.<\/p>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: Linda’s lunch entree was chicken carbonara<\/em><\/strong> (bacon, red onion, peas, carbonara sauce, spaghetti pasta and crispy Romano chicken).\u00a0 Chicken Romano, a dish consisting of chicken breast fillets crusted with Romano cheese was a highlight.\u00a0 All the national chicken finger restaurants opening franchises in the metropolitan area could take a lesson or ten from Il Localetto whose Chicken Romano is fabulous.\u00a0 So is the carbonara, a rich and delicious Roman pasta dish.\u00a0 Red onions were a surprising addition and certainly not traditional, but we enjoyed them nonetheless.<\/p>\n

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Chicken Carbonara<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

25 April 2024<\/strong>: Il Localetto’s desserts are quite good, too.\u00a0 My Kim had her usual two scoops of gelato–vanilla and salted caramel.\u00a0 Indicative of how much she liked them, she didn’t offer me a single bite.\u00a0 Of course, her retort is that she didn’t have a bite of the tiramisu<\/em><\/strong>.\u00a0 In my defense, my Kim hates tiramisu.\u00a0 Nancy and I both had (and both loved) tiramisu.\u00a0 She made sure my photographs captured the layers of espresso-soaked ladyfingers and mascarpone cream\u00a0 Dusted with cocoa, the tiramisu is a wonderful adult dessert.<\/p>\n

Il Localetto offers a number of vegetarian and gluten-free menu items.\u00a0 It does not currently have a beer and wine license, so if you crave adult beverages with your Italian food, you’re out of luck.\u00a0 San Pellegrino (limonata, aranciata, aranciata rossa) are nice alternatives.\u00a0 Future visit considerations include a charcuterie board<\/em><\/strong> (Genoa salami, Italian prosciutto, prosciutto cotto, fresh Mozzarella, triple cream Brie, grana padano Paremesan cheese, seasonal jams, Italian olives, marinated tomatoes, cornicione pickles, crostini, seasonal fruit, stuffed peppadew peppers with Boursin cheese).<\/p>\n

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Tiramisu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

13 August 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0According to various sources, pesto sauce is the world’s second most popular pasta sauce (behind marinara sauce). \u00a0Pesto is pure green gloriousness, a preternaturally delicious sauce which blends in harmony, the peppery freshness of basil, the pungency of raw garlic, the luxuriousness of olive oil, the rich earthiness of Parmesan and the resinous pine-like flavor of pine nuts. \u00a0The term “pesto” has its genesis in the Genovese word “pesto,” meaning “to pound or to crush,” referring to the traditional method of preparing the sauce using a mortar and pestle. This translation, however, might be somewhat misleading, as the preparation involves more grinding than pounding. This method is crucial for releasing the full aroma of the basil leaves without crushing them.<\/p>\n

Though it’s got a lot going on, the pesto tortellini<\/strong><\/em> (saut\u00e9 wild mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, red onions, basil, creamy pesto sauce, gorgonzola cheese) at Il Localetto Rossi still manages to showcase the aforementioned qualities of pesto. \u00a0Available with your choice of protein (I highly recommend the shrimp), this is a dish as well-prepared as any pesto dish we’ve had. \u00a0Sun-dried tomatoes will remind you why that ingredient was so popular about twenty years ago while the gorgonzola cheese shows why it’s the blue cheese people love who don’t otherwise blue cheese. \u00a0The tortellini is redolent with herbaceous freshness and a creamy richness diners will love.<\/p>\n

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Pesto Tortellini<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

13 August 2024<\/strong>: \u00a0Il Localetto Rossi’s menu lists four salads and one soup, Pomodoro Zuppa (creamy tomato bisque with crispy croutons and Parmesan cheese). \u00a0 My Kim is on a C<\/strong>aprese salad<\/strong><\/em> (marinated tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil and Balsamic reduction) kick of late. \u00a0Caprese salads, she tells me, are not only delicious, but very healthy and low in calories (about 250 calories per serving). Traditionally made with tomatoes, mozzarella, fresh basil, and Balsamic dressing, a good Caprese salad bespeaks of summer.<\/p>\n

Forgive my cynicism, but I do have one thing against Caprese salads. \u00a0Most restaurants don’t use naturally ripened tomatoes. \u00a0Though Caprese calls for thick tomatoes, if they’re artificially ripened, thick tomatoes just don’t taste fresh. \u00a0With tomatoes as with many vegetables, naturally ripened vegetables have a short life. \u00a0When a restaurant is dependent on suppliers to provide those vegetables, they’re not always assured of optimal freshness during that short lifespan. \u00a0Il Localetto Rossi’s Caprese salad is \u00a0otherwise very good.<\/p>\n

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Caprese Salad<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Il Localetto Rossi is the type of restaurant Stanley Tucci would enjoy with his community of friends.\u00a0 In two visits, we’ve been blessed to enjoy our visits with friends and it made our meal oh, so much better.<\/p>\n

Il Localetto Rossi Italian Cuisine<\/strong>
\n106 Buena Vista Drive, S.E.
\nAlbuquerque, New Mexico<\/strong>
\n505 355 5953
\nFacebook Page<\/a><\/strong>
\nLATEST VISIT<\/strong>: 13 August 2024
\n1st VISIT<\/strong>: 25 April 2024
\n# OF VISITS<\/strong>: 2
\nRATED<\/strong>: Excellent<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0\u2013 High quality dining experience; very good to excellent food, attentive service, and a well-maintained atmosphere; worth a detour.
\nCOST<\/strong><\/span>: $$ – $$$
\nBEST BET<\/strong>: Bread Basket With Calabrian Chili Oil, Mushroom Bruschetta, Pasta Bolo, Gnocchi Cacio E Pepe, Chicken Carbonara, Lasagna, Chicken Saltimboca, Pesto Tortellini,
\nREVIEW 1393<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Academy Award-nominated actor Stanley Tucci and I share a selfsame perspective on eating well:\u00a0 \u201cTo me, eating well is not just about what tastes good but about the connections that are made through the food itself. I am hardly saying anything new by stating that our links to what we eat have practically disappeared beneath sheets of plastic wrap. But what are also disappearing are the wonderful, vital human connections we\u2019re able to make when we buy something we love to eat from someone who loves to sell it, who bought it from someone who loves to grow, catch, or raise it. Whether we know it or not, great comfort is found in these relationships, and they are very much a part of what solidifies a community.\u201d In his highly acclaimed CNN series “Searching For Italy,” viewers rarely (if ever) saw Tucci dining by himself.\u00a0 Tucci understands that sharing a meal is an intimate experience, and those who sit beside us at the table can feel this intimacy: Bonds with loved ones become stronger, and strangers feel like strangers no more.\u00a0 Coming together and sharing a meal is the most communal and binding thing in almost every place in the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":67828,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[440,71,141,563],"tags":[3919,3917,3918,3924,3923,3922,1806,3920,3921,2523],"class_list":["post-66587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-albuquerque","category-italian","category-new-mexico","category-rating-excellent","tag-bread-basket-with-calabrian-chili-oil","tag-buena-vista","tag-central","tag-chicken-carbonara","tag-chicken-saltimboca","tag-gnocchi-cacio-e-pepe","tag-lasagna","tag-mushroom-bruschetta","tag-pasta-bolo","tag-tiramisu"],"yoast_head":"\nIl Localetto Rossi Italian Cuisine - Albuquerque, New Mexico - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nmgastronome.com\/?p=66587\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Il Localetto Rossi Italian Cuisine - Albuquerque, New Mexico - Gil's Thrilling (And Filling) Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Academy Award-nominated actor Stanley Tucci and I share a selfsame perspective on eating well:\u00a0 \u201cTo me, eating well is not just about what tastes good but about the connections that are made through the food itself. I am hardly saying anything new by stating that our links to what we eat have practically disappeared beneath sheets of plastic wrap. But what are also disappearing are the wonderful, vital human connections we\u2019re able to make when we buy something we love to eat from someone who loves to sell it, who bought it from someone who loves to grow, catch, or raise it. 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