If I told you that a restaurant has a maximum seating capacity of six customers, you’d assume it to be some incredibly exclusive & snobbishly posh private dining experience or an omakase. However, it’s the reality for Italian Osteria X, an implausibly itsy-bitsy osteria in Crawford Lane of all places. It is an actual one man show over there, with the sole proprietor, head chef, sous chef, waiter and dishwasher roles all taken up by the same man. No, I am not joking, the owner does everything by his lonesome.⠀
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The chef/owner used to ply his trade at two Michelin starred Italian restaurant Marea in New York City. Yes, he worked at an Italian restaurant, but never worked in Italy. Still, working as a chef at such a renowned Italian restaurant is some serious street cred, and even the seemingly basic Los Angeles Affettati Misti (assorted Italian cold cuts with cheese, $24+service charge) provides glimpses of those credentials.⠀
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It’s just three basic Italian elements on a massive platter, but they’ve been carefully curated. Of course, it wouldn’t be a proper Italian charcuterie board without the universal crowd pleaser that is prosciutto, so that salty, fatty and downright delicious Italian ham takes its place on the board. Interestingly enough, the other cured meat is beef bresaola. Bresaola is pretty rare, so seeing it paraded out on a platter was a very pleasant and palatable surprise. It’s considerably more peppery than the prosciutto, and offers more bite due to its soft jerky like texture.⠀
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As for the cheese, well, it doesn’t get more Italian than parmesan cheese carved straight off the block. The mild, slightly nutty cheese soothed the pepperiness of the bresaola while adding creamy richness to the cured beef, and it heightened the already delectable saltiness of the prosciutto while unlocking a slight sweetness.⠀
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The Affettati Misti was already plenty perfect by its lonesome, but if you’re in luck, you can even have all the cheese & cold cuts with freshly baked crusty bread. Yes, of course the owner bakes his own bread, and the bread is quite scrumptious even on its own. But combine the beautiful bread with the Affettati Misti, and that’s amore.
