Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on April 29, 2022

Ladino, the upcoming Mediterranean grill house at Pearl, is months out from opening, but San Antonians were able to get a first taste of the food and atmosphere set to debut in the mixed-used development later this year. The restaurant hosted a ticketed preview night on Wednesday, April 20 to help the city get better acquainted with the menu ahead of the opening.

The Mediterranean grill house will be led by Executive Chef Berty Richter and offer a mix of Middle Eastern and Balkan cuisine. The menu will include specialities from the region including cold and hot meze, mains like lamb shoulder and fish options, an array of dips, and other regional specialties.

The restaurant name is a nod to Richter's Turkish mother and his family's roots in Italy, Bulgaria, and Greece. Ladino is a Judeo-Spanish language that dates back to the mid-1500s when Jewish people migrated from Spain. It's a mix of Castellano, French, Italian, Greek, Turkish, and Hebrew. Previous promotions of the restaurant explained that though the language is "slowly on the path to extinction," it is still spoken by some Sephardic Jews living in the Balkans, Greece, Turkey, and Israel.

Ladino will be housed in what was once Il Sogno Osteria, which closed in 2018. While construction is underway on Ladino's future home, guests gathered at Hotel Emma's Elephant Room on Wednesday got a first taste of the menu in a supper club-like setting. They also had the chance to meet Chef Richter. Before the eating began, Richter set the tone for the evening. He encouraged fun, conversation, and lots of dipping.

Ladino hosted a ticketed preview night ahead of the opening at Pearl on Wednesday, April 20.

"You're encouraged to have fun, this food is meant to be shared by everybody it's meant to be eaten with a piece of pita torn by your hands. Let's try to have fun with it," he told the dining room. "Get dirty, get messy, have fun with it, enjoy it. This food is meant to encourage conversation and happiness. When you come to our restaurant, I want you guys to be able to dance your way to the table."

Ladino hosted a ticketed preview night ahead of the opening at Pearl on Wednesday, April 20.

Dips were set first and everyone tried their best to resist the temptation that was the freshly made, perfect pita as to not ruin their dinner. My resistance was futile as I tore away bit after bit of the dreamlike bread and sopped up the spicy whipped feta. I pulled myself away from the feta for a few moments to try the spiced green tahini dip with a bit of schug. It was a spicy mixture my table neighbors were raving about and although tasty, the spicy whipped feta stole the show.

Ladino hosted a ticketed preview night ahead of the opening at Pearl on Wednesday, April 20.

We also tried cold and hot meze which included citrus salad, enginaras y prassa with sunchokes and leeks, saganaki, and shishbarak. The saganaki, a fried bit of kefalotyri cheese, was a lemony, briny standout (which I also added dips to).

Lamp shoulder, albacore shishlik, and chicken halloumi kebabs rounded out the night with a whipped kaymak, a clotted cream made of milk fat.

Ladino hosted a ticketed preview night ahead of the opening at Pearl on Wednesday, April 20.

By the time the mains were brought out, strangers had forged friendships over the new tastes and had gotten comfortable reaching over for a dip, were suggesting protein and dips pairings, and splitting the last bits of pita, just as Chef Richter intended.

Ladino hosted a ticketed preview night ahead of the opening at Pearl on Wednesday, April 20.

Ladino is slated to open in the summer at 200 E. Grayson, Suite 100.

See the article here:

Ladino's gives sneak peek of Mediterranean cuisine ahead of grand opening - mySA

Category: Sephardic
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