Leaving Lake Tahoe and driving to Napa took us through some Gold Rush towns, and stopping to see these historic places made it a longer trip than the 4 hours we allotted. We also spent the earlier part of the day in Reno and driving the perimeter of Lake Tahoe.
By the time we arrived in Napa we had only one thing on the mind, and that was getting out of the car. It was 6:30 in the evening, and dusk was settling on the town. We made the reservation for The Archer Hotel with that in mind, and we made a reservation for dinner with that in mind. We could walk to dinner, and that was nice. The phenomenon of the perfect California weather is no myth, so we were mildly chilled for the walk, but this is Napa, so alfresco fans sit outside. Period.
We had a reservation at Scala Osteria for later but just inquired if we could walk in, and they were happy to seat us outside. Locals have such weather all the time and they filled the interior of this smallish space. Scala is not as well known as some other places here, but it is Napa so the food had to be good, right? We were so tired of a diet of baked goods these carbs would be taken as pastas. And we were titillated at the prospect of eating “real” food.
We started the way we usually do, with meatballs. But before that we had a chopped salad. And as entrees we split a spinach and ricotta ravioli. There were two sides we ordered which were totally incongruous. Cacio e pepe was one and the other cannellini beans.
The salad was more interesting than good. The most distinctive things about it was the sheer volume of Castelvetrano olives, which I adore for their buttery texture and mouthfeel. These are a bit of a pain to eat with the pit needing removal, but I still love them. The salad had a lot of bitter greens like radicchio and endive in it, along with tomatoes and cannellini beans, exotic mushrooms, shaved radish, parsley leaves and herbs. Parmigiano Reggiano was needed to mitigate these strong flavors, and our waiter happily obliged. I felt healthy eating it but probably wouldn’t get it again.
We never tire of meatballs and find their endless variety in size and texture always interesting. These were served with polenta and a delicious red sauce that was at the same time fresh and thick and rich, usually the trademark of the cooked-all-day kind. We almost got another order of these. They were medium in size, and tender, and the polenta underneath was the perfect filler to a nice bite of rich and satisfying Italian fare.
The ravioli came with a bit of basil in a luscious cream sauce. These pillows were stuffed with spinach and ricotta in just the right proportions and they filled the pasta without overstuffing it. The ratio of pasta to stuffing was perfect, as was the mix of spinach to ricotta. Very nice dish.
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These last two “sides” filled an endless curiosity I have for the various iterations of Cacio e pepe, and my passion for cannellini beans. That craving was filled with the salad, where had I carefully read the menu, I would have seen them listed as ingredients. But we didn’t need all those cannellini beans.
I did enjoy the Cacio e pepe, made with tubetti pasta in the same way I usually see it, with butter and olive oil. But tubetti pasta? Don’t get me wrong, I love those things, but it’s not the real deal. (It’s like I’m the self-appointed Cacio e pepe police.) I still loved this.
It was a dinner that checked all the boxes: easy relaxing, delicious We sat in the glorious California weather, watching guys come in and out of a cigar smoking place, and just relaxing after a taxing trip. It was the gateway to a glorious next half trip. Perfect.
