Long Island Restaurants

Restaurant Joanina

These wintry days, the Tuscan indoor courtyard setting of Restaurant Joanina in Huntington is particularly enticing. Rustic beamed ceilings, lots of greenery, robust fare and friendly service add up to a full house, both weeknights and weekends. The restaurant is attached to the equally popular Renaissance Gourmet delicatessen, a daytime destination for those looking for some of the town's better sandwiches.

At dinner, you may want to begin by sharing a wood-oven pizza. The Margherita version was very good, although I think the crust would have been crisper had our waiter brought it immediately instead of waiting for the other appetizers to be ready. What did arrive hot was the ostriche al forno, which the menu said would be wood-oven-baked oysters. The meat had been mixed with bread crumbs and vegetables and put back into shells -- good, but not the expected whole oysters. Bruschetta di focaccia e gamberi, a savory saute of shrimp and vegetables, would have been better had it not been ladled over what appeared to be burnt toast. I liked the capricciosa with Gorgonzola, a fine salad of frisee, radicchio and arugula, topped with walnuts and the creamy cheese dressing. An odd policy of the restaurant is that salads must be ordered for two, as in family-style restaurants, but come divided.

On a weeknight, you might want to try one of the $23.95 prix-fixe dinners. Two of the pasta choices included as starters on that meal -- pappardelle pomodoro (flat noodles with a bright tomato sauce) and cavatelli Bolognese (stubby, ruffle-edged ricotta pasta with a rich meat sauce) -- proved delicious. One of the entrees, pollo capriccioso, featured a crisp fried chicken cutlet that stood up well to its chopped salad topping, making a winning contrast of textures and temperatures. The boneless pork chop Caprese, similar to veal Parmigiana, satisfied.

You'll like the canelloni stuffed with a lush mixture of spinach, cheese and vegetables. Linguine with white clam sauce tastes of garlic and the sea. While you'll have to contend with lots of small bones if you order the polletto al forno (roast baby chicken), it's worth the effort, since the bird is juicy and infused with the flavor of rosemary. I liked the tonno Taormina, a tuna steak in a lusty sun-dried tomato, caper and balsamic vinegar sauce. Pistachio-crusted salmon, however, was overcooked and dry. Much better was a special of monkfish anointed with garlic and oil.

Many of the desserts, presented displayed on a tray for consideration, come from an outside baker. Pass on the toasted almond tiramisu and opt, instead, for the light, creamy traditional version. Other successful finales include a mini apple Bundt cake with hot caramel syrup, a pretty chocolate truffle cake and a lush cappuccino mousse cake, all with vanilla gelato.

With the check, diners get gratis little boxes of bakery cookies -- Italian sunshine to go.

Reviewed by Joan Reminick, 1/30/04.

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