Cheap Eats: La Trattoria Bella Luna Cucina Italiana

(Credit: Crystal Chatham)

Photos:

It's only fitting that a reader with the lovely and lyrical name Francesca suggested we try a restaurant with the equally lyrical name La Trattoria Bella Luna Cucina Italiana.

I immediately pictured her sipping wine at an outdoor cafe in Tuscany, telling the handsome and swarthy Italian at the next table about "this marvelous little trattoria I know in Cathedral City."

I'd be chatting that guy up, too, but since I'm not planning a trip to Italy any time soon, I'll just share our find with folks here in the valley.

La Bella Luna is a charming little oasis with linen tablecloths, fat earthenware jugs of olive oil and balsamic vinegar on each table, and piped-in Italian love songs. Walls are done in a faux marble finish, decorated with a collection of Italian prints and photos of laughing folks enjoying good food and good company. Overall, a delightful atmosphere.

The menu boasts a large selection of Italian favorites, plus a few surprises, like Salmon Impolese, which is salmon sauteed with baby artichokes and olive oil; Polla alla Rebecca, made up of chicken breast baked with eggplant, Italian ham and brandy sauce, then topped with fontina cheese;, and Risotto di Mare, which features saffron, black mussels, clams, baby shrimp and calamari mixed with slow-simmered rice.

Everything is made to order, usually with organic ingredients.

Most of the menu items fall into the mid- to high-teen dollar category, but, determined to stick with my Cheap Eats budget during a recent lunch hour, I zeroed in several $10 offerings.

The Gnocchi Tutti Gusti comes with a choice of sauces, plus soup or salad, for $10.

I couldn't have been more delighted with the choice.

To start, pasta e fagioli soup featuring tiny pasta shells and cannelloni beans done northern Italian style, in a thick "brodo" of chicken stock rather than tomato sauce. It arrived in a dinner-plate-sized bowl, piping hot and wonderfully flavorful. A sprinkling of Parmesan cheese offered by the server was the crowning touch.

Not to be outdone, the gnocchi were such light-as-air pillows of pasta that they were in danger of floating to the heavens, and the accompanying Bolognese sauce was zesty and delicate at the same time, and loaded with meat.

Disclosure here: I am full-blood Italian on both sides, so I tend to be very picky about my pasta dishes. This one scored high points for taste and presentation. Then, when chef and owner Alberto Sabatino, wearing starched whites, came out of the kitchen to inquire as to my enjoyment, my $10 Cheap Eats score was elevated to four-star restaurant status.

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