As serious Italophiles, we were excited to visit the Downtown LA restaurant Rossoblu. Just about a year old, the restaurant serves Italian cuisine inspired by Chef Steve Samson’s mother’s native region of Emilia Romagna (she is from Bologna). Recently, there was a fire in the kitchen and the restaurant is temporarily closed, but we’re sure the team will be back at it soon!
A transformed industrial space, Rossoblu is located on its own little “piazza” of sorts in a former produce market. The interior is spacious and vibrant, and an outdoor patio offers additional seating for guests who prefer to dine al fresco. We chose to sit outside on the heated patio, as it’s much quieter than the busy indoor dining room. We planned for a relaxed, Italian-style dining experience, so we started with an apertivo. The Bergamot Vesper was the perfect refreshing cocktail to kick off the evening. .
Emilia Romagna, particularly Bologna, is famous for Tortellini in Brodo, a soup of handmade filled pasta in a rich broth. If you’re visiting Rossoblu for the first time, this dish is must. There are actually two varieties on the menu. One version includes Tortellini stuffed with a mixture of pork, chicken, Mortadella, Prosciutto di Parma, and Parmesan. The other features another traditional recipe of little square Parmesan dumplings simmered in the broth in a cheesecloth pouch. Both are served in a rich chicken and beef broth and topped with freshly grated Parmesan.
Our server couldn’t remember which version of the soup we had ordered, so we actually got to try both. We’d never had the Parmesan dumplings before and they were actually really good– perfect for a chilly evening.
For a pasta course, our server suggested the Maltagliati, which is made with square sheets of pasta, Porcini and Pioppini mushrooms, dandelion greens, and sage. To be honest, it was good, but not our favorite. Our most memorable dish at Rossoblu was the soup.
We’d definitely suggest checking out Rossoblu on your next trip to LA once they reopen. It’s very good, reasonably authentic Italian food, which is pretty hard to find in LA. It’s also located in an up-and-coming neighborhood of Downtown LA, and we love supporting establishments that are leading the way in revitalizing local neighborhoods. Thank you to Alaska Airlines for sponsoring this story.