A Divine Addition to Astoria

This past Saturday evening, a friend and I had the pleasure of going to try a new Astoria restaurant - Vesta Trattoria and Wine Bar. We were both completely won over!!! Located on the corner of 30th Avenue and 21st Street, Vesta is a cozy and inviting atmosphere. Word of mouth is spreading fast about how delicious this place is so we ended up arriving just in time before the crowds. Since there were so many people coming in, they asked if we could sit at a table for two instead of the table for four we had initially selected for ourselves. We were happy to oblige as they offered us a free round of drinks to make up for the table move.

Once we settled into our seats, it was time to decide what to order. I am not the best at selecting a good wine (I prefer a dry red) so I went with their suggestion - the Aglianico. It was a perfect match for me and I stuck with this selection for the rest of my evening. As for our dinner choices, I wanted to try the Margherita thin crust pizza to start while my friend chose the Antipasto Plate, containing manchego cheese, hot sopressata and fig spread. Both were delicious and were devoured promptly. The pizza was much larger than I had anticipated but because the crust was so thin and crisp, I was able to enjoy half of it, share some with my friend and have room to try an entree. We both quite enjoyed these appetizers.

After much internal debate, my friend helped encourage me to try the Baked Gnocchi with chanterele mushroom and cream for my entree. It was definitely the right choice! The gnocchi melted in my mouth and everything in the dish perfectly complimented each other. I made sure to savor each bite and finished the entire serving, even though it meant no room for dessert for me. I was too happy to care! My friend enjoyed the Asparagus & three sisters Serena cheese which had a hint of lemon to it. Although I didn't have room for dessert, my friend got to try the Tiramisu. Everything we sampled during our visit was excellent! When it was time to leave, I can definitely say that we left quite content.

There are plenty of items on the menu that I am still eager to try, so I plan to go back as soon as I can. Vesta also serves lunch weekdays and offers a brunch menu on the weekends. For those looking for a place to go for the holiday, they will be open on Thanksgiving serving a special holiday menu. For all of their details, visit them on the web at www.vestavino.com.