Bill’s eyes lit up with the word “amaretto” waved over his pork twice, once in the marinade and once in the glaze. The flavor of almond (especially, as here, combined with pear) is to Bill’s sweet sensors as chipotle is to his savory ones: an inescapable draw, a can’t-turn-it-down option. So he loved the sauce around and through the slices of pork ten-derloin, appropriately pink, though he mentioned later that he found the meat itself a bit dry.
The highlight for him was his side of risotto bianco ($4), slow-cooked Arborio rice, with cream and Parmesan folded in. Since most of the risottos we’ve eaten have absorbed the broth in which they dance, without additional cream, Bill could not stop raving about this incarnation.
My favorite palate surprise was our dessert: a circle of lemon sponge cake with lemon custard on top ($7), delectably tart, with a raspberry Chambord sauce for accenting the lem-onyness. Other desserts were chocolate cake, crème brûlée, tiramisu, panettone bread pudding, and miniature doughboys topped with vanilla gelato and Nutella.
Siena Cucina•Enoteca could pull us back for any number of dishes and wines to try. But this is also a restaurant that has found the magical element of “gemütlichkeit”: a friendliness and comfortableness that underscores the term “hospitable.”
Email the author
Johnette Rodriguez:johnette.rodriguez@cox.net.
SIENA CUCINA•ENOTECA | 401.885.8850 | 5600 Post Rd., East Greenwich | Tues-Fri, 5-10 pm; Sat, 4:30-10; Sun, 3-10 pm; Tues-Thurs (late night menu), 10-11 pm; Fri-Sat, 10 pm-midnight | major credit cards | full bar | handicapped accessible
