Il Sogno The Food is a Work of Art

We have some friends in town that are attending the Americans for the Arts annual conference. My husband first met them when he was chief economist for the City of San Antonio. They are all partners in the consulting firm that authored the Cultural Collaborative Plan for the city in 2005.

Playing host to friends that are very well traveled with a high appreciation for wonderful food could seem like a daunting task. Not if you live in San Antonio and have an array restaurants from which to choose.

Last night, we chose to take our friends to Il Sogno. Having dined there numerous times before, we knew that the food would be a work of art. Andrew Weisssman’s food was indeed a true masterpiece.

 

From the moment we were seated on the patio, our impeccable Italian meal began.

 

 

 

(Antipasta Bar located inside)

 

 

 

 

The server could not have been more informative or attentive while also allowing us to take our time in choosing our dishes. Like many Italian meals I have had the privilege to experience while on vacation in Rome, we decided to strategically order items so we could all share and not duplicate a dish.

(our selection from the antipasta bar)

Each choice brought to our table prompted much discussion and amazement on how such wonderful flavors come together. I don’t know that I have ever ordered salads that evoked such passion.  We hadn’t even gotten to our entrées and we were filled with emotions from the various types of lettuce.

(Insalata Di Campo)

 

This must be the sign of a true chef; creating foods with simple ingredients that become works of culinary art. Il Sogno has perfected the art form of food.

 

 

 

Butternut squash ravioli is one of their signature dishes. It is served in a butter sauce with amaretti cookie sprinkles. The garnish is butternut squash that has been caramelized.

 

 

 

 

With each course, our table was in disbelief at how perfect every single bite of our meal tasted. Some courses rendered us speechless. For me, it was the crust on the margherita pizza. The flavors are sublime. The ingredients in the dough and the char from the oven are tastes I have only had before while in Rome.

 

 

We decided to share our desserts as well. We chose the traditional Sicilian pastry; cannoli.

The filling was not too sweet and the touch of chocolate was perfect.

The hardest part was dividing the three cannolis for five people. We somehow managed.

 

 

Our other dessert selection was the lemon tart. It had an intense but balanced lemon flavor with a crunchy, nicely textured crust.

The perfect ending to a fabulous meal.

 

 

 

 

After our meal was done, we gave our visitors a tour of the Pearl Brewery. It was vibrant and alive with people at an event at the Pearl Stables, music at La Gloria, and strollers along the Museum Reach of  the Riverwalk. It was filled with locals and tourists all enjoying a light breeze and the sparkling lights from the nighttime scene.

What I then realized as this brilliant group of people was getting a tour of this trendy new area of San Antonio is that they were all part of the cultural planning process many years ago. They had worked countless hours to write a cultural plan to continue the development of our city’s art and culture, including the creative economy. I was able to watch the same people who put their ideas on paper way back in 2005 see it come alive as we were showing them the public art on the Museum Reach. They were so proud to have been the consultants on The Cultural Collaborative and see the results of a plan in which almost all of the strategies have been implemented. I have never more proud of my husband who was a major part of that plan than I was last night. Sometimes plans seem so far reaching as they are put on paper. It is exciting to see ideas come alive and not only grow but thrive.

With world class restaurants like Il Sogno, extensions of the beauty and creativity of the Riverwalk, and an increasing number of amazing pieces of public art, San Antonio is quickly becoming, if it is not already, a destination for the arts and the creative economy.

Il Sogno Osteria is located at 200 E. Grayson St. San Antonio,TX 78215 in the Pearl Brewery. Their phone number is 210-223-3900. Dinner reservations are strongly recommended.

Stay Sassy Ya’ll.