Marnie McArthur, reno.com, tahoe.com
February 25, 2008

For real Italian food in Reno, the word on the street is La Famiglia. Before I moved to Reno eight months ago, I heard about this place from my friend John in Incline Village. “Best cioppino I’ve had in 30 years!” said John. “At most places, they just dump a bunch of seafood in a watery tomato sauce, but this is the real thing.” John should know, he lives to eat, and he’s lived and eaten all over the world. With a recommendation like that I had to see for myself.

Literally a family business
On a cold weekday night in February, a friend and I arrived at 6:15 for our reservation -- a must, but I’ll get to that later. Only a few tables were occupied in the tiny room which seats about 50. We figured it’s Tuesday so things should be pretty quiet. Not so. By 7 p.m., every table was full and the room was buzzing with happy diners. Several groups seemed to know the owner Paolo, who worked the room, greeting and chatting with guests. Our waiter, Sergio, son of Paolo, explained that this is truly a family business.

“There are just the four of us: my dad, his wife Teresa, my cousin Jason, and me. Everyone helps with the cooking and we make all the pasta fresh every day.” I can attest to that as I snitched some bites of my friend’s cannelloni ($16.95) which melted in my mouth, no need for chewing. The homemade pasta from my Italian in-laws, two generations of women in the kitchen, wasn’t this good.

Holy cannelloni
A cannelloni filling doesn’t get better than very finely chopped spinach and chicken mixed with creamy ricotta; the whole thing covered with a perfectly spiced red sauce and melted cheese. The description sounds heavy, but it wasn’t. In fact, nothing we ate that night (and we ate a lot) left us feeling overstuffed as we paced the meal with good conversation and a nice bottle of medium-bodied Chianti Ruffino Ducale Riserva, well priced at $40.

Cioppino
Of course, I had to have cioppino, spelled “ciuppino” on the menu. Sergio explained that this spelling is traditional in the small town where Paolo comes from east of Genoa. At $27.95, this is one of the more pricey dishes, ranking right up there with rack of lamb, veal, and filet of beef. But, I would have paid any amount of money for this cioppino. John was right, it’s that good!

A mound of fresh seafood – mussels, large prawns, lobster, white fish, small clams on the shell, and flat steamer clams – all tender and flavorful with lots of garlic and just the right amount of heavenly, herby red sauce. I learned a trick for deftly eating this fish medley from my dining companion whose father is French and has spent considerable time eating mussels in France.

“After you’ve eaten one mussel, hold the empty shell between you thumb and index finger, using it as a pincher to remove the other mussels.” Works like a charm, on the small clams, too! I quickly got the hang of finger eating and finished off the dish by scooping up as much of the delicious sauce as possible with warm, fresh-baked Italian bread. Yummm!

Salad
But one can’t live on pasta and seafood alone, although I’d like to try. I found my favorite beet salad on the menu (Insalata di Barbarbiettole, $7.95), tender baby greens, lightly dressed, perfectly roasted and sliced beets, still slightly warm, and generous thin slices of aged Parmesan cheese. My friend ordered a traditional Caesar ($5.95). The lettuce was crisp and the dressing flavored with just the right combination of garlic, cheese, and light anchovie.

Tiramisu
At this point you might think we’d had enough, but what Italian dinner would be complete without Tiramisu ($5)? Certainly not ours. This one was light, delicate and heavenly, as it should be. The translation of Tiramisu means ‘lift me up.’ We were lifted to the last luscious crumb.

So, here’s my advice. If you want to experience real Italian food, there are two choices: buy a plane ticket to Italy or make a reservation at La Famiglia.

Reservations
“One week in advance for weeknights, two weeks for weekends,” said Paolo. And, he means it. This place is tiny and wonderful, and lots of Reno/Sparks locals know it. So, pick up the phone and you will soon be one of them.