When the owners of Animal, Son of a Gun, Trois Mec, and Petit Trois, decided to open an Italian joint they (Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo) opened another winner! At the small (45 seats) eatery
reservations are a must for both lunch and dinner. If it's pizza you crave, you can get it here. Crust is charred and super thin, and for me, a little too burnt. One pizza callled "Flower Child" ($19.50) boasts local crescenza (Italian cow's milk cheese),
nasturtium flowers, olive oil, and sea salt while another, "Sonny's Favorite" ($16.75) comes skimpily topped with grilled Niman slab bacon, mozzarella, tomato, onion, and grana padano. (Sweet hard cheese). Now this is where my kvetching almost ends. The
pizza was tiny. For almost $20 and $17 respectively, pies are the size of dinner plates. But let's move on becuase all the portions are very small. The garlic bread ($5) is over the top delicious. The bread is from Gjusta in Venice and yes I did
have to stop there on my way home to get a loaf. Ciabatta is grilled then spread with butter and so much garlic that Hopefully you won't be kissing anyone right after lunch. The bucatini cacio e pepe, with pepper and cheese was fantastic, but again
a very small portion for $16.75. It's a dish I'm going to duplicate at home. For dessert the Strauss Family Creamery soft-serve ice cream ($6) is where it's at! It's served in a tiny paper cup with a wooden spoon, and might possibly be the most wonderful
soft-serve I've ever had. Try the strawberry, it's wonderful. For wine, Helen's, a small wine shop, is part of the restaurant with a nice selection of wines and beer to accompany your meal. Wines are priced from $14. I love the food, don't like the portion
size.
Jon & Vinny's 412 N. Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles. (323) 334-3369. Hours Daily: 8:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m.
Recommended Dishes: Pasta, Garlic Bread, Soft Serve Ice Cream