By the Gastronomes

Aldo’s Italian Kitchen – Mangia, Mangia, Mangia!

I have been in Old Town for a long time and during our monthly delivery of the Old Town Crier we passed Aldo’s Italian Kitchen but never stopped in. Situated in on the back side of a commercial office area off of Eisenhower Avenue, it just never fit my vibe of dining in Old Town. My mistake!

Recently we stopped in for dinner on a Tuesday night. I was surprised. Their covered veranda hosting about 30 seats had some folks enduring the humid evening with a nice breeze helping to cool things down. Except for the light coming through the glass side wall this place reminded me of A.V. Ristorante Italiano in D.C., now long gone. There were green checkered table cloths instead of the red checkered and there was no jukebox with Italian opera music like at AV’s but it did bring back memories.

Although a relatively new build out, Aldo’s has a traditional vibe about it. As you walk in you will find Emanuele Cognetti aka Aldo, the owner, busy behind the counter answering the phone, filling out to-go orders while greeting customers as they enter. On this particular Tuesday night the restaurant wasn’t packed but there were a number of seats taken in the dining room where we sat and the flurry of activity was enhanced by the numerous Take Out orders they were processing.

After we were seated our rather shy waiter brought us our water and took the wine order. He was soon back with the wine and then took our order. I am a big fan of fried calamari and while my dining partner doesn’t particularly like it, I had to have it. However, she changed her mind once it hit the table. The squid was exceptionally tender and the coating was amazingly light and flavorful – she ate half of it.

I was torn between my “go to” linguini with clams and a white sauce and the veal marsala with pasta on the side – I chose the veal. This entrée is accompanied by fresh cooked mushrooms and lots of sauce…I love the sauce. The veal was tasty and cooked just right. My only disappointment was that the dish was lacking capers. I am a big capers fan. Otherwise, the veal was excellent and a lot of it. The linguine was prepared perfectly and this too was a good amount.

Upon the recommendation of our Chef friend, Caroline Bruder Ross from River Bend Bistro, my partner ordered Aldo’s lasagna. It was a great recommendation. This dish was good old fashioned traditional Italian lasagna. The marinara is exceptional. Accompanied by some very tasty garlic toast, it filled the bill.

We rounded out our meal sharing the dessert cannelloni. The mascarpone filling and strawberry sauce were was a nice end to a great meal.

As mentioned about, there were a lot of takeout orders leaving this restaurant. I wish I had counted the number of pizza’s that went out the door. This is a good indication that we need to revisit Aldo’s and see what that pizza is like – it must be fantastic!

Aldo’s on the backside of 2850 Eisenhower Avenue so be sure to slow down as you approach that block so you don’t miss the turn. A good way to get there is to turn left at the light by the Marriott and stay right into the parking area for the buildings. Proceed through the area until you see Aldo’s sign on the right. There is plenty of free parking. They close between 3 & 4 pm daily.

2850 Eisenhower Avenue

703-888-2243

Aldositaliankitchen.com

M-F 11am-8pm

Sat 4pm-8pm

Closed Sunday