IMPRESSION: Brodeto, Raleigh, NC
- andychalk
- 7 days ago
- 4 min read
by Andrew Chalk
I recently had a one night stay on a business trip to Raleigh, NC on my tod on a Monday night. Since I was new to the city and Michelin didn’t cover it I turned to this year’s James Beard Nominations for suggestions. That narrowed it to Scott Crawford, Crawford Hospitality as a semifinalist for Outstanding Restaurateur, and his newest venture Brodeto. Brodeto is a Croatian fish stew and Crawford’s obsession with it came out of a trip he and his moll made to the Adriatic (a map of their itinerations is on the wall at the restaurant).
Brodeto is situated in Raleigh Iron Works which used to be, I presume, an iron works, but is now a redeveloped live-work zone populated by more and more restaurants and apartments where 1,000 sq. ft. will cost you $2,600/month.
The restaurant is heavily decorated with light wood, giving a Scandinavian aesthetic, with stone for hard surfaces like the underlit bar. It's high tone, but not clubby or stuffy.
The food might be termed Adriatic, with Italian coming across more prominently than Croatian. Although I was impressed by the sight of a Croatian bread ($8) on the menu, I had to turn it down as it was too much for one, and I knew boxing it was futile as I already had the World Famous Holiday Inn Breakfast coming the following morning.
Accompanying the food is a beverage list of wines, spirits, and cocktails that was clearly put together by a knowing eye (Beverage Manager Jordan Joseph). Iin the wine department, it is deep in well-chosen Italians, supplemented by a smaller, but interesting, French collection. The by-the-glass selection is as eclectic as the bottle list, good to see for those who want to try several wines.
A hurdle, even if you find a restaurant open, on a Monday night is that the chef is off and has handed things to a B-team of recent grads and prior week hires. Not so at Brodeto. Chef de Cuisine Chris Gass and his team produced a meal the lasting memory of which is that the execution was flawless. For example, at waiter Josh’s suggestion I chose a small plate (appetizer), pasta, and main course.
The Octopus and Potato Salad ($24) with Castelvetrano olives, lemon, red onion and parsley (and other herbs, all pulled from pots visible on the counter of the open kitchen) precisely matched the saltiness of the octopus with the earthiness of the potatoes (small yukon golds I would guess). These flavors exploded in total balance in the mouth. This creation will go down as one of the best appetizers I have had this year.
My pasta course, Linguini al Nero ($26) with sea urchin butter and chile pangrattato, was my third shot at finding correctly-made pasta in just two weeks. The previous attempts varied from neoprene bands to just acceptable. This parsley-green pasta was smooth to the mouthfeel and just silently submitted to the chew. The squid ink gave just a hint of sweetness. The design decision, for that is what it was, to put crisp bread crumbs, fried with herbs, as a thin coat on top was brilliant as it kept the dish forever interesting in the mouth, not to mention the photogenic value. Sea urchin butter in a sauce consistency formed the base on which all this sat. You scooped up a layer of sauce and downed it with the pasta. It was so refined that I got the impression this dish had won through a basketball-style bracket competition of contending dishes before emerging on top.
My main of Marinated Lamb Chops ($50) with salsa verde, artichoke, and lemon was the only one of my dishes that might be described as “mainstream” in that the preparation was conventional and it being widespread elsewhere. The lamb was tasty, cooked medium, and went well with the salsa. The artichoke appeared to be roasted and provided smoky flavors. I am not sure if the slice of lemon was to be eaten or not. I had fun squeezing the juice on the rest of the dish. Couples may want to share an entrée - I was pretty full at this point and would have taken half of the lamb chops home were it not for that culinarily escapist Holiday Inn Breakfast I mentioned earlier.
Try the homemade gelato ($10) for dessert and delve into the separate beverage list (bound in black leather) for a list of after-dinner drinks. The Madeira ($20) is nutty good.
So, the TL;DR on Brodeto is that it aims for the very top of the fine dining pyramid in an atmosphere as classily casual as one of Stehan Pyles best restaurants. Were Michelin to get a puncture in NC and judge here, they would be a serious candidate for a star. As for that Jimmy Beard Restaurateur Award, I have not been to the other contenders, but Scott Crawford may get that too.
Strongly recommended when in Raleigh-Durham, any day of the week.
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