Call it kismet or fate or whatever, but Fabio Trabocchi seems to have been put on this earth in large part to satisfy the good people of the Washington D.C. area with inventive fresh pasta dishes.
His latest restaurant is the third location of Trabocchi’s D.C.-area Sfoglina brand, this one set across the Potomac River from the capital in downtown Rosslyn, Virginia. The term “sfoglina” refers to masterful pasta makers, and the spotlight here remains on Trabocchi classics like ravioli San Leo with goat cheese, arugula and fresh herbs; linguine with lobster, roasted tomatoes and chilies; and Mancini paccheri carbonara style.
Sfoglina, Rosslyn
Diners can watch Trabocchi’s own sfoglinas prepping the fresh pasta in a glass-enclosed room within the larger dining room. There’s also a “not pastas” section of the menu with dishes like veal cutlet and grilled fish, and a “For Young Italians” section that may be the best kids’ menu ever created (with spaghetti and meatballs, of course, but also beef short ribs and polenta.) Unique to the Rosslyn location is a mozzarella bar with burrata, stracciatella and other cheeses, as well as cured meats and preserved fish.
Ravioli San Leo with goat cheese, arugula and fresh herbs
D.C. and now Northern Virginia diners are lucky to have this native of Italy’s Le Marche region guiding the pasta program at the three Sfoglinas, which are part of an D.C.-area collection that started with the fine-dining Fiola in 2011 and has grown to also include two seafood-focused restaurant. Trabocchi also has Fiola outposts in Miami and a seasonal restaurant, Fiola at Dopolavora Venezia. at the JW Marriott Venice Resort & Spa.
While Trabocchi is now a signature part of the D.C. culinary landscape, he may never have returned to the city (where he cooked early in a career that also included stops in Moscow and London) had things worked out better in New York City. The chef earned a three-star rave from The New York Times for his cooking at Fiamma after replacing Michael White in 2007, but the economic crisis hit luxury restaurants hard, and after Fiamma closed, Trabocchi opted to open his own debut restaurant not in Manhattan, but in the nation’s capital. Just short of a decade later, it’s a move that’s paid off for Trabocchi and his family, and for families throughout the D.C area.