Bella Sicilia Restaurant 1647 Bath Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11214

Luke Constantino| February, 27th 2010

You don’t see too many Sicilian restaurants around, so I waited for this one to open. The Bath Beach section of Brooklyn (especially Bath Avenue) is not known for gourmet food. It is a residential area with many small “mom & pop shops” that fit the necessities of life here. As soon as I walked into Bella Sicilia, I felt good. It has a simple décor with traditional Italian mandolin music playing in the background. Anthony (the owner) is a very warm and inviting host.

We started with the grilled octopus and calamari as an antipasti appetizer. The octopus came with a butter sauce and the calamari with a delicious marinara sauce, both cooked to perfection. As a pasta course, I tried the “linguine caprese,” a simple sauce dish made semolina pasta, cherry tomatoes and mozzarella, which was delicious! Our main courses were Chicken Siciliana and a medium rare skirt steak. The chicken was plated nicely, and it was tender and covered with a sauce, which resembled a vodka sauce that was very good! I’m pretty picky when it comes to steak, but this was grilled properly. You can taste the true steak (which I like) instead of it being over- seasoned.

Anthony recommended we try “The Chocolate Calzone” for dessert. I was slightly skeptical. Being Italian myself, I never heard of chocolate in a calzone. This thing was so sinfully wrong I had to laugh and eat the whole thing! You cannot beat a chocolate calzone with a cup of Lavazza espresso!

The place is crowded at times, so it’s best to call first. The menu here is simple, but the food -- exceptional! This is one of the last restaurants I know of where the family not only runs it, but cooks the traditional meals. If you want a comfortable good meal, this is the place to go!