La Ciccia is a Sardinian restaurant in Noe Valley. I think La Ciccia is the only Sardinian restaurant in the city and perhaps in the Bay Area. Its one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco. I went here a couple of times in August after the owners had come back from vacation to get my fix.
I hadn’t been to La Ciccia since before the start of the pandemic and lockdown (probably over 2 years), so I stuck mostly to the hits.
Some bread comes with dinner, a somewhat dense spongy white bread which is great for soaking up extra sauce.
Prupisceddu in Umidu cun Tomatiga (Baby Octopus stew in a spicy Tomato Sauce) ($18)
Lots of little octopi cooked until nicely tender but with still a bit of chew. The tomato based sauce in the stew, which has the consistency of a thin soup, has quite a kick to it. Deceptively spicy and nicely flavored. Its a pretty generous portion for a starter.
Casisceddu e Rughitta (Burrata cheese Arugula Anchovies and Truffles dressing) ($16)
A nice mix of flavors in this salad. Peppery arugula with cool milky burrata, dressed in a truffle scented vinaigrette with a subtle hit of anchovy savoriness.
Spaghittusu cun Allu Ollu e Bottariga (Fresh Spaghetti Spicy Oil Garlic Cured Fish Roe) ($26)
If you haven’t been to La Ciccia before, this is is a must order. Its a simple dish of spaghetti sauced with olive oil, grated bottarga (cured mullet roe), garlic, and some chili flakes that add a little touch of heat. Save some bread to mop up any extra sauce. Consider pairing it with a glass of Vernaccia di Oristano which is on the dessert wine list. Its a Sardinian wine with a bit of an oxidized raisin-y sherry like flavor that goes really well with the salty brininess of the pasta sauce. It was recommended to me on a prior visit and I’ve been getting it with this dish ever since.
Pasta Cruzza cun Arrizonis (Artisanal Fusilli Sea Urchin Tomato Grated Tuna Heart) ($26)
Creamy tomato sauce with a bit of sea urchin. As with most cooked uni dishes in my experience the uni flavor is a bit subtle but is there. Nicely cooked corkscrew shaped fusili which caught the sauce in the grooves well. It is topped with pleasantly funky fishy shavings of cured tuna heart. Delicious.
Chocolate Panna Cotta Honey Toasted Hazelnuts ($10)
A nice panna cotta drizzled with honey and scattered with crunchy hazelnuts. Nice texture in the panna cotta and not too sweet.
Delicious meals. Service was friendly and hospitable as usual
