Boca Food Finds: April 2014

Hello Foodie Friends,

A panel of 7-8 food critics, food bloggers, media and foodies visited 16 restaurants throughout the month of March as part of the inaugural Boca Locals March Meatball Madness competition, of which yours truly had the opportunity to participate. Samples of meatballs were showcased to our panel and judged in the criteria of:

taste, texture, presentation and originality. The Chefs were asked to think out-of-the-box with unique recipes offering alternative twists on traditional meatballs such as vegetarian-style and turkey meatballs.

Throughout the competition, our panel of judges kept their followers up to date by posting on their facebook pages (My pics and commentary following each restaurant can be found on my facebook page: www.facebook.com/denise.righetti1). A few of the blogs besides BocaFoodFinds are Fork Notes, South Florida Sage, 2 Forks and a Cork and Examiner.com.

Solita: Photo Credit: Fork Notes

The results will be posted on the BocaLocals.com web site and in press releases to over 50 media contacts at the Sun-Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, BOCA RATON TRIBUNE, Simply The Best Magazine, Boca Observer, Boca Raton Magazine, Florida Table…to name a few.

Table 42 Photo Credit: Fork Notes

The restaurant with the winning meatball will have a plaque to hang on their wall for bragging rights and an event sponsored by BocaLocals inviting the public for an opportunity to taste

the BEST meatballs in and around Boca. Here was our line up:

Segreto

Meatball Room

Solita
Vic & Angelo's
Paradiso
South Shores Tavern
V&S Deli
Cafe Med

La Stella's

Table 42

TwentyTwenty Grille

Trattoria Romana

Tierra Fiamma

Henry's

Tucci's

13 American Table

Segreto's

Segreto's meatball caprese

Meatball Room

La Stella's

TwentyTwenty Grille Photo Credit: Fork Notes

Trattoria Romana

*From my friend Tim on his blog, New Vision Wines

Old School Meatball at Terra Fiamma

Veal Marsala Meatball at Terra Fiamma

Buffalo Chicken Meatball at Terra Fiamma

Spicy Pork Meatball at Terra Fiamma

I absolutely loved both the Veal Marsala and the Spicy Pork Meatballs and they were so close, but my favorite of the two which actually surprised me, was the spicy pork ones. While I loved the flavors of the veal meatball, it was the mushrooms and marsala that really transported this dish to the next level for me. The spicy pork was packed with flavor all the way through and the sauce they topped the meatball with was made with hot cherry peppers, with only a slight amount of heat detected and caramelized onions. For me, it was perfect.