Let’s talk about pasta, it’s comfort food at its best. Every person has a preference for how they prefer their bowl of noodles. Some love those long strands of fresh noodles soaked in homemade tomato sauce topped with giant meatballs, others prefer a creamy white sauce and maybe some chicken. I’ll take fresh noodles over the stale packaged ones any day. Once you go fresh, you never go back. I cook my pasta up quick (it’s always quick when it’s fresh) add a smidgen of garlic and finish it off with a drizzle of good olive oil (from Queen Creek Olive Mill) and a bit of salt. I mix in a few meatballs and I’m in comfort food heaven.
When I’m out and about, I enjoy pasta the way the Chef likes to make it. So let’s talk about the way Chef Deruvo makes each piece of pasta daily, by hand and with a lot of love! EVO is all about comfy, cozy and solid Italian food. Side note, he just opened up Citrine down in Tempe as well, in case that’s closer to you than Old Town Scottsdale. You can order your usual spaghetti from EVO and it will be anything but usual or you could go for the orecchiette or “little ears,” with escarole, garlic, chunks of fennel sausage, a little kick from the chile flake and a sprinkle of Parmesan to finish it off. Or maybe head a little out of your comfort zone and try some squid ink chittara, mixed up with lump crab, scallions, uni butter, calabrian chile and toasted breadcrumbs.
EVO isn’t only about pasta, you can find an array of dishes from antipasta to pizza. A few items that aren’t pasta that are my favorite are the crispy pork belly with watermelon, thai basil and shallots. The crispy chicken thigh with olive oil mash, honey and duck gravy is to.die.for! And the bone marrow with pickled onions, herb salad, capers and bread is a mouth watering delight. So whether you whip up a bowl of penne pasta at home or head out to EVO to celebrate, enjoy that comfort food and happy National Pasta Day!
4175 N. Goldwater Blvd.
Scottsdale, Arizona
Photo Credit: Awe Collective PR