Chi Spacca (and Cake!)

So far, spring has been positively chockfull of celebrations: earlier this month, we toasted to our anniversary at Trois Mec; at the end of March, we jetted to Florida for Justin’s bubbe’s birthday; and, a few weeks before that, we feasted in honor of Justin’s birthday at Chi Spacca.

“Feast” really is the most apt verb for what one does at this joint. Chi Spacca is a meat-centric spot known for its gargantuan portions that forms part of the Mozza complex on Melrose and Highland. As such, it’s overseen by Nancy Silverton, Joe Bastianich and Mario Batali, but its identity has been forged by its chef Chad Colby, who made a name for himself with his salumi and whole hog dinners at Scuola di Pizza. Chi Spacca has long called to meat-lovin’ Justin (and me), and surprise reservations seemed the perfect gift.

The open kitchen grants diners a view of their meal as it comes off the massive grill or out of the wood-burning oven.

We began with the affettati misti ($24.00), a lengthy platter of house-cured prosciutto, salami, pate and terrine. Among my favorite bites were the pancetta-wrapped breadsticks and salami. The more adventurous birthday boy adored the butcher’s terrine or trotter with tarragon and parsley and the crisp, aioli-topped breaded and fried pig’s feet.

Next up was the focaccia di recco ($18.00), a crisp and perfectly blistered flatbread made with stracchino, a funky, fermented cow’s milk cheese. Despite knowing how much food was still to arrive, Justin and I couldn’t stop eating this pizza-sized focaccia.

To balance out the heavier dishes, a platter of snappy roasted cauliflower seasoned with lemon bagna cuda or a garlicky Italian dipping sauce ($10.00).

The kitchen also sent out two more vegetable dishes to brighten things up before the main event.

Our bowl of pickles ($5.00) yielded not only the traditional variety but also bright, tangy pickled cauliflower, cabbage and carrots. Crunch, crunch.

To wrap up act one of the meal, a towering butter lettuce salad ($12.00) with herbs and lemon vinaigrette. This medley of greens would prove an excellent counterpoint to our hearty entree.

We feared that the 42 oz. tomahawk pork chop was a tad ambitious for our table of two, but our porcini-rubbed shortribs ($32.00) were impressively massive in their own right. Thick and impossibly juicy with a gorgeous char, these ribs deserved to have every scrap of meat picked from the bones (and so we did).

Who needs forks and knives?

While the food at Chi Spacca was impressive, what catapulted our dinner to the top of our “best of” list was the impeccable service. From the front of the house to our server, everyone we encountered was incredibly knowledgable about the food and wine and also genuinely helpful, warm and friendly. Our server even rightly encouraged us to scale back our order so that we could better savor the dishes, which we appreciated. Bone marrow pie, I’m coming back for you! Justin and I have experienced some pretty dazzling service in LA, but our evening at Chi Spacca was the tops.

Birthday calls for cake and, this year, I surprised Justin with an adorable funfetti cake from the wonderfully talented baker Heather at SweetSalt.