La Vite Lucente Toscana – Sazani’s
As I sit here writing this a couple days after our oh-I-don’t-know-maybe-twentieth visit to Sazani’s on Galena Road in Peoria, I’m faced once again with the dilemma of wanting to do a restaurant review without doing a restaurant review. As I’ve written before, the original intent of this section of our website was to talk about great wines, beers and spirits that I’m fortunate enough to run across. But if I wrote one of these little vignettes every time I have a good bottle of wine, a nice beer or a tasty Scotch, I wouldn’t have time to drink any of them. So these days the motivation seems to be more around the circumstances of the imbibing as opposed to the actual potable.
Having said that, this Tuscan beauty warrants attention on its own. We had it with a noontime meal at Sazani’s and as you may have guessed by now, the entire experience was pretty special. This is the most expensive red on the Sazani’s wine carte and I can understand why. It was highly recommended by our congenial server, Frank, who has taken very good care of us on more than half of our visits to this very successful Italian eatery. When it’s not Frank, it’s usually Jimmy and both these guys know their business very well. The service we’ve experienced at Sazani’s is consistently among the best...from the greeting to the check.
But back to the wine for a moment...this Merlot/Sangiovese blend hits you hard with its dark color and although I suspect this 2010 vintage would taste even better after a few years in the cellar, it already conveys silky tannins and finishes with subtle fruitiness and a bit of spice. It was a perfect match with our lunch choices which both were dressed with Sazani’s pink vodka sauce. I would imagine the same could be said for a pairing with their marinara sauce...something I may try on my next visit.
Even though we’ve been to this great eatery double-digit times now, we’ve only just scratched the surface of their extensive menu. And while everything we’ve tried is great, it’s really the incredible way they make you feel that keeps us coming back. They seem genuinely happy to see you when you walk in the door. When a restaurant gets that right, the rest is just icing on the cake. I love the look of the place, too. The tables are spaced appropriately and not crammed together like other places we’ve visited. It makes for an intimate experience, even when you’re there for lunch.
Sorry this reads like a restaurant review...guess I just couldn’t help myself. Thanks to Tony, Sonny, Frank, Jimmy and everyone else at Sazani’s for all the great meals and for making us feel at home whenever we visit you. We’ll be back.
To check out Sazani's website, click HERE
