Fellini Café

Famed movie director Federico Fellini’s father was a spaghetti salesman. The young Fellini loved spaghetti and sitting alone in the dark at the movies.

"Life is a combination of magic and pasta," he declared.

Perhaps as a result, Italian restaurants the world over bear his name, including one of Philly’s newest BYOBs. Fellini Café recently opened on the 2200 block of Walnut Street. It’s a charming trattoria with a large and varied menu. Bonus: It’s kid-friendly.

The owner, Francesco Raimundo, operates restaurants by the same name in Ardmore and Newtown Square.

A gentleman from Calabria — could have been Raimundo — greeted us on a recent visit. Our waiter, Lalo, a native of Spain who worked in the restaurant’s suburban locations, took good care of us.

The menu listed a whopping 118 items, including 54 pasta dishes. It was a bit dark for menu-reading, so Lalo upped the lights for us. We nibbled on complimentary bruschette, which were prepared with ripe sweet tomatoes, hard to find this time of year. He brought us a loaf of disappointing bread, which had that corporate pre-fab flavor. Lalo opened our wine and set wine glasses before us.

Caesar salad ($4.95) was a fine example of how tasty this popular dish can be when prepared correctly with fresh ingredients. It consisted of a huge mountain of cool, crisp romaine dressed in homemade Caesar dressing, topped with the right touch of crisp croutons and dusted with bits of freshly minced Italian parsley. Economical and tasty.

Cozze alla marinara ($9.95) is described as mussels served with crostini bread in red or white sauce. Marinara is red gravy. Crostini is bread, albeit toasted. Anyway, I went with the white sauce and received a big bowl brimming with perfectly steamed mussels sitting in a rich homemade broth redolent with garlic and white wine. They were neither Prince Edward Island nor New Zealand mussels, but they were not a bit scrawny. The toasted crostini were good for dipping. I finished the broth with a spoon.

We all love eggplant, so Edward ordered melanzane alla parmigiana ($9.95). When Lalo set the plate down, I could not believe my eyes. This antipasto could have been an entrée. Steam was rising from the eggplant, which was layered with sharp provolone and Parmesan cheeses and topped with a fresh homemade tomato sauce. Goodness, was this tasty. And the eggplant was not at all bitter.

Edward and I shared tagliatelle Bolognese ($9.50). When I saw the platter, I almost fell off my seat. There had to be a pound of fettuccine — not tagliatelle, but no matter — sitting in a large oval platter. It was topped with a nicely done meat sauce that clung to the pasta as I twirled my fork around the al dente noodles. In the arena of Bolognese sauce, I gave this one a six; it needed butter and milk to make it a bit creamy.

Mom ordered cheese tortellini pomodoro ($9.95), which was overwhelmingly large. About a pound of fat cheese tortellini arrived on a large oval platter topped with fresh tomato sauce. We all enjoyed the texture of the sauce, which was studded with bits of tomato.

Edward ordered grilled salmon ($13.95), which lacked eye appeal. The salmon was dusted with breadcrumbs, which detracted from the flavor of the fish, and was overcooked. He received whipped potatoes, which were on the cool side, and a medley of zucchini, red pepper strips and carrots. The fish, potatoes and vegetables were crammed onto the same plate, which is a definite no-no in Italian restaurants.

My veal Parmesan ($13.95) was overcooked and smothered in too much gooey cheese and gravy. It was also on the cool side. Lalo and the gentleman from Calabria wanted to know why I did not touch my dinner. I politely told them it just wasn’t good. When we received the check, the entrée was deducted from it.

Lalo brought us a complimentary piece of commercial carrot cake and a wedge of creamy, dense bread pudding, which was tasty. Fellini Café also serves gelati and desserts from Bindi. A small take-out shop sells from the menu, including plastic containers of several sauces.

Two tips of the toque to Fellini Café.

Fellini Café
2216 Walnut St.
215-972-0860
Credit cards accepted
Wheelchair-accessible
Open daily for lunch and dinner