@Chowseeker1999 what pastas do you think would travel the best to be reheated at home? I’m planning on going Saturday afternoon but want to cook the pasta Sunday night for Mother’s Day dinner. The carbonara and sugo di carne sound great but I’m concerned about reheating the carbonara at home. I’m planning on getting a pint of the pistacchio and strawberry sorbet to take home. Maybe I’ll get a small cup while I’m there just for educational purposes.
We got Leo’s Sugo di Carne (Meat Sauce) Pasta Sauce To-Go before, and it reheated well with our own Pasta at home. He also sells his fresh Handmade Pastas (refrigerated) To-Go as well.
My friend got his Pesto Sauce To-Go before, and added it to her Pasta she made a few nights later and it was great.
So those 2 for sure. Not sure if Carbonara can reheat well with the Egg in there, so maybe don’t risk that. But you could order one fresh / ready to eat and do “research” in your car?
Given the Sugo di Carne heating up well, you might also try his Ripasata (Tomato & Garlic Sauce). It sounds very basic, but it was glorious for being Vegetarian. Stunning flavors (he cooks that one down for 3 - 4 hours as well). (@hanhgry)
In my experience you are correct that carbonara does not reheat well, as the eggs tend to scramble. As @Chowseeker1999 points out his other sauces will do fine reheated.
Leo’s twice cooked tomato sauce IMO is the best damn sauce I ever had as far as Italian goes. I still think about it. I would call Leo and ask if it’s available
I would say -ask if he’ll make the sauce to go (if it’s a pan sauce it might not be possible) but it’s worth a shot. Then buy the pasta separately and finish it yourself. Then maybe Leo can give you finishing instructions.
Yah what @aaqjr said. Leo was selling jars of his Pasta Sauces on previous visits. For the Sugo di Carne (Meat Sauce) we added it to a stovetop sauce pan and added the finished pasta we cooked and swirled it around under gentle heat to warm it through. It was delicious.
But I think it’s good to ask Leo himself, how you’d reheat it. Please report back as well!
To be honest I would just make it yourself. I know you are an Epicurus fan and they have great guancilae, and pecorino. Its not that hard to do. This, Spaghetti With Carbonara Sauce Recipe, is a foolproof recipe (I have been a fool many time when it comes to cooking). It is one of the four classic Roman pasta recipes, and is deigned for dried pasta rather than fresh. I made it last week and it turned out beautifully. Here is Kenji’s video, How to Make Classic Pasta Carbonara | Kenji's Cooking Show - YouTube. I would eat Leo’s in the car, or outside his place, and make your own at home.
Yeah for some reason the name changed on the menu, but it’s the same great sauce!
Reheating issues aside, @Chowseeker1999’s first photo of the carbonara looks strange - am I crazy, or does anyone else think that carbonara sauce looks too runny? I feel like a good carbonara should coat the pasta well, and there would be some on the bottom, but it wouldn’t be so thin and spread out. Looks tasty but soupy.
Thanks for the thoughts. Leo just made a lot of extra sauce. I think we were one of the first people trying his special that day. It wasn’t as runny as it may look in the photo, and on subsequent visits you can see less of the sauce and it was thicker. The extra sauce on the first visit was great with his Handmade Focaccia to sop up the delicious sauce.
Oh, Kenji Lopez-Alt is a legend, in my mind! He used to work for America’s Test Kitchen and churns out a ton of interesting articles about cooking/baking technique and science for Serious Eats.
Recommendation for your 1st visit:
