Oliveto held their annual Whole Hog Dinner this past week. It probably brings in more well-to-do foodies than any other Bay Area event. Throughout the dining room, you can hear culinary conversations (“Cyrus is better than Gary Danko” – well, I guess Ford is better than Chevy) as well as many of those “in the industry” talking about their latest restaurant adventures. This was my first Whole Hog, spurred in part thanks to my successful Special Risotto Dinner last year.

1. Salumi Platter
Oliveto has attained a mythic status among Bay Area restaurants for their salumi. Their original chef left to found his own salumi company – Fra’Mani. He still makes the salumi for the Whole Hog Dinner, preparing up to 24 months in advance to cure the meats. The salumi isn’t your average supermarket variety – it’s judiciously salted with very intense flavors. Gastroville claims the restaurant salumi is better than the Fra’Mani brand because it contains natural casings. Very Good.

2. Gnocci del Cosentino w/ Pork Meatballs
The gnocci were quite light and melded effortlessly w/ the nettles and spinach wrapped inside – quite a textural marvel. The meatballs were spicy and tasty. I suppose a complaint would be – why bother w/ the meatballs? Of course, this *is* a Whole Hog dinner. A must-try if it’s on the regular menu. Very Good.

3. Antipasta of Pork Tongue, Artichoke, & Black Truffle
One of the more delicious and comforting dishes I’ve had anywhere – the tongue had the consistency of escargot and the artichoke sauce was rich and creamy. The truffles gave it an earthy inflection at the end (sorry, i’m not qualified to judge truffles yet…) One of those dishes that shows rustic comfort food can be world class cuisine. Excellent.

4. Spit Roasted Pork Belly w/ Chestnut Honey, Castelvetrano Olives, & Almonds
This dish was too sweet for me as the honey seemed to have really soaked into the olives. I expected that some of the pork belly might be seared for a nice crust but this dish wasn’t prepared that way. Lots of sugar and fatty pork belly – the olives and almonds helped to break up the texture but the dish was still disappointing. Ok.

5. Charcoal-grilled Wild Boar Sausage
It sounded like a good idea but the sausage was pretty dry. Wild boar is obviously a leaner meat but you think they’d add more fat into the sausage? Ok.

6. Bacon Fat Ice Cream
Mmmm…. The texture was a bit gritty but you could feel the fat coat your mouth as you bit down. This had much the same sensation as the various olive oil ice creams I’ve had (and loved) over the past year. There was a slight bacon taste on the finish. Excellent.

Hit and miss – much the same reaction as my risotto dinner. The Gastroville review is so positive, and they are certainly very qualified eaters, that I feel I should try the restaurant a few more times. The hits are fantastic; the misses disappointing in light of the greatness. The Whole Hog experience was definitely worthwhile and I will attend next year – I just hope I’m a better versed in the menu and the restaurant’s capabilities by that time.
- chuck