Gabriele and I recently enjoyed Cafe Caturra, located near the intersection of Mount Vernon Avenue and South Glebe Road in Arlington. This section of town is often called Arlandria and doesn’t have many interesting places to eat. Cafe Caturra gives the area a nice and versatile neighborhood restaurant.
The operative word when you walk in is fun. The layout is open and bright and you seat yourself. You are also encouraged to do lots of small wine tastings before deciding on a bottle.
We tried a number at the tasting bar, and purchased a glass of 2010 Carchelo C, a Spanish wine from the Jumilla region. It’s a mix of Mouvedre (Monastrell), Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. It had a fragrant nose, a little mild, a tart after taste. It was a nice starter glass of wine.
With dinner we had a bottle of Octavia 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon.From Paso Robles in central California, it was light and fruit forward for a Cabernet. Soft tannins, with a hint of licorice and a quick, clean finish. It was a bright and food friendly wine.
The food at Caturra is nicely presented. The focus in on small plates. The best things we had were the jerk shrimp soft tacos, which were very good. Scallops were well cooked but not as good as the shrimp or the crab wraps. Portions are good sized as small plates go.
Service was a bit off — many people visit your table, and empty plates sit for too long on the table. This was strange, since there seemed to be plenty of staff around and there was a very friendly vibe to the place.
I hope they sort that out, or that our experience wasn’t typical in that regard, because that was the only off note for us. Caturra isn’t fine dining, but its a comfortable neighborhood hangout with far loftier aspirations than the usual big chain establishment. And (of course) I like the focus given to wine.
We’ll be back soon, maybe when its cooler so we can check out the large patio area.