Restaurant Review: Anzilotti's Tuscan Market

When I hear of a new restaurant within the confines of Anchorage, I find it hard to resist the temptation to try it out quickly. When the Anchorage Press wrote about Anzilotti's Tuscan Market and their simple but delectable sandwiches, I could not wait to try. Given my obsession with the art of the sandwich it's unsurprising, yet something about Anzilotti's sounded to be an even better fit for me than usual. With my very first experience I can say assuredly: it is every bit as good as I thought it could be, and perhaps more.

Anzilotti's rests in a strip mall off Dimond down by Village Inn and kitty corner from Gallo's and Dimond Tuxedo. It is one of those places that is so small and unassuming that they could go on forever surviving just on the random visitors and the evangelists who fall in love with their food. Given that the person who ordered after me could not get a sandwich because they were out of bread, I'd say they are finding success quickly after the glowing review from the Press. In fact, I overheard the proprietor of Anzilotti's stating that business had increased dramatically since the article's debut.

When you walk in, nothing really grabs you save how little space they have to actually sit in their establishment. You can tell it is mostly designed to be a market for those looking for high class Italian food supplies, as they have an ample selection of pasta, Olive Oil, and various other things of that sort that takes up most of the space. In fact, the food feels mostly designed to sell the meats and cheeses that they sell rather than to to actually make it a restaurant.

Which doesn't mean that their food isn't good.

Oh no.

It's intensely delicious.

I ordered the Misti A.T.M. (what that means, I have no idea). It is a sandwich served on focaccia-home made Italian bread with Prosciutto cotto & Provolone cheese (roasted ham w/ rosemary). While when you get to its core, it really is just bread, cheese and meat, yet it is so much more. The bread itself is home made and crafted at the location itself, as I found out when the proprietor of Anzilotti's assured the customer after me that he could wait 40 minutes to get a sandwich (to which the obviously regular customer responded with "you're breaking my heart!"). It is fluffy at its core, yet I managed to score a corner piece which brought a little crunch to the affair. The top of the bread is covered with olive oil which adds even more flavor to the already delicious adventure.

Throw in almost absurdly flavorful prosciutto cotto (ham crusted with rosemary, basically) and a healthy portion of provolone, and you have a damn tasty sandwich. Not only that the but these are not small sandwiches - I am a big time eater and this filled me up. Other patrons of the restaurant were enjoying similar foods and audibly raving about them to each other, going on and on about the robust flavors the simple yet elegant concoctions would create.

Next time I visit Anzilotti's, I'll make sure to check it out with other people so I can sample other foods off the menu, like their fa freddo sandwiches (similar types of sandwiches that are warmed in a press) or their desserts that sounds epic in their deliciousness. However, I can say this with utmost sincerity: this is one of the best sandwiches I've had in Anchorage and I will most certainly be making my presence felt more frequently in the future. Hopefully when I go there they will have bread, because that would be truly heartbreaking if they didn't.