Ocio Restaurant Review – Italian with a Twist

By: Jordan Elbaum

Ocio Restaurant in Spanish transalates to ‘leisure,’ and that’s exactly what you want to do when you walk into this restaurant. This tiny Italian getaway is filled with dim lighting, wooden linenless tables and inviting grey tufted banquette seating. If you’ve ever walked into ZGallerie and wanted everything you see, you know exactly what it’s like walking into Ocio Restaurant!

Once you stop drooling over the décor and make it to your table, you will be welcomed with toasted garlic bread – YUM! After you’ve downed that, (because who doesn’t eat bread at the table like a ravenous animal?) order the Octopus Carpaccio – Thinly Sliced Octopus, Served with Lemon, Olive Oil, Salt and Ground Pepper. This is a refreshing light dish to start out with. The octopus is sliced really thin allowing it to absorb these great flavors.

Any good Italian restaurant has an Antipasto – Cured Meat Platter with Salami, Capicolo, Prosciutto, Caprese, Parmesan Cheese, Fresh Hearts of Artichokes and Roasted Pepper. 

I’m pretty sure I could live off of Antipasto platters and some garlic bread. Maybe some pasta like this one too. Spaghetti Pomodoro – House Made Red Chile Tomato Sauce with Basil. This is a classic dish as simple as it’s description but packs in the flavors of Italy.

The next pasta dish we tried was the Fiocchi, also knows as ‘pasta purses’ – sounds like my kind of bag. Four Cheese Tortellini in Amaretto Sauce. This is such a comforting dish. The fiocchi are filled with creamy cheese the balanced out with the sweet amaretto sauce.

For you meat lovers, I did order the Ossobuco Di Vitello – Slow Braised Veal Shank, Vegetables & White Wine, Served Over Risotto Milanese. The veal was tender and flavorful over the creamy risotto making for a perfect combination.

On to my favorite part of every meal – dessert. Just how every good Italian restaurant has antipasto, every good Italian restaurant also has tiramisu. Ocio Restaurant put a little twist on theirs. Their Tiramisu-Topped with Heath Bar Crumbles and Blueberry Sauce. Creamy, coffee tiramisu but Ocio Restaurant put their own twist on this tradion by adding the toffee and blueberry sauce, which I loved.

 

Ocio Restaurant is open daily for lunch and dinner located at 3399 NW 72nd Avenue, Suite 106, Doral, FL 33122.  Reservations can be made by calling 786-360-4468 or online at OpenTable.