Gusto Fino Italian Deli

So I've been a bad, bad blogger. Not one entry in the past (almost) 7 months. I have dined out, but since I was pregnant for the majority of that time period I didn't really care about documenting my meals as much as I cared about stuffing my face. Shameful. (Memorable dining experiences were documented on my Yelp page if you care to check them out.)

My beautiful daughter Sara was born on March 19, 2013. Needless to say, being a new mommy (and a germophobe) hasn't really allowed for many (or any!) eating adventures over the past 16 wks. It's been tough to get out of the house and even tougher to document a meal when toting a tiny baby around. Last week hubby, baby and I ventured out to coral gables to check out Gusto Fino Italian Deli. The meal was so flipping good it inspired me to resurrect my comatose blog. Hallelujah! Here we go.

Gusto Fino is a tiny hole in the wall right off of Le Jeune. It's dark, cozy, and a bit cramped. The staff was super friendly and accommodating. We sat at a comfy high top with a good spot to park our Cadillac aka massive stroller. We checked out the menu to find a plethora of sandwiches, pasta dishes, pizzas and salads.

We started out with a pasta salad side which has herbs, capers, sundried tomato sauce, feta cheese and kalamata olives. This litte side dish packed a mean punch of flavor. The sundried tomato sauce was tangy, kinda spicy, sweet... all sorts of kicks and jabs to the tongue. In the words of the annoying Rachel Ray: yum-o! Amazing. I wasn't crazy about the feta and I am not a fan of olives, so next time I will do without both. Either way, this little dish set the bar high for the rest of the meal.

 

 

Hubby ordered the Chicken Marco Polo (although he swears he ordered the Louie Louie and they brought the wrong one... Lies! And if that's the case then I'm glad they messed up) which is served hot. This big (BIG!) bad boy comes with chicken Milanese, crispy pancetta, fresh mozzarella, and spicy BBQ sauce. You really can't go wrong with any of the above items, especially when grouped together in a fresh baguette. The chicken was juicy, the pancetta was crispy and savory, and the mozzarella was melty and delicious. Total win.

 

Chicken Marco Polo

 

 

I ordered the Mario's Ultimate on a multigrain baguette. This cold sub comes packed with Parma prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, pesto sauce, arugula salad mix, balsamic glaze and olive oil. I loved my sandwich. I was chock full of flavor from the pesto, balsamic and prosciutto. The arugula added it's special signature kick and mozzarella added creaminess, it was a great combo of subtle and strong flavors. The ingredients felt and tasted fresh, the salad mix was crispy, the prosciutto was thin, the mozzarella was moist. This was also pretty massive so I took 1/2 home and had it for dinner with a fried egg... fatassness to the max but oh so yum.

 

Mario's Ultimate, no tomatoes

 

 

We asked for cannolis but sadly they were out of them (they must be really good) so we went for the Italian Bread Pudding which was delish. It was warm and drenched in caramel and fudge... a girl can't really ask for more.

 

 

 Our dining experience was pleasant and we definitely plan to return. I am interested in trying their pizzas, pastas and hopefully to get my hands on a cannoli.

 

Gusto Fino Italian Deli

2103 S LeJeune Rd
Coral Gables, FL 33134
(305) 444-0504