Close Encounters

It’s Monday lunch, and the din emanating from Mercato is impressive. While many of its 4th Street S.W. neighbours are quiet or closed, Mercato is packed with folks chowing down on hand-rolled gnocchi, oven-roasted quail and charbroiled baby octopus.

The noise is like a movie soundtrack of a lively restaurant — a constant high level of intermingled voices punctuated occasionally by a laugh; the clank of a frying pan hitting the stove; the clink of wine glasses. The low ceiling and the compression of bodies lining the restaurant’s dining counters amplify the volume, creating a zone of privacy around customers.

Mercato’s fans love the intimacy of the place: the tight, high-level counters that wedge diners into long rows; the low tables for those who have booked far enough ahead; the being-in-the-know-ness of an experience here. They love the energy, the heat from the flames that licks off the open kitchen into the front row and the vision of black-clad servers patrolling the lines.

They love the fresh-to-order food made right in front of them, the huge Fiorentina rib steak sizzling on the grill, the pans of risotto tossed and stirred, the Caprese salads mounded onto long white plates. And they love the noise.

Mercato wasn’t meant to be such an energetic place. It was supposed to be a market, the new Mission address for the former Italian Centre in Bridgeland. Victor and Cathy Caracciolo ran that market for more than 30 years, grinding meat for sausages and rolling gnocchi in the back. It was a remarkably peaceful place to shop; a calm destination to find all your Italian necessities.

When they moved to Mission, they thought they’d add a little coffee bar where customers could have an espresso and a dessert, and maybe a sandwich. In no time, the cafe was overrun with customers who wanted more. More hot pasta. More grilled sausage. More fresh salads. And a glass of wine, too, please. So Mercato grew.

Son Dominic Caracciolo, now the owner, added more tables, then a second high counter for more diners, and then a third, bringing seating up to 78. Recently, even the market section of Mercato has come under assault from customers who want to dine-in on freshly sliced prosciutto and grilled eggplant. The market side now also has seating for an additional 14. 

Yet, for all the expansion and all the added activity, dining at Mercato remains a remarkably pleasant experience, such as when a bowl of olives appears from somewhere and a basket of focaccia is presented to be dipped into Uncle Luigi’s olive oil. (Want a bottle? Grab one from in front of the huge metal barrel of the oil on the market side.)

Mercato’s menu is simple: four concise rows of antipasti, primi piatti, secondi piatti and contorni (side dishes). About eight items in each row, a daily special or two and a short list of desserts. Easy.

But simple, the food is not. Balsamic-glazed lamb sirloin served with grilled leeks and semi-sundried tomato pesto. Baby cuttlefish with chickpeas, Italian parsley and pomodorini di Pachino. Charred asparagus wrapped in prosciutto. There’s little that’s typical about this menu.

And it’s skilfully prepared — just watch. Seriously, just watch them prepare your food. The chefs do a good job, even with all those eyes on them. More difficult was trying to figure out how to fit more seats into the space. So Dominic has looked down the street to where Wildwood once brewed beer and served lamb burgers. When Wildwood left the space, he picked up the lease and by September it will likely be on the verge of opening. Dominic has done a major renovation and will be working with his brother-in-law Michael Mendelman, a partner in Banff’s Bison Bistro and owner of Banff’s Maple Leaf Grille, to create an all new yet-to-be announced restaurant.

Given Mercato’s track record, there will likely be a large group waiting to try out the new restaurant’s offerings. It’s bound to be busy, even for lunch on Mondays. And we’re willing to venture that it will be a little noisy, too.

Mercato is located at 2224 4 St. S.W., 403-263-5535. Caracciolo’s new restaurant is expected to open at 2417 4 St. S.W. in early fall.