One of Calgary’s best neighbourhoods for dining has gained a new fine-dining Italian spot. Luca Restaurant, part of a group of Italian dining concepts located at the base of The Oliver apartments, offers a refined, creative menu featuring handmade pastas, trattoria classics and more.
Led by culinary director Giuseppe Di Gennaro (formerly of Cotto), the team at Luca imports a variety of ingredients from Italy and combines them with locally sourced ingredients to create a uniquely Albertan take on its dishes — but the roots of the food and drink options are Italian, through and through.
Pasta is a highlight at Luca, with house-made options like fettuccine with wild mushrooms, porcini cream and truffle pesto, or garganelli with duck confit, candy onions, white wine and sage. Or you can opt for meat and seafood dishes like a veal chop “saltimbocca” flavoured with prosciutto and sage, or a lobster risotto big enough for two people.
The menu also features a classic Bistecca Fiorentina — a roasted, 30-ounce bone-in ribeye steak served with fingerling potatoes, roasted garlic and little gem Caesar salad (a dish that’s perfect for sharing among everyone at your table).
As for drinks, the wine list features an impressive mix of Old and New World options, all specifically chosen to pair with dishes on the menu. The cocktails, meanwhile, range from classics like a traditional Negroni or Aperol spritz to more modern creations like The Invisible, which is made with white rum, gin, vodka, Cointreau and your choice of Jolly Rancher flavour.
Regardless of what you order at Luca, you’re sure to enjoy dining amid a stylish setting accented by green suede and black leather chairs. There’s also a feature bookshelf wall filled with nothing but blue vintage books (which took months to gather). A marble-topped bar and kitchen sit in the centre of the room, so you can watch the culinary team at work.
Stop by Luca Restaurant for creative takes on Italian classics, and be sure to check out the other new restaurant concepts at the base of The Oliver.
524 10 Ave. S.W., 403-261-1777, lucayyc.com
