We wanted to eat at the Duck and Dumpling BUT

it is closed on Sundays. We had already parked at Moore Square so we wandered up to Wilmington Street and stumbled across Gravy. Gravy describes itself as serving Italian-American comfort food with a modern spin, which with a name like gravy, makes perfect sense. Gravy is owned by Bella Monica, a staple restaurant in Olde Raleigh.

The restaurant is a narrow two stories and is lit with track lighting which highlights the exposed brick which has been painted over with a muted gray. There is outside seating and a few high top tables near the front.

During our visit there were a few families complete with children ranging from infant to pre-teen, couples sharing a romantic dinner and groups of loud boisterous friends.

Via the Gravy facebook page you can look at their specials which are constantly changing and get a sneak peak at their upcoming special events.

We began with a 28$ bottle of red wine, which the name escapes me but luckily the wines are grouped by intensity and flavor and there is one to fit every budget. After our wine was poured the garlic knots arrived which were buttery and sprinkled with pesto and Parmesan cheese. Buttery is an understatement, because the little guys glistened under the lights. They were tasty, but on the dense side, which was contradictory because they appeared light and fluffy.

For our appetizer we selected the steamed little neck clams on a whim.  The menu describes this dish as "fregula, tomato saffron, fennel, celery, leek with crostini." If you order this, I hope you have some garlic knots left because only giving you two crostini is a cruel, cruel joke. I say this because the sauce is crack-like addictive. And when the bread runs out you will be praying that no one is looking because all you want to do is tip the bowl up and drink. Sadly, this is a public establishment and that my friends would be a breach in etiquette. Word of advice, use and abuse the knots. Those dense little buggers soak this sauce up like a sponge. Back on track: the clams were perfectly cooked and tasted just like the ocean. The sauce obviously is indescribable, but the tomatoes add an element of acid that cuts the richness.

For our entree's I ordered the sauteed potato gnocchi and Todd ordered the pork cannelloni. My gnocchi's were perfectly done and had the beautiful pillow texture as they do when cooked correctly. The sauce was earthy and rich, but was a bit on the salty side. The portion of portabello mushrooms distributed was appropriate and added to the earthiness of the dish. Besides the cankle-inducing salt content I could not complain. The cannelloni were draped in melted mozzarella cheese which had sat under the broiler to get just slightly burnt in the bubbled areas where the gravy had attempted to seep out. The dish was served in a bowl to account for the ample gravy served with the dish.  He said the pork was well-seasoned and moist and as evidenced by his empty plate- could have not asked for anything else.

Verdict: 

Would eat there again. 

Variety of vegetarian items, however vegan's beware, this is not a place for you. 

Atmosphere was modern, yet oddly comforting.

Range of prices to fit every budget.

Will take pictures at the next eatery. The idea to blog about my Raleigh food adventures came to me while in mid-orgasm due to the tomato saffron sauce. Damn that sauce....