Marcello’s Wine Market Café’s Pork Cheek Stracci entrée is a tidy representation of what this eatery is about: rustic Italian fare prepared with patience and detail. Chef Kevin Anderson sears pork cheeks, then braises them slowly with rough-cut vegetables, fresh rosemary and pimentón. Once soft and tender, they’re tossed with house-made stracci, an egg-yolk sheet pasta Anderson cuts by hand. He adds strategic dollops of house-made pea pesto for earthiness and shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano for a nutty punch. The quivering poached egg perched on top is just waiting to be punctured. Marcello’s has locations in New Orleans and Lafayette, but the new Baton Rouge outpost is the only one that serves this dish.

Marcello’s
4205 Perkins Road
225-478-4409
marcelloscafe.com

Hours:
Monday to Saturday, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Lunch, Friday only, starting at 11:30 a.m.