Bottega

Imagine a warmly-lit room paneled in walnut, the crisp white tablecloths absorbing the gleam of the copper bar. The aromas filling the room are reminiscent of Italy and the Mediterranean: simple Venetian fish dishes, Tuscan roasts, Moroccan tagines and flavors from throughout the Mediterranean basin. This is Bottega Restaurant. Open in 1988 in the historic Bottega Favorita building on Highland Avenue, this is the second in Frank Stitt's family of restaurants. Frank, a four-time James Beard Award nominee, wanted a place to work with the sun-drenched flavors of the region without imposing on the existing French influence of his first restaurant, Highlands Bar & Grill. Café Bottega is patterned after bustling Italian trattorias. An open kitchen and wood-fired brick oven produces pizzas topped with farm eggs, mascarpone prosciutto and and Bottega’s roast loin with polenta, tomato chutney and Venetian spinach. Bottega and Café Bottega are two of four restaurants owned by Frank Stitts in Birmingham’s Southside neighborhood.