Warning: A bit of déjà vu is on the menu this week. Diners in the Cumming area may have a flashback reading about the new Tuscany in Alpharetta. Not only is the name the same, it's the same chef and concept as the one that operated in Forsyth County until three years ago.
Chef and co-owner Parviz Golshani sold that location in 2005 and kept busy with his interest in Aldo's, a 17-year-old restaurant in Tucker, and Merlot, which he recently moved from north Fulton to Gwinnett. But he couldn't resist the bug to get back in the kitchen, so he dusted off the Tuscany concept and, along with partner Saeed Mahzari, opened at 281 S. Main St. in Alpharetta. (More deja vu: This is the location that used to be the Italian-themed Roasted Garlic.) The new space retained the front patio, with room for 70 outside.
"I called it Tuscany again because I knew all those customers who kept saying I should open something over here would come back from the Cumming area," said Golshani. "I get a lot of calls from people who want to know if we're the same place."
The menu and more
Other diners may recognize Tuscany as the restaurant that took first place at the 2008 Taste of Alpharetta. The winning dish in the Fine Dining category was one of Golshani's seasonal specials: A fat square of halibut in a thick orange cream sauce, dotted with mandarin orange slices. Other specials have been broiled or fried 14-ounce lobster tails or a fisherman's soup with six varieties of shellfish. Most of the dishes are Golshani's own creations.The regular menu opens with red or white Tuscan clam chowders; salads; fried cheese ravioli and calamari; and a marinated portobello that's grilled and served in a bed of roasted red pepper sauce. There's the expected array of pastas: spaghetti with meat or marinara sauce; fettuccine Alfredo; lasagna; cannelloni stuffed with ricotta; and penne with olive oil, garlic, tomato and feta. Veal and chicken are given the parmigiana, francese, piccata and marsala treatment. For meat lovers, the filet mignon comes in sauce Diane, blackened or au poivre. Sausage comes with peppers or eggplant. The salmon is grilled or blackened; shrimp is served in a spicy marinara.
The sauces are made in-house each day, as are the desserts, including cannoli, cheesecake, spumoni, tiramisu and a silver cream pie — chocolate mousse topped with whipped cream and chocolate flakes.
From the bar
Tuscany's full bar features about 20 bottled beers, including a few from Italy. Much of the wine list, mostly from California, is available by the glass. There's also a selection of martinis. The signature drink is a Tuscany coffee, blended with brandy, Kahlua, Baileys and cream.• Signature dish: Any of chef Parviz Golshani's specials, such as halibut in an orange cream sauce
• Entree prices: $8.95-$24.95
• Hours: Lunch, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Mondays-Fridays; dinner, 5-10 p.m. Mondays-Saturdays
• Reservations: Yes
• Credit cards: Yes
