Top Tier Restaurant Brings Northern Italy to Baltimore

The name means Wild Boar, which in Italy is what they call their young studs. So appropriate...especially after meeting the executive chef Julian Marucci, a young and talented man who is probably the last person to ever boast about his culinary skills. Cinghiale (pronounced Sing-ha-lee), situated in the Little Italy section of Baltimore, is a destination more than just a restaurant. Having read the OpenTable.com reviews, I knew we were in for a treat, but whilst digging deeper into the history of the restaurant, I discovered a beautiful love story and a collection of establishments destined for greatness. Cinghiale is one of four businesses owned and run by husband and wife Tony Foreman and Cindy Wolf, who were married after having met for the first time at Georgia Brown's.

Originally from Baltimore, Tony Foreman has lived in Texas and Philadelphia while also having traveled to Europe countless times. He's also a big Ravens fan and fastidious when it comes to running daily operations. Together, Foreman and Wolf clearly create some kind of chemistry. Their restaurant, Charleston, is Baltimore's only four star restaurant and is on its way to becoming a five-star if Tony has anything to say about it. There are two affiliated wine shops, one located in Baltimore (Bin604) and one in Annapolis (Bin201) - neither of which carries a label Tony hasn't approved and he has tasted almost every single one of them. And in his spare time, Tony oversees everything from the hiring of each employee at their chef-run restaurants to the font on their menus.

If all their servers are similar to the one we had, then his hiring standards are clearly top notch. Our server's name was Emanuelle and I would like to sing her praises. She was more like a menu expert who took our orders and she has now set the bar so high for professional and personable service that I doubt I'll ever meet her match again....unless maybe I dine at Charleston next. Of all the top tier restaurants I've dined in, she was the first person to ever ask us "how the pace" was as they were bringing out our three courses. I cannot thank her enough for paying attention. Each course was paired with a wine selection that we wanted to savor and dissect and share. Too many restaurants don't coordinate between courses. Cinghiale makes it a point to block off a large amount of time for each table, so as not to rush anyone through.

And believe me, you do not want to rush through this food. From the prosuitto di parma, aged 14 months, to the mozzarella di buffalo that melts like ice cream in your mouth, there are a list of "must try" options on the menu. We were lucky enough to sample one of the chef's specials for the day, but also enjoyed the hand formed tortellini and grilled magret of duck. The menus change so frequently due to seasonal availability, I'd hate to get your mouth watering on a dish that's no longer being served. One thing that remains the same is that their pastas are all made fresh in house each day. Each of their restaurants support local farmers and they take their employees to Italy or France once a year so they know exactly how good food should taste.

Cindy Wolf is a classically trained chef from South Carolina, whose experience in Hyde Park has served her well. She had the once in a lifetime opportunity to cook for Julia Child at Charleston's. And even though she's more than qualified to compete on Top Chef, she can't bear the thought of being away from the restaurants for too long. Tony and Cindy also oversee Pazo and Petit Louis Bistro, both also found in Baltimore and favored by the locals. Pazo is a tapas-style dining experience with a three-star Mobile Travel Guide rating in addition to top Zagat honors for 2010. Petit Louis was Zagat's 4th Most Popular restaurant in 2009.