San Antonio’s North Italia is opening soon, here’s what to know

North Italia, one of The Rim’s newest tenants, hosted a weekend of preview events ahead of its June 9 grand opening. 

Madalyn Mendoza, MySA.com

The food! 

We shared Italian meatballs for our starter. The appetizer comes with three meatballs covered in creamy polenta, marina and Grana Padano cheese. We both eyed the third and final meatball with hungry eyes, ultimately deciding to go half on it. We joked that the marina was so good, we were tempted to lick the spoon (we didn’t).

While the meatballs were a hit at our table, I had a bit of foodie FOMO after seeing the Instagram posts by influencers after their visit. The photo by @sa_socialista had me wishing the wild shrimp scampi and crispy calamari was on my menu. 

After I saw my mom’s massive chicken parmesan, I questioned myself for deciding on a lighter option. Still, my medium cooked salmon served on pesto farro and caramelized cauliflower with broccolini filled me up. It was flaky on the outside with a moist middle. Plus, I got a few bites off my mom’s plate. North Italia’s other inaugural guests also really sold the glazed short rib cavatelli on Instagram after their dinners. 

We shared a hazelnut torta for dessert. Unlike the appetizer round, I was too full by dessert and was relieved to split the rich hazelnut toffee with salted caramel gelato.

Entrees on my menu ranged from $21 to $27. 

My mom had enough for a sizable to-go portion. I finished most of my dish, save a few spoonfuls of cauliflower.