Restaurateur Claude Amsellem started his fine dining career in 1973 when he opened Le Caprice in Bethesda . His early success set the stage for the restaurant boom in Bethesda that continues unabated. Amsellem's consistent excellence has not been overshadowed. In 1994, he opened Tragara, which serves some of the area's finest Italian cuisines.

 

Distinguished Parisian Chef, Michel Laudier, formerly Chef of Rive Gauche in Georgetown , is in charge of the kitchen. Paper thin agnolotti are his signature dish. Four different breads are baked daily. Wo nde rful appetizers include Portobello Monte Bianco, a rich, flavorful mushroom marinated and baked with homemade mozzarella, and warm goat cheese "en papillotte" with white truffle oil. A favorite main course is Linguine all " Aragosta Napoli" a roaster whole Main lobster in Italian tomato sauce, or Osso Bucco, veal shank slowly braised with gremolata over saffron rice. The desserts here are simply first rate. Consider the delectable Bianco nero, dark and white chocolate cake with hazelnut crust. unless, of course, you favor the homemade Tartufos such as Amaretto, Tutti noce, or Sambuca. Each is glazed with imported chocolate. Tragara is the place to go for a superb culinary experience, where fine dining is priceless.

Looking for a quietly elegant, subdued sort of restaurant where you know you'll get top-quality food and impeccable service? Where excitement and innovation don't matter much? Where price hardly matters at all? Then consider the attractions of Tragara: a conservative Italian menu with no surprises, top-quality ingredients, simple dishes deftly prepared, a thoroughly professional, European-style staff and a softly lighted, handsome dining room. Order anything. The seafood salad makes an impressive beginning, as does the seafood soup. Fried mozzarella gets elegant treatment here, and the vegetable soup is subtle but satisfying. Tomato sauces are fresh tasting and pastas cooked properly, but the highlights are the simple meat and seafood dishes, such as veal scaloppini with wild mushrooms, the utterly simple rack of lamb or the snapper Livornese. Be warned that the lobster-pasta combinations are exceptionally messy to eat (definitely to be avoided on a first date). End up with the intense gelati - their flavors are the most innovative thing on the menu.

Award winner since 1994