Vapiano—Boston, MA

About a month ago, I noticed a new restaurant near my office called Vapiano. Judging from the outside of the place, I thought it was going to be more of an upscale type of place, but I sure was wrong. Vapiano is infect a very inexpensive restaurant. I don’t think any of the dishes are more than $15. Not bad for the food they serve or the location that they are in.

As I walked info Vapriano, I was handed a card.  I asked the host what it was for and he explained to me that there are different food stations around the restaurant and as I ordered food from each station the cook enters what you had in the system and you tap the card on a little pad and I would pay at the host stand after I’d finished.  A little different than what I’m used to but kinda high tech and  easy enough to deal with. And the host was right, there were several stations for me to choose from—Pizza, Panini, Salad, and Appetizers, with quite a few choices per station. We opted to try some of the pasta dishes. It was delightful to see them cooking the dishes to order using fresh ingredients. They even used fresh herbs picked directly from the plant. What a wonderful idea!
Another thing that amazed me was the pasta cooking machine they used. It cooks the pasta perfectly no matter what kinda of pasta you order. They also had a really cool electromagnetic stove. I really would love to have one of those in my kitchen, but the cook told me they cause a few thousand dollars… Eek!
The food overall was pretty decent. Of course nothing compares to a place like Giacomo’s in the North End of Boston (link to my review), but not bad at all for a quick Italian lunch near the office. For me, it’s the fresh ingredients, the cooking to order, the price and the awesome setting that help make Vapiano stand out. All in all, Vapiano made a good impression on me. if you haven’t tried them yet, they are in a few big cities like Boston, New York, DC, etc.

I give them 4 pans.

Vaipiano Boston
191 Stuart Street
Boston, MA 02116
P. 857-445-0236
www.vapiano.com

Review – Varasano’s Pizzeria

Hey Gang,
Returning with another review of a local restaurant here in Atlanta.
This time I went to Varasano’s Pizzeria, located in Midtown Atlanta, about a mile north of the High Museum. I had a Groupon that expired on the 29th and didn’t want it to go to waste, so headed there for a late dinner on Monday Night.

source: http://www.varasanos.com

This pizzeria has recently won some national acclaim, making into the top eight of Rachael Ray’s Search for the Best Pizza in America. The owner Jeff Varasano has done his research and has happily posted it online for the world to see. Part manifesto parts reading as though from a master’s thesis, he discusses the intricacy of the crust, which is the whole part of Varasano’s Pizza Philosophy.
Located in Midtown, I found the restaurant easy enough, parked and entered on the street level. Nice entrance, open to the bar. Seeing the “Please seat yourself” sign, I choose a seat near enough to the kitchen and open oven/pizza prep area to keep an eye open on things but not at the bar, as those are not my favorite places to sit. The waitress seemed nice, service was a tiny bit strained as she seemed to be working the section alone, but all in all, was ok.
After ordering a soda and presented with the menu, I sat to work deciding what to order. Three things jumped out at me: the spinach salad, the Saluni pizza, and the Espresso Panna Cotta. So i place an order for the salad and the Pizza, deciding that the Panna Cotta could wait until later.
The salad came quickly. (sorry no picture) It had a nicely flavored dressing, sweet but not overbearing. Gorgonzola dotted the corners of the plate, which played nicely with the spinach and the pecans that also dotted the salad. A small salad, it served as satisfying appetizer.

When I go to a restaurant with an open kitchen like Varasano’s, I tend to sit nearby. I like to watch the movement of the staff, the ballet that is played out each night. Tonight, there were 3 in the pizza oven area, the part that was open, just behind a nice bar with stools for those who like to be on top. Two of the guys were all making the pizzas and a third was dressing them and the salads with the final shavings of cheese and garnish. (She left early and so did one of the guys, leaving the third to finish up the pies) What I found cool is that there were what appeared to be stacks of Gladware containers behind the cooks, each with a pie’s worth of dough. Out would come the dough, a little flour and stretching and tossing would begin.
As I was surveying my copy of Saveur, I looked up and thought I saw the owner himself. He was working the area in a separated air, aware both of his troops and with his guests as well. I nodded my hellos and he then proceeded to bring over a slice of pizza, explaining that they had an extra pie and offered me a sample of there house speciality, The Nana. After thanking him and introducing myself, I settled into my slice. Following the instructions on the menu, I left my fork and knife aside and dove in with gusto. Very Nice. Good sauce and cheese. It whetted my appetite for my pizza. Then along came my Salumi.

This arrived shortly after, piping hot from the oven. Apparently, they cook their pizzas at about 873 degrees, so it was like molten at first bite, but knowing what I was going to get, I kept on going. And I was not let down by my perseverance. The thinly slice Italian meats, not sure what varieties, but tasted real pepperoni, Hot Sopressata, Capocollo, and others, were crisp and meaty. Blobs of mozzarella and bits of katamala olives rested atop a thin layer of sauce which hovered on their crust. I have never had crust like this before. (read his manifesto) Light, airy and not at all dry, it was sublime. I reluctantly left behind the crusts as there was a lot of pizza. I persevered, devouring the entire pizza, not in record time, but fast enough to savor the flavor. The surprise was the olives, passing over their brininess to the meats and crust while melding with the sauce just enough. The owner checked back in with me about half way through my pizza, and we chatted for a moment or two before I returned to my meal; I didn’t want to leave any behind.

And I didn’t. I used my fork to finish up the final bits of olive and meat that had slipped off the ends of the slices, and sent my plate back to kitchen well satisfied.

The waitress returned, asking about dessert or the check. I decided for the Panna Cotta, as I try to order as often as I can out. Brought in a martini glass, it had a nice layered effect. The top had a delicate hint of orange to the firm gelatin assisted with chocolate shavings, the middle a thin rich coffee gelatin, barely gelatinized and the bottom was a nice subtle chocolate layer, leading all in all to a delicious dessert that was not overpowering nor detracting from the flavor memory of the pizza.

I settled my bill, leaving a nice tip based on the total purchase price before the discount of the Groupon.
This is a place i will be coming to again, hopefully with friends, sitting where i was again to watch the pizza makers do their magic.

5 pans

Varasano’s Pizzeria
2171 Peachtree Road Northeast
Atlanta, GA 30309
(404) 352-8216
www.varasanos.com

What’s for Dinner? – Chicken Parmesan

I have been woefully remiss about keeping up with my “What’s for Dinner” series, and I’ve been even worse at writing about them! I made this dish all the way back in January and to be perfectly blunt… it was pretty much a disaster. The moral of this story… read, read, read the recipe.

One of my favorite Italian dishes has always been Chicken Parmesan. It’s something I love to eat both out and at home and my partner has a great recipe for it, but it’s not exactly the most healthy recipe as the chicken is breaded and pan fried in oil. I decided since we are both trying to eat more healthy, to look for a more healthy recipe, one that called for the chicken to be baked and not fried.

I headed out on the internet and found two such recipes. The first one however didn’t call for breading the chicken breasts, something I really wanted to keep from the original fried recipe. I went looking again and found another recipe that did include it, so I headed off to the market to get my ingredients.

When I returned I set about the task of making dinner. I laid out my ingredients and checked the recipe on my laptop.

I started by pounding the chicken flat, dipping it in the egg wash and rolling it in the bread crumbs.

I then checked the recipe again to figure out how long the chicken needed to bake for. The recipe said to put the chicken in the pan cover with sauce and cook for 35 minutes. I did just that.

I put the chicken in the oven and walked away. A few minutes later, I had a thought… how on earth was the chicken going to get crispy when it was sitting in the sauce? I checked the recipe again and I realized I mixed up the two. I was supposed to bake the chicken without the sauce in the recipe I chose! I was pretty worried that I had ruined dinner. I let it cook according to the rest of the correct recipe and crossed my fingers.

In the end, it turned out okay, the top of the chicken was crispy, but the bottom was not. All of the breadcrumbs had been absorbed into the sauce but the chicken tasted great and dinner was not a total loss. I did however learn an important lesson… always read and re-read the recipe!

Eating my way through Boston

This past weekend I was lucky enough to visit with one of my co-hosts… Chuti!

An extremely gracious host, he took me all around Boston to some of his favorite places, and he even cooked a Thai meal for me. I can say this about Chuti… he is spot on in his reviews of the places in Boston and he is an amazing cook.

We started off at a place called Mary Chung’s where we had some Chinese food, it was pretty good but I especially enjoyed the sweet corn with minced chicken soup. The next morning we visited a diner in the South End for breakfast called Mike’s City Diner.

Wow, not only was the food amazing, but the waitress was a so sweet and the atmosphere was perfect. Expect a review from one of us very soon.

We also had a neat visit to H-Mart, a giant Korean Market where we filmed our first video podcast. Be sure to check it out!! For dinner on Friday, we ate late and we went to a place that I had eaten at before but was eager to return to… Shabu Zen, a Japanese Hot Pot or Shabu-Shabu restaurant. It was exactly what we needed, a lovely warm meal on a very cold Boston evening.

Saturday was definitely the highlight of my weekend in Boston. We skipped breakfast and headed to the Super 88 Mart (another asian market) to do some shopping for the dinner Chuti was planning on cooking. While there we ate a food stall called Pho Viet. I had Grilled Lemon Grass Chicken over Vermicelli, so good. So much flavor!!

After shopping we went back to Chuti’s place where he proceeded to prep and cook a simply amazing meal of Thai dishes. Red Curry Duck, Chicken Basil, Tom Yum Koong Soup and fresh rolled Spring Rolls. Everything he made was simply divine. Each dish was delicious and I think if I had to pick a favorite, I’d say it was the Red Curry Duck. I had not really had duck before, but after this dish, I can not wait to have it again. Each dish was so colorful, beautiful and full of flavor.

Perhaps even more enjoyable than eating the meal was watching and helping Chuti cook. A true professional, I’m seriously surprised he’s not a chef. His knife skills were impressive, and every plate of prepped food looked so beautiful that you wanted to take photos of it. On top that he seemed so laid back, relaxed and in control. I only hope that at some point I can be half as competent and happy in the kitchen as he.

If Saturday was the highlight, Sunday was the gravy. My flight home on Sunday was cancelled, which not only afforded me some more time to hang out with Chuti, it also gave us the opportunity to head to the North End for dinner. We spent Sunday recording the DLE podcast together, which was so much fun. To be in the same room with one of my fellow co hosts really enhanced the experience. I hope some day all four of us can be in the same room during a show. Prior to the show, we headed off to one of his favorite places for breakfast called Sofra Bakery and Cafe. A Middle Eastern bakery, we had some amazing pastry and a dish called shakshuka, an egg poached in tomato curry… so good! I’m sure he’ll be writing a review but I wanted to show a picture of the “morning bun with orange blossom glaze”. Kind of like “Monkey Bread” but with a lovely orange glaze. So good.

As tasty as brekfast was, dinner was so worth missing my flight. Chuti took me to Giacomo‘s, which after reading his review, I was very much looking forward to visiting. He was spot on about the place. The food was fantastic. Perhaps the best Italian food I’ve had. I ordered the Chicken Parmesan and it was just perfect. The thing that I think surprised me the most about Giacomo’s was how small it was inside. He mentioned how people would stand and wait to get it but I had no idea how small it was, there were perhaps only six tables. It felt like eating in your grandmother’s kitchen. Simply amazing.

We capped off our weekend at Modern Pastry, another place that Chuti wrote about that I was dying to try. Once again he was completely right about the place. I was blown away by the cannoli. The shell was so crisp, the filling so delicious. At his suggestion, we also had the tiramisu, which I don’t particularly care for, however, Modern Pastry completely changed my mind! I’ve never had tiramisu that tasted that good. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end the evening.

All in all, my weekend in Boston was one of the best weekends I’ve ever spent hanging out with friends. Low pressure, new experiences, good food and great company… what more could you ask for? 5 Pans!

Review: Ron’s Original Bar and Grille

One of my favorite places to go for a quick Saturday afternoon lunch is Ron’s Original Bar and Grille in Exton, PA. I found this place year and years ago when it was called “Ron’s Schoolhouse Grill”. A not so little local place specializing in Italian Food and Sandwiches, they also have a great bar with a good selection of mircorbrews.

Ron’s is a nice, casual, fun place to be. The decor is a bit quirky, but so much fun. There is often a Christmas tree decorated with ornaments for whatever the nearest holiday is, and on the way to the dining room be sure to check out the wild school bus that is mounted to the wall. In the dining room, there are large collage-like pictures on the wall with the names of all the local towns, paying homage to it’s Chester County roots. It’s a nice touch.

I’ve eaten at Ron’s many times and although the menu is quite large and diverse, with lots of appetizers, sandwiches (hot and cold), Italian entrees, Pizzas and something called ovals, I do have my personal favorites… chief among them is the Victoria’s (Secret) Fries. This scrumptious heart attack on a plate starts on with a heaping helping of Ron’s crinkle cut fries (the best cut in my opinion) coated with a “secret” mixture of seasonings and topped bacon, mozzarella and I think Cheez Whiz. It’s served with a side of ranch dressing which really compliments the spice of the “secret” seasonings.

I’m also crazy about their cheese steaks. While not your typical Pat’s or Geno’s South Philly Steaks, they are delicious and served with many different and interesting topics. Their burgers which are also very good are served with lots of different toppings as well. In addition both the steaks and burgers are in several ways including on a long roll, in a wrap and as a “Protein Platter” which is the whole sandwich minus the bread and for anyone on Atkins or watching their carbs is a very nice touch. My lunch date opted for the “Kennett Square” steak, which is a steak with DOUBLE mushrooms, his choice of bread was the wrap. It was served with more of Ron’s tasty crinkle cut fries. It was very very good.

Now I often will go with one of my favorite sandwiches, which Ron’s does very well… the Slow Roasted Pork. I love it “Italiano” style with melted provolone and roasted peppers. Yum! But on this trip I decided to try one of the Italian entrees. There was a lot to choose from, but I settled on Stuffed Shells, a food that I loved as a child. I also ordered a side order of sweet Italian sausage.

I will say that the shells were quite tasty. I’m not 100% sure they were fresh made and not froze, but the pasta was just the right consistency and the ricotta was seasoned well. The cheese on top was the prefect amount, not too much, not too little. My only complaint was that their gravy (tomato sauce to some) was a bit bland, which was a problem that carried over to the sausage. The sausage itself was amazing. I’ve never had such perfectly sweet and spicy Italian sausage. I loved it but I didn’t love the gravy. Now that being said I’m not going to hold it against them too much because it’s hard to please everyone with gravy/sauce, some like it with a kick, some don’t. I personal love it with lots of garlic and onions and basil, but the next person might not.

In summary, in my opinion, Ron’s is just one of the best restaurants in Chester County, lots of variety, at good prices in a very causal and fun atmosphere… 4 pans!

Ron’s Original Bar and Grille
74 E Uwchlan Ave.
(Route 113, just North of Route 100)
Exton, PA 19341
610.594.9900
http://www.ronsoriginal.com/

DLE Podcast 011 – Candy Importers

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Direct Download Link

Chuti eats Japanese in Atlanta, Peter sent Kit Kat to everyone, Chris cooked Indian food and JJ found an Italian Restaurant in Texas

Follow us on twitter (dammitletseat), leave us a voice mail at 620-3DAMMIT, or send us an email at feedback@dammitletseat.com

Review: Theresa’s

I mentioned in my last post that I had a chance before my Christmas break to review a few restaurants, the second place I went that week was a place called “Theresa’s Cafe”. Located in Wayne, PA just off the Main Line… Theresa’s is actually two restaurants, the Cafe and The Bar Next Door. I originally thought were headed to The Bar Next Door, which Yelp! said was well known for their mussels and beer, but we ended up at the more upscale, but really, really tiny Theresa’s Cafe. The restaurant was very cozy and warm, with nice deep earth tones and an exposed kitchen at the back of the very narrow dining room.

We were seated in the middle of the dining room, and started to look over the menu. Theresa’s Cafe is 100% an Italian place and the menu looked amazing. They brought over some bread and olive oil to start and we noshed while deciding from the many wonderful choices just what we wanted to eat. One of the things that caught my attention was the Bruschetta menu. Not just one choice but four choices of bruschetta to choose from… yum! We decided on a very standard tomato and mozzarella bruschetta, and boy was it good. The cheese was rich and creamy and the and the tomatoes were perfect.

For our main courses we decided on the Spinaci salad for her and the Gnocchi Sorrentino for me.

Both of our dishes were spectacular. I mean really outstanding. I’m a huge sucker for gnocchi… I mean PASTA and POTATO… come on! The gnocchi was served very simply with a light marinara and tons of basil, just like I like it. My lunch mate’s salad however was definitely the better of the two. It was a spinach salad topped with warm butternut squash, goat cheese and a maple vinaigrette. I was really unsure of how all those strong flavors would come together but they did exquisitely and that dressing was really something I had not expected.

I really enjoyed the food and atmosphere at Theresa’s Cafe. This is one place that will be added to my favorite’s list. 5 pans.

Theresa’s Cafe
124 N. Wayne Avenue
Wayne, PA 19087
http://www.teresas-cafe.com

Review: Milano Cafe

If there’s one thing Austin is sorely lacking, it would be Italian hands down.  Sure, there’s your chain restaurant variety such as Olive Garden and Carino’s, but I’m looking for something local and more special. 

What’s great about Austin is all the local places you can eat at.  Chain restaurants aren’t plentiful, since Austinities make it a point to support the local businesses.  May great varieties of restaurants have flourished here with the exception of Italian. 

After digging somewhat, I stumbled upon a little place called Milano Cafe in South Austin.  Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive but I, of course, was skeptical. 

The ambiance was comfortable.  The design choices skewed more modern with interesting lamps, glass tables, oddly shaped chairs, etc.  Not homey but any means, but the feeling was comfortable nonetheless. 

What is also quite noticeable is the fact that Milano Cafe is incredibly small.  I would guess maybe 20 people can be sat comfortably.  The operation is small with only about 2 people in the front to wait and greet,and I would guess maybe 2 in the back to cook. 

Very cafe like, you walk up to the counter and order at the register.  The menu wasn’t brimming with choices, but there were a modest selection of Italian favorites.  Honestly, I would perfer a smaller menu and concentrated effort on a few dishes than the other way around.

My friend, Nick, another foodie, and I decided to split some appetizers.  We chose the bruschetta with sauteed mushrooms and feta cheese and a Cesar salad.     

The bruschetta was wonderful.  The outside was nice and crispy with a fluffy inside.  The mushrooms were nicely cooked, tender and sweet.  It was nice compliment to the feta which was creamy, tart, and salty. 

The Cesar salad was good but not spectacular.  It didn’t help that it came with our entrees.  The salad was nicely crisp and tasted fresh.  The sauce, according to the proprietor, was imported from Italy and had some extra ingredients added to it.  It was nicely creamy, salty, slightly tangy.  I couldn’t really taste the anchovies, but it was good nonetheless.  I will say that it seemed over priced at nearly six dollars considering the portion. 

As for the entrees, Nick decided to get the Cannelloni.  I believe it featured ground beef as the filling.  I did give it a taste and would say it was very heavy.  The cheese and sause were a nice accompliment to the filling, but the filling itself was a bit too heavy but tasty nonetheless.  Nick, although subdued in his reactions, seemed to enjoy the dish a lot as evidenced by the empty plate at the end of the meal.    

I decided on the Fettucini with Chicken and Gargonzola.  I love blue cheese and this was a no brainer.  When my dish was brought over, I could immediately smell the wonderfulness of the Gargonzola.  The sauce was creamy but slightly flat.  The chicken and mushrooms were nice and tender.  Nick had commented that the sauce would have been better with some sort of seafood like shrimp, and I couldn’t agree more.   The sauce would have been perfect if it had a little more body.  Otherwise, the meal was quite good.

I will say, honestly, that I wasn’t blown away.  I had very high hopes, but in retrospect, I can’t be too choosy about Italian in Austin.  The food had an authentic feel to it thanks in part by the fact that the owners are Sicilian.  Overall, I felt the meal was good.  I will be returning sometime in the future to see if there is fidelity in the quality of their food. 

Milano Cafe – www.milanoaustin.com

Review: Cafe 2 at MoMA

This weekend, I was lucky enough to have one of my very best friends in the world, who happens to live in Japan here in the States visiting with me. He’s been a few times and usually our routine is the same… he comes to visit, we avoid touristy things and just hang out and just act as if we don’t live a 7,000 miles from each other and finally, we go to NYC for one day and one night. The goal of going to NYC is to have one big adventure, in a somewhat familiar place before he starts his 14 some hour trek back home.

This time around we decided our big adventure would be to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). We left Philadelphia and travelled by train (my preferred mode of transportation to NYC) and arrived at about 1130am. We were both quite hungry but decided to head off in the near zero wind chill temperatures and walk from the hotel to the MoMA, stopping along the way to see the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center and to look for some Italian food. When my friend from Japan is here in the States, we try to sample all different kinds of cuisine, especially ones he cannot easily get back home. While we looked and looked out on the street for a nice Italian place, we could find none. I then remembered that the MoMA had quite a few places to eat inside and one of them served Italian food so we decided to just go there.

The MoMA does in fact have three places to eat… the Modern, a rather pricey, rather fancy restaurant located on the first floor, Terrace 5, a full service Cafe on the 5th floor and the restaurant we chose Cafe 2… a lovely cafe on the 2nd floor.

Cafe 2 is a rather unique from the other sort of places I’ve eaten in while at a museum. Not only does it offer excellent Italian fare, it’s a very interesting place to eat. It’s always very busy and you stand in line for a quite a bit waiting to place your order. While in line, there are some laminated menus that float from person to person as well as a huge wall with the menu printed on it. The menu is very large and quite diverse. From Antipasta, to Cheese Plates, Pasta to Espresso, there is something for everyone and choosing what to eat is no easy task.

Once you decide what you will order, you approach a cashier where you give your order and in return you are given a “number” to take with you to the table. The seating is family style. Long tables with chairs on either side adorn the small dining room and you just pick an empty spot and have a seat. Your meal is prepared for you and delivered to your table by the wait staff.

My friend and I were quite hungry at this point and we decided to order quite a bit of food. I’m always surprised by my friend’s insistence on having a balance to our meals. No matter where we go and what type of cuisine we might be having, we always order some sort of vegetables, be it a salad or actual veggies and today was no exception. We decided to share the “Hearts of Romaine” salad, and he ordred the Cavatelli and I ordered the Rigatoni. We got our “number” and found a nice table near the window and waited.

The salad and pasta came fairly quickly. First we sampled the salad. It was an enormous plate of romaine hearts topped with sun-dried tomatoes, toasted pine nuts, shaved parmigiano cheese and finished with a creamy parmigiano vinaigrette. It was divine. The pine nuts and roasted red peppers were perfect together.

Next up were our pasta dishes. My friend chose the Cavatelli. It was a very generous bowl of pasta with chicken, mushrooms, and white beans served in a chicken broth with a strong flavor of parmigiano cheese. A perfect selection on a cold winter day… the soup was warm, delicious and hearty.

My entree selection was the Rigatoni. The Rigatoni was quite a bit smaller than usual, almost like it had been cut into thirds while being made. It was tossed with a light tomato and parmigiano cream sauce and ground italian sausage. Topped with a generous helping of cheeese, it was delicious and not as heavy as I had expected.

All in all our lunch was amazing and I enjoyed Cafe 2. That being said, there were some negatives to the experience that will subtract from it’s rating. First of all… the place was really, really busy and there were way to many waiters and waitresses. They moved very inefficiently and twice we were almost covered in someone’s lunch. Also, I’m not really a fan of family style seating. It was quite difficult to hear my very soft spoken, nervous to speak English friend over the patrons to our left arguing in Hebrew and the couple out on a date speaking in Italian to our right . I suppose with a different luncheon partner I might not have noticed those things but it was loud and crowded none the less.

What I could not look past was the price. I’ve never really spoken on price before in a review but Cafe 2 at MoMA was absurd. Our lunch cost us $56.00. That was for two people at a museum. I realize it is New York and we were paying for convenience but it was really too expensive.

All that aside, the food was wonderful and the experience was unique so I’m going to give Cafe 2 at MoMA four pans. I’d love to hear if anyone else has eaten at Cafe 2 and what your thoughts are. Feel free to leave some comments below!

Cafe 2 at MoMA
MoMA
9 W 53 Street
2nd floor
New York, NY 10055
http://www.momacafes.com/c2/c2.html

Maggiano’s Little Italy

I’ve eaten at Maggiano’s a few times during my 8 years here in Boston. Now that I know they have expanded to a few more cities, I thought I’d give you my 2¢.

The Boston location is near the theater district, which means parking can be both tough to find and expensive, but this is a food blog so I’m gonna leave it up to you to get there. The interior of the place fits right in with the theme of the restaurant and really gives the place a nice dose of atmosphere and makes it really inviting.

There were seven us the last time we went so we opted for the “family style” dining experience they offer. Even when you opt for the “family style” you still have three more options to choose from. Think of them as the “no so hungry”, “wow, I’m hungry”, and the “Dammit Let’s Eat!”. We decided on the middle of the road “Wow, I’m hungry” aka “Classic” option.

We had to choose two types of salads and two appetizers to start off with. We chose the Mushroom Ravioli al Forno and Mozzarella Marina for our appetizers and the Caesar and Chopped salads for our salad choices. The Ravioli al Forno was a tasty ravioli stuffed with mushrooms, onions, marsala wine, parmesan cheese and then baked with an Alfredo sauce until golden brown and the Mozzarella Marina was quite tasty… whole milk mozzarella cheese breaded, fried and topped with provolone cheese and marinara sauce.

The Caesar salad was a traditional Caesar salad of romaine lettuce tossed with Caesar dressing, croutons and shaved parmesan cheese and the Chopped salad was made with chopped iceberg lettuce, diced tomatoes, crumbled bleu cheese, green onion, avocado, crispy Prosciutto, tossed in our signature House Dressing. They were very different salads but both were fresh and delicious!

By this time as you can imagine I was more than half full after devouring the Mushroom Ravioli! However, it was time for the main course… and never one to back down from a challenge, I soldiered on. We ordered the Beef Braciole, Fettuccine Alfredo, Chicken Saltimbocca and the Four-Cheese Ravioli. They were all very good, especially the Beef Braciole which was beef cutlets stuffed and rolled with ground beef vegetables, asiago cheese with a red wine tomato sauce.

The menu at Maggiano’s is large and there are lot of options for you to choose from and you can always ask for more of anything… all in all not a bad deal for the money.

For dessert we had Maggiano’s Signature Spumoni, an item not on the menu which the waiter said was made especially for us and Tiramisu. The “Signature Spumoni” was a blend of pistachio, chocolate and cherry ice cream and the Tiramisu was classically prepared. Ladyfinger cookies soaked in espresso and coffee liqueur layered with mascarpone cheese, dusted with cocoa powder and served with chocolate sauce. Most of my dinner companions were by this time quite full so most people went for the Spumoni, which made me happy as I LOVE the Tiramisu at Maggiano’s. More for me is never a bad thing.

I know some of the photos here don’t do justice to what we actually saw on the table, but it was very dark and I did the best I could! We were overall very satisfied with the food. As for the service…well the waiter we had was just OK, a little on the annoying side but we made it through to the end with out too much trouble.

I would definitely say you should give Maggiano’s a try if you have one in your area.

However, if you are in the Boston area, I would still recommend you try one of the Italian Restaurants in the North End such as my favorite, Giacomo’s (my review is here) for a true authentic experience.