Thursday, February 28, 2013

Respectable Rose Pistola




Stop #31 Rose Pistola (RP) was one of the places I’ve been looking forward to from the beginning, so I was happy when it finally came, and even happier when on the day I had a rezzy to go I received a groupon offer. Perfect timing! As soon as I walked into RP I liked it. The atmosphere is great, they have outdoor seating, a full bar, counter space to eat in front of the chefs, and then some more secluded tables near the back. The service was friendly, helpful, and attentive. For appys we had house marinated mixed olives and grilled seafood-stuffed calamari with potatoes, fava beans & spring onions. Both were good. Unfortunately they were out of the crab pasta, which is what Ryan would of liked to order, instead he went with the rock shrimp, provolone & shaved fennel pizza. He enjoyed it, but it wasn’t as good as he thought it was going to be. FZ ordered the slow-braised American kobe brisket  with stracchino-potato gratin & horseradish cream with a side of spinach. He thought the brisket was a little on the dry side, but I actually thought it was tender and had a nice smoky flavor. Kevin ordered the terrorized dry-aged NY steak with escarole & truffle butter. I’m convinced it was due to the humorous name, because as I got to know Kevin more over the course of this dinner he is an extremely funny guy. Everyone thought Kevin’s steak was really good, great flavor and cooked well. The girls both had the risotto with asparagus, bufala mozzarella & lemon oil. We both agreed it was very tasty. It wasn’t as creamy as I expected it to be, but this wasn’t a bad thing, as sometimes it makes it too heavy or rich. I liked the texture of it and the melted mozzarella made the dish. I could have eaten an entire plate of the mozzarella alone. The risotto was a generous portion size, so I thought I might have leftovers, but it was too good to stop eating. This is one of the more pricey restaurants on Columbus, especially for the main entrées, but if you are looking for a more upscale place in NB with great atmosphere and service it’s a good choice. I will definitely go back for appys and drinks and the occasional dinner, and I would like to do so on a night when they have live music.



Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Caffe Roma-licious!


Sunny days are best spent outdoors, especially when you can grab a good bite to eat with an amazing friend.  Stop #30 brought me to Caffe Roma after a gym sesh with Erin.  We ordered two sammies to share and sat at a table outside.  We had the Italiana- grilled chicken, mayo, mustard, tomatoes & cheese on a ciabatta roll served hot and the North Beach Special- turkey, salami, cheese, balsamic dressing, sun-dried tomatoes, avo & lettuce. Both sammies were delish. The chicken on the Italiana was flavorful and moist and there was lots of it. Loved the melted cheese on the crunchy ciabatta bread. The NB Special was served warm, instead of cold like it said on the menu, but it was still great. The balsamic dressing completely complimented the other flavors and gave it a nice kick. And again, who doesn’t love melted cheese on a sammy? Since Caffe Roma is best known for its caffeinated beverages, I ordered an iced chai to go, and indulged in a cupcake filled with cream cheese. Both of these items were heavenly. Dangerous. This is one of my fave CC finds so far. I will be back for the chai, the cupcake, the sammies, and to try various other menu items. They also have a good deal for a cup of soup & a half sammy for $8.95. Score.














Monday, February 25, 2013

L' (ordinary) Osteria



 

Best part by far of stop #29, L'Osteria Del Forno was the company. I was so happy to dine with some of my fave girls. I had never eaten there before, but Goose had a few years back and loved it. The review this time was not as good. In fact the reviews from everyone were mixed and mediocre at best.  Right from the start it wasn’t a very warm welcome from the waitresses. The place is small and it is difficult to accommodate larger parties, but a table for five should not have been too much trouble. You aren’t able to be seated until your entire party has arrived which is understandable, but once our party was entirely present they told us to step inside and then just looked at us as if we should rearrange the tables to put five seats together. We didn’t want to impose or assume we would chose the correct formation, so it was a bit of a staring contest for quite some time before we assisted one of the staff in creating a table for five. Phew, now that we had that out of the way, and luckily had a sense of humor about it, it was time to tackle the menu. We started with an insalata caprese (sliced tomatoes & fresh mozzarella with basil, capers, green olives & anchovies) and the pomodori gratinati (baked tomatoes with bread crumbs, garlic, Italian parsley& olive oil). The caprese was good, the tomatoes were just a little on the mushy side. The stuffed tomato was bland and unfortunately was a preview of some of the dishes to come. 


When Megs asked the waitress what she liked (on the menu), the response was, “what do you like” I know this can be interpreted as her trying to get more info on Megs likes/dislikes, but either way the menu “help” was vague and not forthcoming. For our main courses we all agreed to order something different so we could share. Goose had the polenta, it was decent, but the word that came to mind was: bland. Sensing a theme? Even the melted gruyere cheese that coated it did 
not provide a
 flavorful kick. It definitely should be listed as a side dish and not an entrée. Di had the penne pasta baked in Bolognese, béchamel sauce. One word: bland. Megs had the crepes filled with sautéed porcini mushrooms, ham, béchamel sauce. This was good, filling, and rich. Mendy Poo had the pumpkin ravioli 

special. We were all excited about tasting this one. I really
 liked it, but (not surprisingly) it too could of used more spice. MP thought the pasta was undercooked. I ordered one of the many pizzas they offer- the tre formaggi: imported gorgonzola cheese, ricotta, and mozzarella, no sauce.  I enjoyed it and so did the rest of the table. Crisp crust with gooey cheese, what was not to like? For dessert we had a slice of the ricotta cheesecake, being a cheesecake connoisseur, I was not a fan. MP did LOVE her espresso with a scoop of vanilla ice cream in it. Some other good things to mention are- the prices are reasonable, perfect portions, the setting is very intimate, and the focaccia bread is amazing. I think you really just need to know what to order, so my advice is to avoid most of the menu items we had. This dining experience proved that no matter how mediocre the meal, as long as you are with the right friends the meal may be forgotten, but the moment will be memorable. 



























http://www.losteriadelforno.com/01_home.html


Thursday, February 7, 2013

Reacquainted & it tastes so good...






Stop #28, Original US Restaurant, yes please! I had only eaten here once before and it was over a year ago, I liked it, but it just wasn’t a place I ever thought to go back to. That will not be the case now. Goose and I dined there last week and it was awesome. Great atmosphere, attentive service, decent prices, and delish food. I had the penne a la salsa rosa- penne pasta in a tomato cream sauce and I added fresh mozzarella, which ended up being a wise move. The melted mozzarella complimented the rich sauce and al dente pasta nicely. The portion size was generous enough for me to make two meals out of it, love when that happens. They offer 2-3 specials daily and Goose got one of them. She had homemade pappardelle pasta with shrimp & zucchini in a tomato sauce. They were the widest pappardelle I’ve ever seen and the texture was perfect. Great flavors & it tasted extremely fresh. OG US also has TVs, which is always a plus for this sports girl. I’m really happy I was reacquainted with this place and look forward to eating there more than once a year.