I think the best way to start this review is with this single sentence - I am NOT a fan of seafood,…read morebut the blackened salmon dish at Maggiano's is, perhaps, the very best thing I've EVER eaten... ANYWHERE. Likewise, Italian food, in general, has never been something I crave, or go out of my way for, and Maggiano's has become the ONLY exception for me. Thirdly (and yes, there are THREE huge points I want to make here - ANY of which would, alone, be enough for me to continue choosing Maggiano's as our "dinner out" destination), I have, in the vast majority of my dining experiences as an adult (and I'm 62, so there have been MANY), been the guy who always chuckles when offered any type of dessert, because, frankly, most places don't have anything that seem overly appealing to me. At Maggiano's, we have done the family style meal (both times we've been there - and there will be many, MANY more), so dessert was included. Well, friends, let me tell you about NEXT LEVEL. Everything we got was EXCEPTIONAL, but I want to rave, for just a minute, about the "Butter Cake". When our "soon to be daughter in law" chose that as one of our THREE desserts that came with our meal, I immediately conjured up some kind of dry, nearly tasteless cupcake. I could not have been more wrong. This unassuming looking dish was, hands down, the most delicious dessert I've ever eaten! WHO KNEW!?! There was, in fact, such an explosion of sweetness and flavor in each bite that I had a friendly bet with the rest of our table that there MUST be "pineapple" somewhere in the mix. I was proven wrong, after asking our server, who wasn't sure but said she would find out, which led to the CHEF COMING TO OUR TABLE! The chef, who's first name was Nalelly (hope I'm spelling that correctly), introduced herself then explained, in detail, how that dish was made, and I'm not gonna lie, she had everyone at the table CAPTIVATED (and taking mental notes, lol). All of this ^^^ on a Friday evening when the restaurant was PACKED. We had reservations, got in with zero wait, were immediately greeted by our server, drinks, salads, appetizers, main course AND desserts were all brought out at EXACTLY the right times, and we got to meet the chef. Short of possibly having a juggler come perform at our table, I literally cannot imagine what else ANYONE could ask for out of a dining experience. I am SOOO not "Italian", but I just have to say, BUONISSIMO!!!!!