I wondered how such a well-reviewed restaurant could have such few reviews! I decided to give it a try for our FIL's 60th bday dinner... And boy did I found out why!
As soon as we sat, they gave us bruschetta and warm bread with olive oil and butter. I ordered figs with prosciutto and Gorgonzola as an appetizer - sweet and perfect. MIL's prix fixe - minestrone soup (said it wasn't too salty, just the way she likes it) but husband's Caesar salad was a bit too salty for his liking (he's watching his sodium intake).
I had the chicken and pear from the summer menu - I loved it! (You see how I love fruits with cheese and other savories?) I loved it so much instead of finishing it I decided to pack half so I could enjoy it again as Monday's lunch. I can see myself craving it and coming back again for it.
Husband loved his chicken parmigiana - he wished it came with some pasta.
FIL got the spinach linguini with the clams and mussels, also from the summer menu. It came al dente. He seemed to like it but I think he would have preferred something less light and instead a bit meatier (his dinner preference, but that was my fault as I suggested it to him).
MIL absolutely loved her chicken cacciatore. It was her first time eating it and she said, this place really suits my taste buds (translation).
When I had called to make reservations, I had mentioned it was my FIL's 60th and that I had seen great reviews on yelp. They remembered and with our prix fixe desserts (mousse and tiramisu) came candles and a song over the speakers wishing him a happy birthday. It was great. They ordered coffee and it came out with biscotti. We def enjoyed the biscotti dunked in the coffee. It's not part of our parents' culture to drink coffee this way so this too was a first for them, and they absolutely enjoyed it. The joy for me was in seeing that my PIL enjoyed this eating experience immensely.
You know how gratifying it is when after long hard yelp research you find what you hope is a gem and you go there and the collective experience of your dining party is super positive? Well that's how it felt today! (One measure of success is that we didn't hear any comparisons to Asian cooking nor any complaints of how greasy the food is - and that is a huge deal when Asian parents don't do that! That means they truly enjoyed it!)
I'm quite sure the wait staff and other patrons had a culture shock in seeing an Asian family walk in, but boy did we too have a culture shock as we sat down at 5:30 and all the tables around us began to fill up throughout the night with one elegant silver-haired party after another. Silver-haired folks with good taste that is. It was a wonderful way, in retrospect, to welcome my FIL to the post-60 club - boy did he feel very young sitting there as others politely clapped after the happy birthday song. He was convinced that an establishment that receives that many elderly patrons has got to be amazing in every way: the food, the service, the ambience, the price point, the temperature, the comfiness of the seats, etc. (I mean, this place even has a third bathroom - men's, women's, and handicap accessible! My husband marveled at that.)
I don't know if I can return though because as my MIL offered to pay, she accidentally put down a 50 instead of a 100 as part of the check and then we left. We were looking at trophies and jewelry in neighboring storefronts when they came out holding the bill and our bills. My MIL apologized profusely saying she meant to put down the 100 not the 50. I feel like I can't return because we kind of stuck out in that place and also it doesn't help that our Asian compadres are known to be stingy tippers.
[If there are two stereotypes I abhor and actively try fight as an Asian, they are: driving consciously and competently and controlled, as well as tipping handsomely when deserved (20-40%). I hope they don't hold this one honest mistake against people who look like us... or more importantly, us!
But this place was so delicious, I might just be tempted to risk being eyed suspiciously just so I can savor some awesome food again.
Other reviewers are correct: the chairs are certainly comfy - worn and patched but comfy. They def didn't rush us and folks who were there before our long dinner were still there after we left. I love clean bathrooms and often see the restroom as a representative of how clean the restaurant is overall, but this one was just ok. The establishment is dated and it looks so, but clean for sure. (Rust on bathroom stalls next to toilets though - they def give me the heebie-jeebies.)
By the time we left, everyone except folks at one table were senior citizens, and in the dining room we were in (there are two), ten tables were full of senior citizens, some on dates, some on double dates and others in large groups - and these people know how to eat!
Thanks, Villa d'Este!!!! read more