4 /5 Robert Weller: My first time here. The restaurant is a quite nice family establishment. We were here to celebrate the life of a close family friends passing. The party was 25+ people. Im sure the kitchen was pressed by the size of the lunch orders. Red and white wine were served along with glasses of water for all. Soda and other beverages were also available. Eventually carafes of water placed on the tables. The antipasto was very nicely done with roasted red peppers, artichokes, greens, cappacola, small diced tomatoes, etc all well seasoned. The fried calamari with red sauce was very, very good. Crispy, yet light, and most importantly NOT over cooked and rubbery! (THANK YOU, Nicolinos) A big plus, for me, the tentacles WERE included. The "French" onion soup was forgettable. Not that flavors were bad, they werent. The beef broth could be more robust. Had it been called Italian French onion soup, it would have been most accurate. Ive never had French onion soup with oregano in before and it was unexpected. The beans and greens had very good flavor. More than a bit salty and the beans could have been cooked a bit more, but the greens still had crunch left, Bravo. While the red sauce on the lasagna was VERY good (light, bright and nicely seasoned) and the ground beef and sausage were delightfully cooked and seasoned. The lasagna itself was heavy and dense. Too much (thin sliced) mozzarella and no apparent ricotta cheese. Perhaps another trip here is warranted to give it a fair shot. Large groups are a daunting challenge. To be fair, the portions are huge and yes, some leftovers are in my future. A good portion of extra sauce (Raos? My own?) for the lasagna will help and some low sodium chicken stock and added beans are coming soon for the beans and greens.
