[Speed Gibson,
Sunday July 29, 2007 at 11:00pm]
So close and yet so far
We went to an Italian restaurant Sunday night, a name you'd know. Everything seems right. The layout and furnishings are functional and the seating not over-crowded, unlike some other places I won't name here. The service is friendly, competent, and snappy. The menu is interesting with many appealing choices. The prices are reasonable, only ... the food just isn't what it should be.
Much of it was served lukewarm, not hot. In fact, one pocket of cheese in the lasagne was truly cold, somewhere between refrigerator and room temperature. It was obviously reheated, quite possibly by microwave.
Another entree's penne pasta was noticeably undercooked, and way under-sauced. The green beans also needed another minute or two. The Chicken Marsala was kid's menu sweet, though the chicken itself was cooked perfectly. One supposedly spicy dish was spicier than other dishes I suppose, but not as the menu suggested. Otherwise, the seasoning was correct, in all the dishes.
My point here is that these are errors in execution, the kind that drives Gordon Ramsay nuts. Nobody is tasting or checking the food going out of the chicken. Maybe their Chicken Marsala recipe is sweet on purpose, but more I'm inclined to think the cooks got a little sloppy measuring. Serving food hot is not rocket science. Checking pasta for doneness should be done before it leaves the boiling water, and by someone who knows the difference between al dente and underdone.
Correcting these sorts of mistakes doesn't cost anything but a manager or head chef's time to set the required standards. This wasn't our first visit here, to which I had the same general reactions. The quality just isn't there.
Much of it was served lukewarm, not hot. In fact, one pocket of cheese in the lasagne was truly cold, somewhere between refrigerator and room temperature. It was obviously reheated, quite possibly by microwave.
Another entree's penne pasta was noticeably undercooked, and way under-sauced. The green beans also needed another minute or two. The Chicken Marsala was kid's menu sweet, though the chicken itself was cooked perfectly. One supposedly spicy dish was spicier than other dishes I suppose, but not as the menu suggested. Otherwise, the seasoning was correct, in all the dishes.
My point here is that these are errors in execution, the kind that drives Gordon Ramsay nuts. Nobody is tasting or checking the food going out of the chicken. Maybe their Chicken Marsala recipe is sweet on purpose, but more I'm inclined to think the cooks got a little sloppy measuring. Serving food hot is not rocket science. Checking pasta for doneness should be done before it leaves the boiling water, and by someone who knows the difference between al dente and underdone.
Correcting these sorts of mistakes doesn't cost anything but a manager or head chef's time to set the required standards. This wasn't our first visit here, to which I had the same general reactions. The quality just isn't there.