| rev:text
| - Chianti cafe is not a place worth going out of your way for, but if in the area you can get a better than average lunch at a reasonable price. In fact, they publicize their lunch menu as "everything under $10," so you're pretty much forced to be frugal. If you have been there before, I'd like to let you know it has recently changed management. Apparently the restaurant was going downhill before they did, so if you had a bad experience you might want to try it again.
My Greca salad ($7.95) was quite enjoyable, and a touch unique. It was tossed with a creamy garlic dressing rather than a vinaigrette, which was a nice change, and the feta cheese was not of your standard supermarket variety. This cheese was soft and mild, without much salt. Though I personally prefer feta with a little more tang, this was of good quality nonetheless and you do get some brininess from the kalamata olives.
My husband had the pastrami sandwich ($9.95) which was tasty but not delivered as promised. Instead of fries it came with a good version of basil mashed potatoes (I still would have preferred fries) and instead of the more appropriate rye bread listed in the description it was served on a soft hoagie. Additionally, the presentation was pretty sloppy as mustard was EVERYWHERE around the outside. There was too much mustard inside the sandwich as well, and it would have benefited from the use of whole grain or deli mustard rather than yellow. I still liked it as the pastrami itself was tender and delicious, but with a little improvement it would have been great.
Overall, it was a good lunch at a reasonable price, but not a real find by any means. I've had their pasta, which is fine, but not great, and the menu is fairly mainstream. It's just your average neighborhood Italian eatery in a nice area.
|