The first time we ate here was just after it opened. We were staying at the hotel and it was convenient. We were very happy with our meals and the service was terrific. About a year ago we moved to the area and since we had been so impressed by our first meal, we took my parents there for a nice Italian dinner. It was awful. I kept apologizing to my parents, telling them over and over that the first time we ate at Pacinis it was great. The pasta was undercooked and flavourless, the pizza was bland and my mother's meal was cold. When we mentioned it to the waitress and she offered us desserts, we accepted the tiramisu and it was disgusting, like it had been made weeks ago, stale to the point of being almost sour.
I said then that I wouldn't eat there again.
Tonight I was craving pasta and apparently a year is enough time for a lapse in memory. I wanted fettuccini Alfredo and my husband was craving pizza. We opted for take out because we had a busy week and we're looking forward to dinner and a movie at home.
When my husband ordered the food I asked him to make sure they didn't skimp on the sauce so he asked that they put extra sauce on my pasta. He ordered the marghareta pizza with pepperoni.
When he returned home with the food I first observed that there was no garlic toast with my pasta. They have an all you can eat bread bar in the restaurant but takeout gets a smaller serving and no bread. I opened the cardboard box to discover that despite the 3.50$ charge for "extra sauce" the pasta was dry and stuck to the paper at the bottom of the container. I decided it didn't matter, I could deal with a small portion and picked the pasta off the paper and put it on a plate thinking if the food tasted good that was all that mattered. I might as well have eaten the box. It could not possibly have had any less flavor than the Alfredo sauce. The box may also have been easier to chew. I understand al dente but this was more like a shredded tire.
My husband didn't fare much better. He paid more for the four paper thin rounds of pepperoni than he did for my "extra sauce." The pie itself was cold and very small for the price. It cost us $32 for what amounts to a personal size pizza and a regular cereal bowl of pasta. If the food had even been decent I am happy to spend the money, this however was a complete waste and a total disappointment.
Many people seem very impressed by the bread bar but the gimmick doesn't even begin to make up for the lack of effort in the kitchen.
Pacinis is a mistake I won't make again.