| rev:text
| - ...And now I know what Italian food is supposed to taste like.
If there's one thing I hate, it's when I can make any style of food better than a restaurant that supposedly specializes in it. A Filipino kid born in Texas should NOT be able to make better Italian food than venues that claim mastery over the cuisine, and yet more often than not -- at least here in Arizona -- that has been the case. Even at good restaurants, my food was at least comparable in quality. Not the case here -- not even close. Roma Garden laughs at my cooking. Roma Garden's power level is over 9000. All my base are belong to Roma Garden.
After reading the glowing reviews from both Hilary K. and Gabi M., I rallied to get my family to eat here in celebration of my sister's graduation. Inconspicuously nestled in a strip mall where it shares a wall with a Panda Express, Roma Garden does not look like the kind of place that would serve some of the best Italian food in Arizona. The interior is far nicer than the outside suggests. It's very cosy, but the unusually large chairs make it a tad difficult to get seated. Entry into the seat closest to the wall was akin to scooting across the seat in a booth. We had little issue with this because none of had to use the restroom during our visit, but I imagine that this would be quite annoying for tables with more active bladders.
The whole menu looks rather large, but in reality a lot of the dishes are just repeats of other dishes, but with different proteins. Not a complaint, just a note.
We started off with the calamari, because it tends to be a good indicator of a restaurant's style. The calamari were breaded slightly more than I would have liked, but I prefer a very light breading. By traditional standards, I'm sure these were just fine. Not the best I've had, but definitely good.
My braised lamb shank, on the other hand, was stellar. The shank was cooked perfectly -- braised just enough to maintain its integrity, while requiring very little coaxing to remove from the bone. The uncomplicated flavor of the lamb worked so well with the chianti-tomato sauce, and pasta on the side was great, too. Our waiter said they make their own pasta, although I'm not sure that if the pasta I ate was homemade. No matter. The sauce killed. The lamb killed. My culinary hubris: massacred.
My sister had the osso bucco; my mom had the pollo Roma Garden; and my dad had the shrimp scampi. All the dishes on the table looked equally appetizing, but I can't say I'd have ordered differently if I could go back and do it again. My dish was just too awesome.
We finished the night with some tiramisu, which, while not a revelation, was very good. I enjoy mine with a hint of rum in it, but my whole family enjoyed it, and so I was overall happy with it.
Service was very friendly. Our server, whose name unfortunately escapes me, was enthusiastic-bordering-on-corny, but I'll take that over lazy and lackadaisical any day. He was on top of everything and very eager to field questions about the food. No complaints here.
The restaurant is less than a mile from my parents' house, and so it seems criminal to not pay Roma Garden a visit the next time I'm in Phoenix. It's not cheap, but the huge portions and even bigger flavors have me won. Definitely my current favorite Italian restaurant.
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