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| - We'd heard so many good things about Giordano's from Chicago transplants to Champaign, we were eager to try it. We arrived an hour and ten minutes before a hair appointment in the mall to be sure we'd have time to eat. Unfortunately, we were told that not only the deep dish but also the thin crust pizza took a minimum of one hour. We opted for pasta instead.
We both ordered pasta with meat sauce and meatballs. I asked the waitress whether we had accidentally been served marinara. The meat sauce had no visible signs of meat and no taste of meat. The tomato sauce was broken up like marinara, rather than smooth like traditional, slow-cooked red gravy. The sauce had a sour note with very little acid -- not at all balanced. My homemade sauce is so much better. Disappointing enough that I didn't bring the leftovers home.
The meatballs, which came three of good size to an order, had a good texture, but they were bland and worst of all were cold in the center (not room temp -- cold).
The small piece of garlic bread that came with the pasta was awful. It did not taste of garlic, let alone fresh garlic. It was crispy with some kind of hardened garlic product on top (like freeze-dried garlic that had lost its flavor). I gave the bread on its own a 2 out of 10. My companion was more generous and gave it a 3 out of 10.
The only good part of the meal, aside from the diet Pepsi, was the pasta itself, which was not overcooked. I might be back to try to the pizza (I know, I know -- that's what they're famous for!), but I have my doubts.
The place was clean, but also noisy. Service was irregular and chaotic. By this I mean it took us more time than usual to get noticed and seated. The waitress did not know what al dente meant. She didn't know whether noodle substitutions were allowed. The waitress forgot to bring the salad I'd ordered (she actually forgot to turn it in for the order -- you can turn pasta, which is around $8 per order, into a meal with a $2 upcharge for a small salad; meatballs are a $3 upcharge). She disappeared midway through our meal and did not return with the check. I finally went to stand by the greeter's podium to let someone know we were ready to pay and paid from there. Some of the table bussers wandered between the tables throughout our dining experience watching television and didn't seem to have a clear sense of purpose.
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