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| - We went to Va Bene with a coupon from Living Social. I figured that we would have no trouble spending $60 on dinner for 2 on a Sunday evening. I was surprised to see that it was harder than I thought.
It was very slow on Sunday night around 7, and we were not greeted at the front door so we wandered into the bar. We were told we could seat ourselves in the bar, or have the hostess seat us in the restaurant. The bar was fine. The bartender took our drink orders and although my husband was disappointed that there are no beers on tap, he managed to find something he would enjoy - a Stella. No bad marks here, as not every bar needs to have beer on tap.
We skipped the appetizers, but they look worth checking out in the future. Especially since happy hour offers them at half price.
I had the chicken marsala - which is my favorite dish and it did not disappoint. There were 2 large half chicken breasts and a nice brown sauce loaded with mushrooms. It came with mashed potatoes and veggies, so the plate was generous. My husband had chicken in an artichoke cream sauce, and it was very good as well.
I only have one minor complaint: My husband's plate was cleared before I was done eating. When there are only 2 diners at the table and I am the only one with a plate in front of me I feel rushed. I am sure that was not intended, and is probably just my pet peeve, and not a reason not to return to a place that had really good food in a beautiful setting.
When the server learned we had $60 to spend he said we should order something else as our bill was only $43. So we had both regular and chocolate cheesecakes and coffee (even after a 2nd beer, we were still under $60!). Some of the desserts are made in house, and I should have gone with one of those. The cheesecake was fine, but did not stand out.
I certainly recommend Va Bene for a nice dinner that won't break the bank. Also, even though I checked the box that says it's an upscale restaurant, we were not the only ones seated at linen covered tables in shorts. Hey, it's still Phoenix.
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