Saturday, March 14, 2009

Caffe Italia: Some Bolognese

I returned to Caffe Italia the other night for some dinner. As you may recall, my prior visit was generally good though with a few issues. My second visit was better than the first.

First, on my last visit, the rolls were over baked. This time the rolls were better, with no burn spots on them, though they still were not served warm.

I then began my meal with the Pear & Gorgonzola Cheese Salad ($10) with mixed greens and arugula topped by a balsamic vinaigrette. This was a good salad, with four long slices of crisp pear and plenty of gorgonzola pieces. The balsamic was more restrained so that the salad was not swimming in it. It was a good-sized dish and I was pleased with it.

For my entree, I chose the Tagliatelle Bolognese ($17), a meat ragout over egg noodles. I enjoy a good Bolognese sauce and this dish was very tasty, with plenty of meat, good spices and the tagliatelle was cooked just right. It was a decent sized portion and the price is on par with other high end Italian restaurants. I also got a side of the Lemon Fries ($6), matchstick fries with lemon salt. I was a bit leery of these, worried that the lemon might be too overpowering. Yet my fears were unwarranted. The fries were thin and crispy, cooked just right, and the lemon flavor was very mild. I would order these again.

Service was very good. The restaurant was fairly busy again, indicating that this place seems popular. I will return again to try more dishes and continue to assess their consistency.

Caffe Italia
21 Water Street
Wakefield, MA
Phone: 781-245-2245

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