This is a small restaurant in a strip mall across from the Med Grill. The decor is very Brick, 1980's and our table was wobbly. The bread is bad. But the pasta is great! Wine by the bottle is very affordable. The food is not so affordable. Overall a mixed bag.
We dined with our 17 month old and fortunately we came equipped with a booster seat as they did not have wither a high chair or a booster. On the other hand the staff was helpful and amenable to our requests for an extra plate and that sort of thing.
On entry do not expect much. The interior, as I said, is very basic. That said there are signs they are trying, but they need a bit of help and, I suspect, some money.
The menu is fairly large and printed on basic white paper. Also not inspiring. Even higher quality paper, without typos and stains would have helped. I am always a bit suspicious of larger menus too, though the limited selection of ingredients was reassuring to me. On the bright side there were several vegetarian options, though nothing vegan jumped out at me.
They brought us bread, it was from a bag. Not good, even if they tried to dress it up with balsamic and oil in shakers for your use. This is the type of bread that will be covered in mold before it gets hard or crusty and is dry even when at it's freshest.
We started with the bruscetta sampler. For twelve dollars we got three squares of the bag bread with our choice of topping from about a half a dozen options. We won't say more about the bread. The toppings were okay. Good flavour combinations and fresh ingredients.
The main courses are what saved this place. I had the baked cheese manicotti. One manicotti roll was the perfect portion and it seemed to be fresh pasta. The marinara sauce was yummy and they had used generous but not ridiculous cheese on top, which created the lovely crusty, gooey, cheesy topping I had truly be searching for. A few more seconds in the oven would have ensured the proper creaminess in the ricotta filling which was a bit pasty due to that lack. Again though, flavour was good and my portion was just right. I had a glass of Pinot Grigio with dinner which was a nice glass with the dish and a generous enough pour that I could sip through appetizer and dinner. My husband had a scallop and pancetta bowtie pasta that he was very happy with. His portion was generous and he was pleased by the amount of scallop (five big ones)and pancetta. He didn't finish his and took home a doggie bag that he enjoyed later. The one thing was that those main courses were pricey at fifteen and nineteen dollars respectively this was not the budget conscious meal that the decor suggests.
So, overall, I would say go to Rosi's, skip and bread items, and go straight to the mains. The portions are generous enough to fill you up and it would keep the bill in check. And expect to feel you eaten in someone's kitchen, not the dining room.
1 comment:
We visited this restaurant in January/10 on recommendations from friends who frequent it on a regular basis. Their glowing reports along with a positive recent newspaper review made us eager to give Rosi's a try for our monthly "Dining Divas" dinner meeting. So 5 girlfriends and I ventured all the way to Royal Oaks, and we all agreed that our first impression was not a good one once we stepped inside--in dire need of a makeover. Within 1/2 hour or our arrival, the place was packed. The menu was way too long and like you said, looked uninspiring. But I couldn't find anything Tuscan about it. No Steak Fiorentina, no cannelini beans, lentils, polenta, or bread soup. What's with all those bruschetta topping options? I was getting nervous about what to order so ended up with a salad and the Lamb special. I thought about sharing the antipasto meat/cheese platter but was glad I didn't because my friend said it was very pedestrian and the meats were not very appetizing because they were starting to lose their fresh red color. 2 gals shared brie en croute with blueberry sauce. What is this doing on an Italian menu? Apparently it was quite good. Most of the gals settled on a variety of pastas for their mains, and reported back that there was nothing special about them. The marinara sauce was an odd brownish red color and didn't taste very tomato-ey according to 2 of my friends. One friend had the risotto which was served on a bed of greens--very gluey and bland. Another friend chose the seafood stew which was so heavily seasoned the delicate seafood was overpowered. The broth was thick and was the same odd brownish red color of the marinara sauce. My lamb was actually very good, and was encrusted in a mint pesto. Italian? Tuscan? Not so much but the meat was perfectly done to a medium as requested. The side mixed veg was likely out of a frozen bag, overcooked and doused in melted butter. I declined dessert but a couple of friends shared a cheese cake offering which looked disgusting, and apparently tasted the way it looked. Can't complain about the wine--I believe we chose a ripasso. In summary I believe I got lucky because of the lamb special. My fellow diners did not have a positive experience with their food choices. This was a very expensive evening, and despite having a great entree I will not go back nor will any of my friends. I have to say the service was very friendly and efficient. I have an issue with the restaurant's name because it's very misleading as there is nothing Tuscan about this restaurant. And based on what we ate, there is nothing authentically Italian either. I don't understand the appeal of this restaurant considering location, decor, menu offerings, execution of the food, etc. Sorry.
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