03/16/08

Skip this place and make a PBJ instead

by aab1234568

This was the worst restaurant experience we've had in years. After making the trouble to make a reservation we thought we'd surely be treated to a nice (or at least decent) table. Instead, we were seated right outside of the kitchen at a rickety table that was in the most high traffic area in the entire restaurant. The menu was disappointing to say the least. Everything was the same with only slight variations. The wine list was a joke. Our waitress was a teenager that was so hyper that we thought she was on something. After choosing salads and a bottle of severly overpriced chianti and lasagna, our food arrived with in short order. The salads literally took 30 seconds to arrive, which didn't give us the feeling they were made just for us. After having just a couple bites of the salad the lasagna arrived. At this point, we had had enough of our table in the high traffic area and asked the manager to re-seat us. With in minutes he scooped up our plates and moved us-- to the bar. The bar had blaring 80s music, sports on tv and Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling. After eating less than half of the flavorless lasagna (save your money and get some frozen stoffer's lasagna instead) we were treated to a bill of $70, and no offer for desert (I don't think they even have any). This was the WORST restaurant experience I've had in years. If there was a zero star rating, this restaurant would earn it.

• Pros: None
• Cons: service, food, atmosphere, cleanliness, everything

02/19/08

"Bargin" Italian shows in the food; if going out for Italian, spend just a little more and get a LOT more...

by BostonNickinBaltimore

Reviews tout this restaurant as one of the "best bargins" in Little Italy, Baltimore. I now understand the reason for this, and the lack of praise of their fare. On a recent evening, prior to a show, I was part of a four-person party who landed here for dinner. The atmosphere in their bar is quite nice, but it does not feel Italian. It felt more like an attempt to be trendy (and, of course, to provide patrons an opportunity to splurge on highly proiftable drinks). We were escorted upstairs to a dingy dining room, with vynal tablecloths, poor lighting, and no music. Wearing old jeans, our waitress (who will remain nameless) neglected to welcome us, introduce herself to our party, offer the specials, or point out the wine list. As an appetizer, we ordered the "Pane's Rotundo", which is highlighted in red on their menu. The alfredo sauce was creamy, but the garlic was completely overdone -- a red flag that fresh herbs and spices were lacking. I decided to give their alfredo sauce a second chance and ordered the Tortolini. I was again, very disappointed with the lack of flavor. My wife's chicken parmigian was also very ordinary and, with bland sauce. Others in our party confirmed that their entrees were okay, at best. Now comes the most ALARMING part of the evening: they do not offer espresso! What Italian restaurant worth consideration doesn't offer espresso? I don't mean to be trite, but this was the final straw for me. After we paid our $100+ check (not exactly a bargin), I vowed to try to help others avoid this overpriced, underperforming faux-Italian eatery (really, a glorified pasta restaurant). With so many other good options within a stone's throw, I can't understand why Amicci's remains viable. I HATE to say this, but the "Olive Garden" beats the sauce out of this place, which, if done literally, would be doing a favor for anyone that can tell the difference between tomato soup and marinara sauce.

• Pros: Not as busy as the others -- even on a Friday night
• Cons: below average service and ambience. Food is very ordinary / bland. No espresso!

11/04/07

Big Disappointment

by washingtonboy

Amicci's was a great disappointment. If you want to pay inflated prices to eat tastless food off of uneven tables with vinyl tableclothes using tin cutlery in a dingy back room, this is the place for you. Maybe our expectations were raised too high by reader reviews. But after our highly unsatisfying experience, I wonder if the positive "reader" reviews weren't submitted by the restaurant. The front room is attractive, but the rest of the dining rooms are dark, unpleasant, and have greasy floors. But the worst part of the experience was the food. We ordered two appetizers and three pasta entrees (this is not an "Italian" restaurant; the limited menu makes this no more than a pasta joint) and they all tasted the same -- that's to say, they had no taste. The calamari were a congealed mass of tasteless fried dough; the red sauce with which it was served had no bite at all. The mussels were passable but rather small and tough and the garlic broth very thin. Our three pasta dishes -- a red sauce wit sausage, an alfredo sauce, and a garlic pesto -- truly tasted alike. Everyone in our party reached for the salt shaker after the first bite -- a first for me in any restaurant!

Let's face it, Baltimore's Little Italy is a pale imitation of a real ethic enclave. There's no restaurant there that can rival any authentic Italian restaurant in Washington or New York. Whatever language they speak there, the words "al dente" are clearly a foreign tounge. If you must eat there, though, pay one or two dollars more per item and eat at Sabbatino's -- at least you get a little atmosphere with your overcooked noodles. (12/04/07)

• Pros: reasonably friendly and quick service
• Cons: Depressing atmosphere, overpriced and tasteless food. What more is there?