Italianni's -never fails to satisfy me but service needs to step up

Yesterday's lunch was at Italianni's (Greenbelt). Upon entering the restaurant, I was a bit disappointed because there was no front of the house. It took a while before someone asked us if we wanted a table and for how many.

And since I am picking on the service of Italianni's, I might as keep on going. I actually had to ask three servers for parmesan cheese but to no avail. We've nibbled on the bread and it is no longer warm but still parmesan has not arrived. Our salad has even arrived and yet the parmesan was still not served. Finally when the parmesan arrived, we've actually nibbled on all of the bread making me ask for more.

Still, I've got to remain calm and not spoil the mood of the lunch.



For our salad, we had the Mediterranean salad which has salad greens, tomatoes, onions, olives, shrimp, and topped with cubes of feta cheese. The dressing is a light mix of olive oil and lemon. I like the combination of the feta cheese and olives that has a salty flavor and the salad greens and tomatoes which are quite refreshing. The tomatoes are not sour (unlike cherry tomatoes which are popular in salads). While a lot of people would actually avoid onions in salads, I welcome them because of the texture and heat that they give whenever you bite into them. The onions in our salad are perfect complements to the flavors of the dish. And the shrimp, don't get me started on the shrimp... perfectly cooked shrimp which has a sweetness goes well with the feta cheese which as I mentioned has a tinge of saltiness. The salad is so perfect. I now have a different favorite salad in Italianni's.



Our salad was accompanied by these large wedges of potatoes which was Italianni's version of fries. And who wouldn't like fries? These gourmet fries are served with a mustard sauce that's quite light. What makes these fries so special is that it is not greasy at all. I think it was baked which explains the lack of grease.


We tried the new pizza which has anchovies, ham and arugula leaves. The arugula adds the perfect crunch and nutty and earthy flavor.


Accompanying our pizza was the sausage served with peppers and onions. The sausage was soft and tender but still quite juicy. The peppers were not really spicy.

We actually dipped some of the bread that were served earlier to the oils of the sausage to try out the flavor and wow! The grease of the sausages give a whole new meaning to the phrase "fat is flavor!" I actually had to control myself from keep on dipping.

We washed it all down with different types of juices and drinks. One of us ordered dalandan juice, I ordered grape shake and another one ordered a type of milk shake that was blueberry cheese cake flavored (YUM!) I didn't know if it was a dessert or a drink.



It was a great lunch with great friends. The conversation during lunch was also as great proving that Italian food is really such a great comfort food.