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Little Italy

November 1st, 2010

A small restaurant has been sitting on the side of Broadway for years. Little Italy brings a great taste of Italy to Tyler. They have a long menu of all different pastas, pizzas, calzones and much more. They have some of the greatest bread around. The restaurant has a “bring your own wine” policy. The food is great and the prices make the food even better.

Little Italy has a great lunch menu. You can choose between many different selections of hot pastas. Each of their pastas is hot and pretty delicious. The lunch menu all has the same low price everyday. If you are getting a side dish I always recommend the soups over the salad. The tortellini and cheese soup if one f my favorite soups of all time. Little Italy’s salads is nothing more that some lettuce and a couple tomatoes thrown in a bowl with a small cup of dressing.

If you are looking for a great place to have a big party without having to wait for an hour to get a seat, I recommend that you bring your party to Little Italy. The restaurant never seems to be over crowded or too busy. Some times it seems like it takes a while to get food to come out to you, but still the small Italian restaurant is a great place to have a private and intimate dinner.

Joe’s Promise

October 20th, 2010

It was a few years ago that we first started to eat at the small Italian restaurant in Tyler TX, Joe’s Italian Grill. We liked the pasta, pizzas, and prices. When I was in high school a big group of us went to Joe’s Italian Grill. One person from our group wanted to order a salad and asked if they had Thousand Island salad dressing, because they did not he asked to the manager, and the waitress said that Joe, himself, was there. He came out and talked to him.

When person told him that he would love to see Joe’s restaurant offer Thousand Island, and if they did he would recommend the restaurant and would give them a lot of his business. Joe promised him that the next time he came to the restaurant he would be able to order his salad the way he wanted it. People through out the restaurant cheered and clapped for the owner. A couple weeks passed and we revisited, when someone once again ordered a salad with Thousand Island, I was surprised that they did not offer the salad dressing.

Even months later, they did not offer the dressing. Having the salad dressing was not the issue in this situation. If an owner promises his costumers to their faces and shake their hands they should keep to their word. Because of the broken promise people did not return to the restaurant.

                Recently Joe’s Italian Grill opened a second restaurant just across the road. I do not really understand how they have two restaurants since every time I have gone to the original one there was hardly anyone there. I do like the food at Joe’s grill. I like how you can make your table private by letting down a curtain to exclude you from the rest of the restaurant. The shrimp tortellini is one of Joe’s best dishes, and one of the best tortellini dishes I have ever had.

               I do understand why people hold this strange grudge towards Joe’s Italian Grill. If you are not going to keep your promises than do not make a guarantee that you can not keep. I will keep eating there because of the great food and I never felt like they did wrong towards me.

Nick’s Italian Restaurant in Lindale Texas

February 15th, 2010

Nick’s Italian Café

1105 South Main St
Lindale 75771
903 881 9316

Nick’s is an Italian restaurant centrally located on Hwy 69 in Lindale. It is owned by the same Italian family as Little Italy in central Tyler.

Nick’s is an interesting place – it can seat up to 100 people but has different rooms and corners which makes it feel more intimate than you would expect. The atmosphere is pleasant. It is warm, the lighting is subtle (but you can still see what you are consuming) and there is Italian music playing in the background. I like the cast iron chairs and tables and the stone floor. I am especially fond of the outdoor seating area in a garden behind the restaurant.

So – the food. As a European, I am always interested in whether the food in authentic. For an Italian eatery the first thing I wanted to know is whether the pasta was fresh egg pasta. The answer from the chef –yes! However, I don’t think that all the noodles are fresh – you might want to check with your server which ones are and are not. The penne I chose, sadly was not, but the filled house pasta almost certainly is. The bread is freshly made daily on the premises. I chose the house dressing on my salad and that was delicious, some sort of herby sweet vinegarette that is unique to Nicks.

The choice on the menu is fairly wide. For appetizers there is bruschetta, garlic bread and calamari plus soups and salads. Then there are pizzas – which are baked in a stone oven for an authentic Italian taste and can be custom made with toppings to order.

The pasta dishes are divided into Nick’s specialities – some of which are vegetarian, house pasta, and then chicken, veal and seafood dishes.

The sauces are delicious, mine was a pink sauce made with tomato and herbs, brandy and cream. Others have lemon, marinara and wine sauces.

On arrival, the waitress brought us fresh bread and butter and iced water and offered us drinks. Nick’s is not licensed to serve alcohol but IF YOU ASK FOR IT – you can have a complimentary glass of red or white wine with your meal. It is just from a box but if you enjoy wine with a meal, it is better than nothing.

Our entrees included a mixed salad which came before the entrée so we could munch while we waited for our main meal. The pasta came in oversized white china bowls. The ingredients were fresh and the presentation attractive but not overdone. I was disappointed not to be served fresh parmesan. From my previous experience in Europe I also expected to have someone grind fresh black pepper on my meal from a huge wooden grinder – this would be a nice touch if Nick would have his servers do this (yes the owner/chef is actually Nick!)

I dined with 2 other ladies and about half way through eating, we were stumped. The portion sizes are huge. However, the meals were so tasty that we couldn’t bring ourselves to say goodbye to the rest of the dish. Take home boxes were duly provided for us. We did not have room for dessert but the delicious offerings we saw being presented at other tables looked good and very generous in size. I was glad to see that Tiramisu and Cannoli were on the menu. We wanted coffee but no decaff was available. That was a blow. What restaurant these days doesn’t serve decaff?

Finally a word about price. Nick’s would not be what you could call inexpensive. Most entrees are between $9-14 which is quite high for a non-licensed ‘café’ not in a downtown location. I would think that Nick makes a very good profit! Having said that, it is a nice place to go for a meal and the food is good so it gets a positive recommendation.
Oh, kids portions are $4.95 and there are $7.95 and 8.95 lunch specials.

Oliveto Italian Restaurant Was Really Good!

January 28th, 2010

Oliveto Italian Bistro

Tyler, TX
3709 Troup Highway
Tyler, TX 75703
903.581.2678

Hours:
Sunday-Thursday: 11:00am – 10:00pm
Friday & Saturday: 11:00am – 11:00pm

I decided to give Oliveto Italian Restaurant a try a couple night ago and I was surprised to find that it was really good. The place was so nice inside and out I was actually suspicious that it was one of those fake food franchise chains like TGIF, Applebees, and Chili’s. I came to find none of the above. Oliveto had great appetizers, very good spaghetti sauce and well made pasta recipes. A lot of Italian restaurants have a prized pasta dish that is a cherished family secret only to find out that the dish really tastes disgusting to everyone else but the owners family. Oliveto Italian Bistro Oliveto understands how to make Italian food not just edible but wonderful.

There are a couple more italian restaurants in town that I like and will still go to like Little Italy and Joes Italian Cafe. Although Little Italy will always be a favorite of mine I will be going to Oliveto more often. Like I said, I was assuming it would be a disgusting Italian chain type of place like The Olive Garden only serving good salad and bread sticks but that is not what I found. Oliveto will surprise you with perfectly made pasta recipes and great spaghetti and marinara sauce.

My wife and I even tried one of Oliveto’s desserts and it too was fantastic. Our son got a free kiddie icecream with chocolate syrup which was nice and we left there a little shocked that we had such excellent service and great food. If you have ever eaten at McAllisters Deli you will know about excellent service as your sweet tea drink is refilled 50 times. This refill and constant checking on by the waitresses is what we received at Oliveto as well. They seemed to have designated staff just hired to refill drinks and check on your table. I imagine I will probably want to come here for business meetings and for things I need to zip in and out of quick.

I am a sucker for Italian food and this nice cookie cutter looking restaurant is so much more than The Olive Garden. I will probably never set foot in The Olive Garden again now that I know about this place. I don’t talk bad about restaurants usually but I know my italian food and the fake food chains shouldn’t be listed right along with the quality this restaurant delivers. Tyler TX Italian Restaurant Let’s give a hand for Oliveto for coming to the city of Tyler and showing people what real Italian food is. This is it!

Joes Italian Grill

January 8th, 2010

Tyler has so many options for a great Italian dine in experience. One of my favorite places to eat is a little Italian Restaurant known as Joe’s Italian Grill. Joe’s is a quant little restaurant with walls stained with the smell of garlic and pesto that brings a true Italian culture to East Texas. Joe’s great pasta masterpieces cooked with his rich signature sauce will leave your stomachs and your wallets full. Joe has a great variety that is not found anywhere else.

Joe’s Italian Grill offers a quiet, romantic atmosphere and each of the tables has individual curtains to maintain the privacy of your dinner party. It is a great place to have a great date and a delightful peaceful meal. Not only is the food great but the prices are unbeatable. Lunch menus start at $6. And the rest of the menu is prices between six to fourteen dollars. Have a glass of wine of your choice with your meal.

Not sure what will go with your meal? Just ask your waiter and they will give you their suggestions. They have all different wines, both white and red. If you just want to enjoy a drink feel welcomed at their small bar. At this locally family owned restaurant the waiters and waitresses are very attentive and professional, expect great service. The small italian restaurant on a small shopping center, is a great place to enjoy the Italian culture here in Tyler. So come on in and let your taste buds travel around the world.