Monday, February 8, 2010

Eating our Way to Romance- UNISCALI

This is going to be a regular feature on our blog from now on. It's like cooking your way through Julia Child's cook books, or reading the Bible in a year, or trying a new vegetable each week. It's like those, but not.

David and I have decided that dating is fun. And since we're stuck with each other for the rest of our lives, we mine as well enjoy it! So each Friday or Saturday we date, and it always includes food. Here I will chronicle our dining experiences for your enjoyment and pleasure! A food critics column, you might say. But it won't just be the food. It will be an all over critique on the restaurant we visit. We will only go to local restaurants in the Denver Metro Area. (Mostly in Castle Rock and Highlands Ranch, but we might travel farther!) Give us ideas of where we should go next as we Eat our Way to Romance...

Here are the topics I will cover in each feature:
Food Quality
Service
Cleanliness
Ambiance
Portion Size
Affordability

Take heed my fellow foodies!

Numero Uno...

UNISCALI, a local Castle Rock eatery known for it's modern Italian eats and funky ambiance.
The reason we went, $2 Bellini's during happy hour.

What we found: a fun casual upscale dining restaurant blocks from our front porch.

What we ordered: we each had two Belinis (I was drunk by the time we left, so I would suggest just one for those of you under 150 lbs!), and then we tried three of their "little plates" which are their appetizers. (These were also discounted during happy hour (4-6 and 8-9 )!) We had the FONDUTA- Melted Fontina & white wine, grilled ciabatta & truffle oil, SPICY FRIED CALAMARI with crispy peperoncini’s, garlic aioli & Agrodolce dipping sauce, and the GRILLED FLATBREAD SPECIAL with pesto, chicken, proschutto and house made mozzarella.

Food Quality: 3.5
The quality was good for the fair prices. The Bellini's were perfecto, the Fonduta was decent, the grilled bread it was served with was a bit "smokey" for my tastes, and the cheeses were extremely mild. The calamari was great, the dipping sauce had a bit of an asian flair that made it less routine than your average calamari, the peperoncini's were a good idea, but were a bit excessive in quantity. The special was decent, David loved it, it had too much pesto for my liking. but as the waitress pointed out, this could easily be adjusted depending on your preference.

Service: 4
We had great service, not exceptional, but absolutely nothing to complain about. It is a small restaurant, so you get quality service. And a girl we know from church works there!

Cleanliness: 5
It seemed great to me. As I was not thinking about writing this article, thus I did not pay a visit to the restroom, I will update this once I have!

Ambiance: 3
This was a small restaurant, it has a chef's counter which is a really neat and modern twist. Thus, the open kitchen which is fun to watch while dining. The "over modernization" feel is what I came away with. They really tried to create a unique expereince, but it is a very novice attempt. The excessive amount of chocolate brown drapery was also a bit much for me.

Portion Size: 5
The portion size was perfect in my opinion. There was not too much of anything, and three "little plates" were perfect for us to share. We left there feeling as if we didn't waste a thing and were perfectly full. I would suggest though if more than three people in your party, order two or more "little plates" for an appetizer, because they are perfect for two!

Affordability: 4
We came at the right time, and ordered the right things. We left this restaurant for a total of $27, including tip. We had four drinks, and three appetizers, and tipped! But, I will say that entrees are anywhere from $12 - $25, so this could be an expensive date, but we did it cheap!

Overall: 4
A GREAT date night! With the funky dark ambiance, and the cheap drinks with high quality food it was a great night! I would definitely suggest going during happy hour, that is what made it great!

1 comment:

  1. What a cool idea! Hope you find passionate romance over a plate of something tasty!

    ReplyDelete