Apparently it's restaurant week even in little Southborough, MA. So what was a chance for my wife, Diana, to take me on a multi-couples get-together was also a chance to sample the food at Tommaso's Trattoria for a (possibly) reduced price. Now, I'm no food critic at all, but it's my blog, so I'll review whatever I want!
The restaurant claimed to specialize in Tuscan-style food. They make their own pastas and cured meats. It was a medium-sized place with an open kitchen which I think always looks very nice. The decor was a very classy "Olive Garden". Our waitress was pretty friendly; more on that in a moment.
For 33 bucks, you received the restaurant week special which included a starter, entree, and desert course. The portions were actually pretty decent for what could have been micro-sized sampler plates. In addition, if you wanted, you could tack on another 15 bucks for wine pairings with each course. "A-ha!" I said, "I love trying fancy new wines with my fancy new foods. I shall pay the full price."
I ordered a salad with peppers, egg, and mushrooms; Diana ordered a soup. The first course was very tasty with nice, fresh ingredients (at least, I assume that is what they were). I attempted to be food-critiquey by smashing as many parts of my salad together on my fork as I could. This turned out to be pretty hard as the lettuce resisted my efforts to spear it. I mostly just scooped as much as I could into my mouth at once, my usual dining technique.
For an entree, I ordered the pasta bolognese while Diana ordered the beef brisket. I absolutely loved the pasta. It came with a delicious meat sauce; the noodles tasted as if they'd only recently been made, which is not a texture I am that familiar with and would love to experience more. And I managed to eat them without slurping them up and spilling sauce all over myself. The beef was pretty good too, but I enjoyed my meal enough that I didn't want to continue with my wife's plan of splitting everything.
Finally, for desert, we had a freshly made tirimisu. Plus: it did not come in a gelatinous rectangular prism shape but was instead made of lady fingers soaked in booze with a custard on top. Minus: it didn't taste much different than many of the various tirimisus I've had before. But still, pretty good.
All in all, I really enjoyed dinner. It was good food, served fast, only a little more expensive than I would have liked, and very pleasant company.
BUT
When my first wine pairing came out, I thought it was a joke. For 15 dollars, I assumed I would get nearly a full glass. What was poured was about a gulp's worth. Perhaps I am cheap or don't understand market forces, but I can get two entire bottles of fabulous wine for 15 dollars (and, if I want something mediocre, about 8 bottles of Charles Shaw at Trader Joe's) so why the fuck would they only give me a thimble-full. I weepily asked my waitress if that was all I was getting. She assured me that it was a fair amount. "They even have special measures for it," she exclaimed. But my Oliver Twist routine must have tugged some heartstrings for the next two pairings were a bit more full. Or else they lost the original serving pipette and couldn't get a replacement in time. The wines were pretty good: not too fruity, not too acidic, pretty clean tasting. Still, 15 bucks isn't really worth the chance to taste something at a fancy dinner.
My final rating: Really Good, though skip the wine pairing and just show up wasted instead.
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