Earlier this week, the Husband was working late at the office but decided to pop home for some dinner to take a break.  We didn’t have much food in the house so I suggested we use our Groupon for Annie’s Gourmet Italian, an Italian bistro around the corner from us that we’ve been meaning to try for a while.  The last time we wanted to dine there, we thankfully called ahead and found out they didn’t have any availability until 9pm (it’s a small restaurant and they are popular!) so I did a quick call this evening and found out we would be good to go when we planned to arrive (around 6pm).  The Husband got home and I jumped in the car to continue on our way.

While I didn’t get any pictures of the inside of the restaurant, the Husband and I both noted that we liked the ambiance of the restaurant.  I estimated about 12 tables of four with warm colors on the walls, Italian art, and casual music in the air (I recall hearing some Frank Sinatra <3 among other favorites).

The menu had lots of classic Italian options such as lasagna, fettuccini alfredo, and chicken, eggplant, and veal parmigiana (not all together of course).  While we waited for our meal, we tried out the bread basket. The rolls were a bit too dry for our taste so we waited for our appetizer instead.

We were interested in ordering the chicken pecorino rolls as our appetizer but they were out (perhaps next time, though our waitress also highly recommended the stuffed mushrooms).  Instead, we ordered the Arancini Di Riso which are lightly fried rice/risotto balls with a marinara sauce.  They were good.

The Husband and I each decided to order a salad and he went with the Caprese Salad – as expected, slices of tomatoes, topped with mozzarella, balsamic vinegar and basil.  The tomatoes were cold and didn’t have much flavor (the latter to be expected due to the season), so it was a bit of a let down for the Husband.

I ordered the Caesar salad and while it was refreshing, it tasted more like lettuce and parmesan (not much Caesar flavor).

Our entrees made up for the the lackluster starters though! The Husband ordered the Chicken Parmigiana which came with a side of rigatoni.  He really enjoyed this.  While it doesn’t look large on the plate, it was a very reasonable size for a single serving and we had some leftover rigatoni to take home.  The chicken was moist and it wasn’t too fried (which some times happens at italian restaurants).

I asked the waitress whether she would recommend the lasagna or the baked rigatoni (I was debating between the two).  She recommended the lasagna and adding italian sausage (her favorite), but I opted to go with the cheese only version.  It was also quite good! Lots of great layers of pasta, flavorful cheeses and tomato sauce.

A close up shot courtesy of the Husband (he had the good lighting on his side of the table so he took all of the shots)…

While the dessert menu looked good, we were quite full and didn’t even want to think about tasting anything else.  We do plan on having some the next time though.  This place is in a great location to us (another place we can walk to), reasonably priced, a good variety of options, and friendly staff.  There’s also a patio which we think will be nice to enjoy when it’s warmer (but not too hot like July!).  We do recommend this restaurant but suggest that you call ahead or make a reservation as the place does fill up quickly.

On our way out of the restaurant, we stopped to ask about take out (something they promote – you can order anything on the menu I believe).  Additionally, you can order trays of food and we met Annie, the owner and chef.  She advised that it would be good to call at least 3 hours in advance, especially on a Friday or Saturday.