Saturday, May 18, 2013

Carmine's Italian Restaurant


Restaurant Name:  Carmine's

Type:  Italian

Date:  Saturday  May 11, 2013  7:30 PM.

Location:  92 S. Pennsylvania, Denver, CO  80209    Ph: 303-777-6443  www.carminescolorado.com
Carmine's is on the corner of a nice residential neighborhood.  This gives it a very nice hidden intimate appeal.

Parking: Valet parking was fast with courteous attendants.  $5.00 tip upon leaving (Not required.  My Choice)

First impressions:  Not your typical Italian restaurant decor.  Very minimal with light wood floors and earth tones walls.  Lighting was perfect which made you feel very comfortable.

Host/Seating:    Rating:  8  Hostess was very busy with seating customers yet very friendly.

Server:  Rating:  7  Introduction was not his strength.  Seemed a little aloof at first but got more friendly as time went by.  Was helpful with wine and menu questions and choices.  Assistant was very attentive with water replacement and plate removal.

Service Punctuality:  9:  Drink and meal service was very punctual.  Almost too much so.  We were not quite finished with our salad when the main course arrived.

Drinks:  Mid priced Pinto Gringo was good and quantity served was on par with other restaurants.

Menu:  Carmine's menu is unique in a way that everything is served family style.  Appetizer's, Salads, Main courses are all served this way.  Deserts are served and priced per person.  By our experience each dish could easily serve 3-4 adults.

Our Menu Choices

Antipasti Misti:  $14.95 - Cured meats, fine cheese.
Pear Salad:  $18.95 - Butter lettuce and fresh baby arugula tossed in a pear cider vinaigrette, toasted pistachios, Gorgonzola cheese, and fresh sliced pears.
Chicken Montana:  $38.95 - Rosemary marinated chicken, sun dried tomatoes, and asparagus in a Gorgonzola cream sauce.
Three Layer Chocolate Cake ... $9.95

Food Quality:  9:  All was prepared fresh and tasted wonderful.  Antipasti Misti had fresh prosciutto and mozzarella.  Pear Salad was fresh and flavorful (although was a little light on the dressing). Cheese lovers will adore the Chicken Montana.  Gorgonzola is probably my favorite cheese and the cream sauce was to die for!  Three layer chocolate cake was HUGE, moist and yummy.  3 chocolate dipped strawberries were a nice touch.

Food Quantity: HUGE!  My dining companion and myself could only finish half of the Chicken Montana and half of the cake.  It made a great lunch for the next day! 

Bill Delivery and Processing:  3:  Very slow.  Thought we were forgotten about.  I will say they were very busy at the time but this should have been handled faster.

Value:  7:  You must take into consideration the family style format of the menu.  because of the size of the dishes it would be a better value for parties of 3-4 than 1-2.  When you break things down it is on par with other restaurants in this category. 

Overall Rating: 8:  We had a very good overall experience and will return again very soon!

Monday, November 26, 2012

Welcome!



Hello Everyone!  My name is Eric and this is my unbiased review blog of my Denver Colorado's dining experiences.

I'm glad you decided to drop by and I hope my experiences (both good and bad) will lead you to the most enjoyable Denver dining experiences!!

A little about myself...  I'm have been a foodie since I was able to hold a fork!  I had the great fortune of having parents that have a great love of the gastronomy arts and passed that along to me.  I view the dining experience as a whole...

PS..  Please give me your opinions and personal reviews!!!  I welcome and hope for comments on my reviews (both good and bad).  My goal for this blog is to create a forum to discuss all things Denver Dining.

Again, thanks for stopping by!!



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