Tuesday, 25 September 2007

• Nicola's Ristorante Italiano

  5800 Legacy Dr
  Plano, TX 75024
  972 608-4455
  http://www.nicolaslegacy.com

  The recently built Shops on Legacy has quickly become the place with all the great restaurants from quick sandwich lunches to fancy ribs, rated second best in the US by the Food Channel, at Jasper's (I didn't think they were that good).  One of fancier restaurants serving Italian cuisine is Nicola's. 

  

  A nicely decorated modern interior with a bias to dark colours:

  

  Calamari Fritti - Lightly floured calamari with garlic aioli and tomato marinara sauces:

  

  It's very much like tempura done Italian style with calamari and vegetables.  Very fresh and crispy.  Definitely worth ordering.

  Bruschetta Pomodoro e Pecorino - Grilled Italian bread with diced tomato, basil, garlic and Pecorino cheese:

  

  Very cheesy so it causes the bread to be fairly mushy.  I prefer the calamari.

  Salad:

  

  I really forgot why I ordered it and what it was called but it was very plain with no dressing.  I should have gotten a vingarette dressing with it.

  Casarecci alla Bolognese - Hand-made pasta with savory meat sauce and Parmigiano-Reggiano:

  

  Rolled up pasta in cylinders.  They're thick but flavorless.  There was a lot of ground beef but not a lot of tomato sauce.  It's a very starchy meal that I never considered ordering again.  Some of my friends liked the hand made pasta but it wasn't to my taste.

  Dentice al Forno con Carciofi - Roasted red snapper with artichoke hearts, onions, and tomatoes:

  

  Scaloppine di Vitello ai Funghi e Marsala - Pan-seared veal medallions, mushrooms, and Marsala wine reduction served with Gorgonzola polenta and asparagus:

  

  Nothing special about this dish.  There's a lot of gravy and it masks any positive or negative natural taste in the veal.  It could have been meat loaf in there and I wouldn't be able to tell apart from meat texture.

  There were a lot of dishes I didn't care too much to order again but the calamari definitely stands out and would be the only reason I'd come back to this restaurant.  Service is good and attentive but nothing special to note.  Pricing is reasonable with appetizers ranging from $6-14, dinner dishes average $26, lunch pasta dishes average $12, and dessert average $7.

  Eric Tummy Points: 3.5 out of 5

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