Mercato

Ms. K is getting married!! All the bridesmaids got together to try on dresses, but since she is so diligent we only had to try on one dress and it was PERFECT!  Once we were done with the dress shopping, we decided to have some lunch.  Thanks to urbanspoon, we selected Mercato.  A decent Italian restaurant.  We showed up at that awkward time between lunch and dinner, but they were still serving brunch - awesome! I love a flexible menu.  We started off with appetizers, which were actually not meant for the table...whoops!

The Caponata was pretty good.  Sicilian eggplant ratatouille.  I really wish it had a little more to it flavor wise.  Pretty uncomplicated but not terrible.  I didn't get a chance to try the Spinaci Salad.

It looked great though and was generally well received by our table.  Ms. M ordered the Rigatoni Norma Con Ricotta Salata.

Rigatoni with fresh tomatoes, eggplant and salted ricotta.  She enjoyed the flavor, but left quite a bit in the plate.  Since she took it home, I assume it was good enough to finish at another time.  The elder Ms. K ordered the Ravioli Di Ricotta E Spinaci Al Burro E Salvia.

It was homemade ravioli filled with spinach and ricotta with a butter and sage sauce.  She didn't comment on the taste but she did finish her meal so I assume it was delicious.  Ms. K and I ordered the Spaghetti Fatti In Casa Al Pomodoro Fresco.

Homemade spaghetti with fresh tomato, garlic and basil.  I'm a huge fan of fresh pasta so I was really looking forward to it.  It tasted pretty good but unfortunately some of the pasta was not cooked well and tasted a little crunchy.  le sigh.  The sauce was hearty but a little tart so that also had an impact on my ability to truly enjoy this meal.  Luckily I was hungry enough that I cleaned it up and also used my bread to sop up the less than stellar sauce.

Mercato is an average restaurant that will definitely offer you good food at a fair price.  It's not the best Italian in the city, but sometimes you don't need the best - you just need something in the area to get it done.  Mercato is that something.

Hungry yet?