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April 27, 2007
A Near Perfect Night at Carrabas
Recently, hubby offered to take me out of dinner. I jumped at the chance and suggested an Italian place that I had seen advertised and that looked good. So, we went to the Carrabas in Brandon, Florida.
(I specify which location because not all restaurants are created equal, even if they are the same company. Sure, the menu and such are the same, but the execution often varies from place to place. And execution really matters.)
When we first entered, I was surprised (and a bit put off) by how dark it was inside the restaurant. There was spot lighting on each of the tables, presumably so diners could see their food and companions, but otherwise it was too dimly lit for my tastes. My eyes did adjust though and then it didn't bother me anymore.
We were warmly greeted by a waiter who started off great and continued to provide first-class service the whole way through, despite the fact that he seemed to have an obscene number of tables to care for. (We were pre-dinner rush, about 4:30pm, so maybe not all the staff was on yet.) He was knowledgeable, friendly and attentive – all the things you want in a waiter. I realized too late that I should have jotted down his name, but I'm pretty sure it was Sean. (Not sure if he spells it that way or not.)
I ordered a sangria because I love sangria. But it was too wine-heavy for me. I wanted it to be sweeter, fruitier, and fizzier. More fruit juice and Sprite, less red wine. I'm sure it was fine, just not the type of sangria I'm used to. (My favorite sangria can be had at Jaleo in Washington, DC. Yum.)
The sangria didn't appeal to me, but otherwise the meal was delicious in the extreme! We had sausage and peppers as an appetizer. I just ate the peppers since I don't like sausage and hardly ever eat meat. The peppers were so good that I saved some to add to my entrée.
I was in the mood for a ravioli or tortellini dish with veggies instead of meat, but didn't find such a thing. So, I ordered the Mezzaluna: "Delicate half moon ravioli stuffed with chicken, ricotta and spinach, in a tomato cream sauce." I hoped it wasn't big chunks of chicken, because I don't really like chicken that much. I needn't have worried though because the dish was all kinds of wonderful. (No discernable chunks of chicken in ravioli that small.) I was in heaven. I don't think there was a scrap of food left on my plate by the end.
I asked about dessert and Sean became our "walking, talking dessert menu." I ordered the Blue Bell vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce and (what my memory recalls as) sugared walnuts (or maybe pecans). It was also delicious.
All together, it was a stellar experience. Delicious (and plentiful) food. Great service. Nice ambiance (once I got used to the dim lighting).
I'll be back at Carrabas for sure. (Is tonight too soon?) And I highly recommend it to you. Probably most Carrabas could provide you with the same stellar experience I got at the one in Brandon. (At least that's the way it's supposed to be.)
If you've had a similar (or dissimilar) experience at a Carrabas, feel free to post about it in the comments. (The comments are moderated and won't appear until I approve them, but I'd still like to hear from you.)
Happy dining, everyone!
Posted by Selena at April 27, 2007 07:44 AM