Buca Di Beppo in Dallas, Texas

We had pictured out first wedding anniversary dinner as something special; my husband made the whole meal a surprise and was excited to take me to somewhere he kept referring to as our special place. Three years prior to our wedding anniversary, our first date was a banquet dinner at Buca di Beppo (7843 Park Lane Dallas, Tx 75225) where we instantly hit it off and corny as it sounds, fell in love. The food and atmosphere were both fun and romantic, and set the ambiance for a romantic night. So, when my husband pulled up to this restaurant for our first wedding anniversary, I found myself teary-eyed that he had put that much thought in to our meal (as we had not returned to this restaurant since that first date.)

On our first visit, the building was packed. When we arrived for our anniversary dinner, there were very few cars in the parking lot. As the prices are semi-high, I chalked the fact that no one was there because of the economy.

We were seated promptly, ironically enough in the same section as where we sat on our first date. Things were off to a good start. But then, we waited for a server for nearly fifteen minutes. My husband had to flag someone down to tell them we had not been helped. The server, who actually turned out to be the young man who was supposed to be in charge of our section, immediately acted as if he did not want to be there and we were a splinter in his side for making him work. He did not explain that the menu is served in family portions small (feeds up to three) and large (feeds up to six), so we would have not understood the menu if we had not been there before.

We ordered an appetizer - garlic bread (not included in the meal price like it is at most restaurants) for $8.99; about ten minutes later, our drinks and bread arrived at the same time. Our bread was tossed on the table to where one piece flew out of the basket; our waiter left before we had the chance to ask where the dipping oil, including in the cost of what we ordered, was. We had to flag down another waiter and ask him to get us the rest of our appetizer; by the time the oil arrived, we were finished with our bread.

We also ordered a mixed green salad for $9.99; it was just OK. There was nothing special about it and was not nearly as fresh as it had been when we were there for our first date.

We had not been able to decide on one entree, so we ordered the quattro al forno (cheese manicotti, chicken cannelloni, baked ravioli, and stuffed shells) for $17.49. When the meal arrived, our waiter brought out the family dish and two plates for us to serve ourselves (as is customary at this restaurant). He immediately left our table before I had a chance to look down at my supposedly clean plate only to find it stained with dried sauce and cheese.

My poor husband was starving, but waited another ten minutes before we found someone to get me a clean plate before he would eat. By then, our food was cold and not enjoyable, especially after the service we had been given.

With the delays in time from our waiter, we were well over the normal time of a nice meal, and had to rush out in order to make it to the second part of our date night. For a meal that cost over $50.00 for two people, we were highly disappointed. My husband, who does not normally complain and takes things as they are, called the manager of Buca di Beppo the following Monday; when asked the name of our waiter, the manager sighed and said "not again." (Not sure why this waiter is still on staff if complaints are constantly rolling in.)

The manager offered us a free dessert (valued at under $10.00) the next time we came in. A free dessert, but no real apology for ruining the meal of our first wedding anniversary? Thanks, but no thanks. They can keep their over-priced, mediocre food and horrible service. I will whip up my own dessert at home for less than 1/10 of the cost of another meal at this restaurant.