Restaurant Review: Romano's Macaroni Grill Italian Restaurant

My favorite tried and true choice for a restaurant is a chain. I know, many of you will do whatever you can to stay away from a chain restaurant. But this one is different.

I choose Romano's Macaroni Grill Italian Restaurant. Their menu may change by location and I was unable to tell how many restaurants they have throughout the United States. To find one close to you, enter your address into their website, once you choose a location, you can view their menu. Their menu offers lunch, dinner, family style and to go items. Food choices range from Antipasti (appetizer), Brick Oven Pizza, Insalata (salad), Soups, Pasta, Over Stuffed Pasta, Amore De La Grill, Classico Italian, a Kid's Menu and Desserts. Their menu has wine suggestions for each entrée.

Upon being seated, you are provided fresh bread and olive oil for dipping. I tend to prefer bread and butter, but this combination is crave worthy. I tend to order the Mango flavored iced tea, another craving. My husband prefers the flavored lemonade. We enjoy the house salad which is dressed with better than typical Italian dressing, a bit sweat and tangy at the same time. It includes greens, onions, olives and croutons. Our entrée is usually one of their registered dishes: Penne Rustica. This includes shrimp, grilled chicken and smoked prosciutto baked with a cream sauce and a parmesan crust. Don't forget the dessert. I highly recommend the Lemon passion, which is a citrus cake, soaked in a sweet cream and topped with lemon mousse and whipped cream served on a plate garnished with a caramel sauce, which compliments the cake. Don't be surprised by the lemon flavor, the cake is a bit dense from the soaking but very worth the extra calories.

While this might not sound like a new concept in dinning, the casual atmosphere is comfortable. The open kitchen concept is interesting while separate enough to not add too much noise or distraction from your dinning table. The layout of the restaurant is open enough and yet you are able to have an intimate conversation. But the best part for me is in the service. The service is always reliable. One dinning experience, we weren't that hungry so we said we were going to split an entrée and salad. I was surprised to see that they actually split them in the kitchen for us. There is not additional charge and they don't seem to be put off by our request. This wasn't a flook either since we have requested it on other occasions and had the same great service. This way, we've been able to try more items by ordering an appetizer, salad, entrée and dessert and we split them all.

We try many different restaurants. We eat out at least once a week if not more. But, we always return to Romano's Macaroni Grill Italian Restaurant for good food and great service.