Review: Maggiano's Little Italy in Denver

Maggiano's Little Italy is an Italian restaurant in the Downtown are of Denver, Colorado. Normally restaurant chains such as The Olive Garden, offer very generic dishes. However, Maggiano's does the idea of Italian restaurant chains one-step better than the norm.

The restaurant has several featured items available. A favorite is the Gnocchi with Tomato Vodka Sauce. This dish features pasta that is stuffed with ricotta cheese paired with a pomodoro cream sauce with vodka and roasted garlic. A specialty of the meat variety is the Chicken Saltimbocca, which are chicken breasts, which are breaded and covered with fresh sage, prosciutto and provolone cheese and drizzled in a light veal sauce with caramelized onions. For a different twist on seafood, one can try the Lobster Ravioli. This dish according to the Maggiano's website is a "Basil & Saffron Pasta Filled with Fresh Lobster Meat in a Light Lobster Cream Sauce".

In the area of drinks, this restaurant has a vast wine list that contains many different options to compliment your entrée of choice. They also have several different kinds of martinis. Three of the specialties are the Sour Apple Martini, Carmel Apple Martini, and the Red Delicious Martini. The first two use Smirnoff Green Apple Twist and the latter uses Crown Royal and DeKuyper Sour Apple Pucker.

For vegetarians dining at Maggiano's, there are several options. The Angel Hair Pasta with Coach Joey Z's Pomodoro Sauce, which is a chunky plum tomato sauce with roasted garlic, white wine and fresh basil is an excellent choice. Vegans may also like the Eggplant Parmesan, which is breaded eggplant that is layered with provolone cheese and marinara sauce.

The lunch menu's prices range from $6-$19. The dinner menu's prices range from $8-$32.

Take out food is available. This location also offers a special delivery menu. This menu is suited for groups of at least 8 to 10 people. There is a minimum order of $125. There is also a delivery fee of $20 or 15% of the food and beverage total, whichever is more. On a weekend night, without a reservation a party of four is looking at a wait time of 30 minutes. For the kiddies, this is a family friendly place. They have a kids menu that includes some Italian dishes as well as the kid's menu staple of chicken fingers.

The restaurant is located at 500 16^th Street, 16^th Street Mall Promenade, Denver, Colorado 80202. Their phone number is 303.260.7707. Restaurant hours are Sunday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

This establishment offers free parking. They also provide a free shuttle to and from surrounding hotels as well as the Denver Convention Center. Contact the restaurants for further details. Reservations can be made by calling the restaurant of by visiting the website. The dress code is casual, so no need to wear your church clothes.

As a whole Maggiano's Little Italy does allow it's patrons to have the opportunity to cross over in to Italy for a short period. For a chain restaurant, this establishment is top notch.