Rosie's Italian Grille (Toledo, OH)

5/9/09

In one word, I can sum up how I feel about Rosie's Italian Grille (RIG): Under-impressed. Under-impressed, I tell ya! Given the surrounding hype of being the best trattoria in town, I walked in with high expectations. Either people around here have really low standards when it comes to Italian food or my standards of Italian cuisine have somehow escalated in a nine-month span. A Macaroni Grill in disguise, even the dining room area bore semblance to the U.S. chain. And no, I am not being facetious.

Upon having taken our seats at our reserved table, we were soon greeted by a polite server who quickly took down our order for the smoked fish dip while we peruse the menu some more. Our appetizer was brought out momentarily but not without our server's forgetting the bread and dipping oil. When I requested a bread basket, his response was formulated as though it was another appetizer option as opposed to it being complimentary. Moving onto the actual smoked fish dip itself. Despite the enticing sounding appetizer (and presentation), it failed to deliver what the menu had described as the dip tasted more like a tuna salad instead. While I thoroughly enjoyed the crispy flatbread, I found the cocktail sauce (again, generic Kraft-tasting cocktail sauce) to be highly unnecessary.


For my main, I opted for the Margherita Pizza seeing how RIG was a pizzeria before it became all fancy schmancy. Unfortunately, one cannot fathom my mistake in ordering the pizza. Never again will I order pizza at an Italian restaurant. From here on out, they will only be ordered at pizza joints. To start, one look at the thin crust pizza alone is enough to bring on cardiac arrest. In fact, it was so greasy it makes the Meat Lover's Pizza from Pizza Hut look like health food. Mind you, this is only mozarella, tomatoes, basil, and tomato sauce. Imagine the damage if meat were to be added to the calorific concoction.

My parents' dishes were rather dull and were lukewarm when brought to the table. My mom's Chicken Lazy Days, while tastier than my dad's Chicken Marsala, was mediocre as the heavy breading took away from the natural juices of the meat. The clump of Asiago Cheese lended an unessential component as well. The chicken marsala was also quite weak. Typically, one would expect the Marsala wine to give the dish a distinct sweet flavor and aroma, but neither were to be found on the plate. Instead, heavily breaded (again!) chicken breasts shone in beige and tasted beige. Surprisingly, the only shining factor to both entrees was the risotto. Cheesy and buttery while preserving some resistance, I would have enjoyed it had I not been losing a battle to the aforementioned grease galore.


Hoping to end the meal on a slightly good note, we chose to split the tiramisu. Much like Stella's, there is no dessert menu but rather a dessert tray. As I've learned from previous experiences, this isn't always indicative of fresher offerings. In fact, it could just be pure laziness on the restaurant's part. Rich and creamy with just the right amount of moist, the tiramisu was a good way to end the meal. Hints of espresso, vanilla, and cocoa were subtle enough to not detract us from enjoying the dessert. Best tiramisu I've had to date though? So far from it, but at least the cake itself wasn't swimming in a pool of espresso.

From the food being disappointing at best to our server being slightly forgetful at times, I must say that I was a smidge embarrassed to have picked RIG to celebrate my mom's birthday. Despite having made reservations a few days earlier, we were also seated in a booth right next to the kitchen, which made the entire dining experience rather awkward as other servers and busboys were hustling and bustling during the duration of our meal. All 1.5 hours of it. With other Italian dining options in town, I felt as though I should have chosen from more established eateries such as Ciao and Mancy's Italian. Chances are, we probably would have a more pleasant experience.

Rating: **

Rosie's Italian Grille
606 N Mccord Rd
Toledo, OH 43615
(419) 866-5007

Wixey Bakery (Toledo, OH)

Wixey Bakery is one of those establishments that makes Toledo proud, and understandably so, given the expertly crafted sweets and cakes. This bakery has been around for a few decades so its popularity extends far beyond the confines of the 419. The smell emanating certainly penetrates beyond just Glendale Ave. Upon stepping inside, one can expect to be greeted by a cheery employee, or several, ready to take your order(s) in a blink of an eye. Newbies, like myself, or indecisive eaters, again like myself, typically will have to sheepishly ask for a few minutes to browse the offerings.

Dinner rolls, bread buns, and pies line one side of the wall, where seasonal pie offerings and specialty cakes can be found on the table placed in the middle of the bakery. Sweets such as donuts, cookies, cinnamon rolls, and eclairs can be found inside the pastry cases by the register. In addition to the numerous options, there is something else that Wixey Bakery is quite well-known for: its cakes. Whatever the occasion may be (e.g. birthdays, weddings, graduation, etc.), most Toledoans will undoubtedly claim that cake creations are of unparalleled quality.

Having purchased two birthday cakes in a year from Wixey now -- both for my parents on their respective birthdays -- I can honestly say that it lives up to hype. Fluffy and light, these cakes do not deliver the sugar comatose that comes with some birthday cakes from other bakeries. Passing the taste test without breaking the bank (as one might expect from a place that delivers such high-caliber quality) proves to be a 'winner' in my book!

It comes without saying that my trips to Wixey doesn't stop at just the birthday cakes. Often times, I find myself coming home with tempting seasonal favorites such as the pumpkin roll and the mini peanut butter cake. Other times, I will even make the trek out to the bakery for its pumpkin pie, which boasts quite the crust while maintaining the texture of pumpkin. Other sweets I have sampled thus far include the vanilla and chocolate cupcakes, cannolis, and the nut kolache. All has been delightful in their own ways.

I blame the wide variety of sweets and pastries that Wixey offers for my not having had the chance to try the donuts, fruit turnovers, and the like. One of these days, however, I will get my hands on those divine-looking, glazed, deep-fried wholesome goodnesses.

Rating: *****

Wixey Bakery
2017 Glendale Ave
Toledo, OH 43614

Fat Fish Blue (Perrysburg, OH)

(Photo courtesy of FFB website)5/5/09

Blink and you may just miss Fat Fish Blue! In fact, one may not even know FFB exists until he/she has driven to the far end of Levis Commons (and by far end, I mean next to Nagoya.) I certainly didn't until a friend alluded to said restaurant. But trust me, this place is worth the extra drive/walk/[enter means of commute here]. For those of us who have been craving some Southern and Creole cooking for some time now, we should be thanking our lucky stars to have such a restaurant in town. Southern favorites such as Crawfish Etouffee and Po' Boys can be found on the menu, as well as everyday favorites such as ribs and crabcakes.


My favorite crew (of seven, who enjoy ethnic dining just as much as yours truly) and I swung by without reservations for Cinco de Mayo at 5:30pm to find only a handful of diners in the dining area. Typically, this never bodes well, but in the case of FFB, I can only blame the restaurant's lack of publicity. Of course, it was also Cinco de Mayo. We were immediately taken care by a friendly server and drink orders were taken. Due to a lack of communication between the employees on both floors, one dining companion never got the beer he ordered and had to settle for other options.


Once drink orders were placed, we were faced with the rather difficult decision as to what to order when faced with the myriad options of delicious sounding entrees! Just as an aside, nothing from the appetizer menu particularly stood out (or at least for me it didn't); I personally think that they have just about every single crawfish preparation method possible on the list of appetizers, hence, my opting for entree and dessert instead on this dining escapade.




I simply could not pass up ordering Crawfish Etouffee ($17.99) in a city that lacks authentic and/or ethnic dining. The gravy had just the right blend of green pepper and bayleaf and there wasn't one spice that was overpowering. Also, despite having requested less butter when preparing the gravy, I honestly could not taste the difference as it was still rich with flavors a-bursting. The crawfish themselves were well-prepared, as proven by the firm yet slightly chewy texture of the crustacean. The so-called house rice was rather pedestrian and a bit too hard to be enjoyed. Needless to say, a good portion of that left untouched, while I happily polished off the crawdads.


I managed to sneak in a couple bites of the blackened salmon and catfish -- both of which were juicy, well-seasoned, and left very little to be desired. Another dining companion, a pesketarian, opted for the wild mushroom ravioli, which was equally delicious. If portabella and shitake stuffed ANYTHING was this delicious, I might consider becoming a vegetarian myself :)




The dessert menu, while limited, was quite impressive. Two options particularly caught my eye -- namely, the Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding ($5.29; topped with buttery bourbon sauce) and the Carpetbagger ($6.99; described as "the amazing chocolate sack, loaded with sponge cake, fresh fruit, and Godiva white chocolate mousse.") Yes, I eventually settled with the latter. How could I not with its superfluous, mouth-watering inducing description?! Well, it was all the aforementioned presented with a firework on the stick, which prompted wishes of a happy birthday from my friends -- a wonderful touch had it been my birthday :)


If the thought of my finishing the behemoth dessert all on my own even crossed your mind, think again. Even with half of the group attacking the chocolate sack, we were rather hard-pressed to finish it. Fluffy, light, rich, delightful... not enough words could be used to describe the Carpetbagger. It easily tops my Top 10 favorite desserts list.



The aftermath of the nicely presented dessert was... well, not so nice, but that's not important. What is important was that it was enjoyed by all. However, full stomachs were not all that we walked away with as everyone was presented with beads to take home.


All in all, despite a few minor glitches here and there (including the plucking of certain items from the menu online), Fat Fish Blue was a solid dining experience. The food was outstanding and the service attentive. The atmosphere, in addition to the great selection of music, makes FFB a good place for catching up with friends over drinks and, of course, the Southern culinary delights. However, food and drinks are not all that FFB has to offer, as this is a comedy club as well. Talk about the perfect trifecta for winding down after a long day or simply to recharge for the rest of the week!

Rating: ****

Fat Fish Blue
6140 Levis Commons Blvd
Perrysburg, OH 43551
(419) 931-3474