From January 13th-25th, it’s Philly Restaurant Week in the Center City District. Occurring twice a year, one can pop through the Gayborhood to Rittenhouse for three-course, prix-fixe meals at discounted prices—$20 for lunch, $35 for dinner. I typically hype myself up to try somewhere new for a great deal, only to end up ordering off the Restaurant Week menu anyway.
Not this time, folks.
I tried two Italian spots—one for lunch and one for dinner—and stuck to the Restaurant Week menus for the first time ever. Thrifty!
Disclaimer: both of these dining experiences were relatively unplanned, so I ordered pretty similarly from both. Do observe the red sauce + chocolate/caramel theme and laugh accordingly.
Barbuzzo
I had lunch at Barbuzzo in the Gayborhood first—a Mediterranean spot that leans Italian. We sat at the bar and had great service, getting us in and out in less than an hour. I ordered the butternut squash arancini (forgot to photograph), the rigatoni bolognese, and the salted caramel budino. I was pleased! The butternut squash was a rich spin on an Italian staple. The rigatoni was so filling and comforting, it reminded me of afternoons spent at my grandmothers. And the budino… you just have to try it yourself.
Scarpetta
I had high hopes for Scarpetta, an upscale Italian semi-chain overlooking Rittenhouse Square. Was the food wonderful? Yes. But the service was, quite frankly, awful. And I can normally overlook bad service if the food is good.
The servers (we had multiple because apparently no one remembered we were there) were unenthused. They took ages to even take a drink order, let alone bring them out. They forgot our second round of bread until we were done with our entrees. Our desserts took 30 minutes to come out. Overall, we were there for an *unnecessarily tiresome* two hours.
We all had the creamy mushroom polenta, which is obscenely good. I had the delicious basil spaghetti (the pasta was fresh made). And lastly, a deep chocolate lava cake with caramel ice cream. It was a good meal undeservingly tarnished by poor service.
What’s on your list for the last two days of Philly Restaurant Week 2019? The list is vast and you’re sure to fall in love.