Via Italian Table - Worcester, MA - Ian

My friends had been talking about this restaurant since long before it opened. They knew who was opening it, where it was opening and what it was going to be. A lot of anticipation was built. Well, we finally made it over there on Saturday night, almost a month after they opened their doors.




The Ambiance and Location
The first impression was great. Stunning styles, oval tables and candle-chandeliers. It seems as though they achieved the look they were going for: neo-old-world-Italian...if that's not an oxymoron for you. One of my favorite features was the fact that the kitchen is wide open and you can see everything that goes on. That means it's clean. Always a good thing when dining out. And sitting at those oval tables was a neat experience.

And of course, add to that Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, which a sign on 290 labels as the "Cultural District", and you've got yourself a hot spot. And it certainly is a hot spot, from the looks of the clientele wining, dining and feeling free.

The Service
Unfortunately, I can't say as much for the service. I didn't really notice it myself until my friends mentioned it. Our server was very attentive and friendly, but the runners that brought out our food seemed kind of careless, practically throwing our plates down on the table.

The Food
The menu was very simple and interesting, although I felt that the variety was a bit lacking and I was disappointed not to find a dear favorite of mine, fettuccine Alfredo, even though I know it's more of an Italian-American dish.

My wife and I split an order of calamari that was very pleasing. I thought the marinara was sufficient. The breading on the squid rings was very light and crunchy, just as it should be. I was able to sample what my friends ordered, thought I kept it simple and decided to try the pesto sauce, which I was very pleased with. I got it on farfalle--always a good choice to hold that sauce.

I was able to sample their pizza, vodka sauce and a mozzarella salad on toast, which was very sweet with balsamic vinegar--yummy. I enjoyed the samplings, though nothing really struck me as groundbreaking.

For dessert, my wife and I ordered the crepe cake, which was a tad bit disappointing. It came with an insufficient drizzling of black cherry sauce that was tasty. Without the sauce however, there was not much to the flavor of the crepe cake. We would have liked to have seen more sauce. On the other hand, my friends who ordered the chocolate cake dish were very happy with it.

All in all, I'd say that Via Italian Table has a bit of a way to go in order to reach the bar set by its steak house counterpart, One Eleven Chophouse, from the same restaurant group. I would definitely go back again for the pleasing and fun atmosphere, but I'm hoping to see it mature and catch up to its fantastic cousins--111 and the Sole.

Here's the scorecard:
// Menu Selection: 7.8
// Taste: 8.4
// Presentation: 9.2
// Ambiance/Atmosphere: 10
// Service: 6.7

http://www.viaitaliantable.com